Just an update!

I've been pretty chill about blogging lately. I do a lot of writing for work and sometimes I just don't feel like writing any more when I get home! And I just don't force myself to write if I don't want to. I'm lazy like that.

I am starting a new job as a legal assistant. Although I will miss my old job, this new job is a big blessing for me, and I'm really excited for this next step in my career.

We love where we live. Sam loves his classes and is making excellent progress on his degree. I am so proud of him! I just love our little life together. We get so stressed out about life, but we have each other, and that gets us through life's crazy times.

Hope you all have a great day!

It's not candy.

When I was in elementary school, we had a lot of motivational speakers and activists speak at my elementary school and do assemblies. They were supposed to be life changing. And most of them were, in one way or another. There was one that was particularly life changing.

The speaker starts the speech asking “Who’s a fan of M & M?”

And my hand shoots up into the hair because who isn’t a fan of the brightly colored candy that doesn’t melt in your hand and comes in several varieties, including peanut, almond, and pretzel? Not to mention those are my initials, which makes them especially important in my life.

But then the speaker starts going on about how M & M is a misogynist who raps about killing his wife and doing terrible things to women. How dare we worship this awful person who is morally corrupting our society!

I was pretty confused. I thought she was talking about yummy candy. I don’t even think I knew what rapping was or what it sounded like.

My life was great and I was pretty innocent and untainted before I learned that Eminem is not a candy. I don’t know why that lady had to come in and ruin all of that for me.

I guess adults really like to lecture kids they don’t know because it’s easier to do that then talk to congress, or marketers, or whatever. And maybe there were some kids in that gym who really needed to hear about evil Eminem, I don’t know.

Looking back, I would have appreciated learning how to identify sexism in elementary school. But one assembly by one random person (who was making pop culture references way over my head) probably wasn’t the way to do it.

the first of many posts on our wedding

I love our wedding pictures. There are just so many of them! Going through them is hard because I kind of love them all. But considering it has almost been a year since the big day, I probably should post a few photos or two!

These are from the reception.

There will be more. Many, many more. Photography by Lindsey Hale.

Ragnar at Last!

Have you ever watched that show “I Didn’t Know I was Pregnant?”

Well I kind of feel like that was my life last week (minus the baby part). It was an unexpected journey.

On Monday, one of my friends on Facebook said that she needed another runner for their Ragnar teams that weekend. They had some of their team members drop out because of injury and other conflicts and they needed someone ASAP.

I’d always wanted to do a Ragnar Relay Series, but I’d never had the chance. Getting a team together takes a lot of time, money, and organization, and that’s just if you get in! The race usually sells out very quickly.

I jumped at the chance to run in the relay. I was nervous because although I had been running and exercising, I hadn’t been training for this race specifically. But I trusted in my body and the adrenaline therein and decided to take the plunge.

Before I knew it, I was in a van with five other people I didn’t know on my way to the starting line in Logan.

I was runner 6. My first leg was 6.9 miles and rated “hard.” But I was fresh and most of it was downhill, so it was manageable. It became hotter and hotter as I ran down into Liberty, but the view was amazing.

My second leg was 8 miles and I started around 8:30 at night. I was already a little stiff and tired, but I tried not to think about the journey that lay ahead of me. I knew it was going to be long and dark.

I wasn’t used to running with a headlamp, but I knew it was necessary so I wouldn’t get killed, or worse, disqualified.

The road stretched on and on...but it was one I’d travelled before on my way to Girls Camp. But as night fell, the road became less and less familiar and all I could do was follow the headlamps of the other runners ahead of me. My running playlist was starting to get boring. I tried not to walk too much, but the road was became so steep at times that walking was my only option!

My support van stopped about every mile to offer me water and food. (Those random ginger snap cookies were the best!)

By the last mile, it was all I could do from saying the worst possible swear words. This was harder than my half marathon! Just when I thought the exchange would be around the corner, it wasn’t, and a huge hill would be there instead.

It was during that second leg that I took a moment to close my eyes and thank my Heavenly Father for my body. I think C. Jane Kendrick said it best: “I exercise to thank my body, not change it.” I was moving for an hour and a half -- forward and upward, into darkness. Although I was heaving and my legs hurt, I was going. My body knew what to do. It knew how to run. I wasn’t the fastest runner, but it didn’t matter. I was moving.

One thing that kept me moving was knowing that Sam would probably be there at the finish line. I didn’t have great cell service, so I hadn’t talked to him in a while. But I knew he was going to try and be there to see me come in. Oh how I couldn’t wait to see my husband at the finish line!

My pants are really high up on my waist because I had to wear a little butt light. Don't give me crap about this.

I look like I'm drunk. I'm not, but you can give me crap about this part if you want. I also kind of look like a Native American. (Braids plus headband, anyone?)

The whole route is absolutely gorgeous. My camera’s battery died, so I just had to take in the views as memories. Rolling green hills, yellow and green fields, small towns of small cottages, towering rocky mountains... a dead deer or two...

My last leg was through Heber, and it was only 2.1 miles. Nice and easy.

Most of the time is actually spent in the van, supporting whomever was currently running. This is excellent bonding time. We were all Ragnar Newbies, so we didn’t have any crazy costumes or crazy sayings written on our van windows. I loved my team!

Some of the highlights from the van:

• Popping the “orange candy” (ibuprofen).
• Sharing water bottles willy nilly. We did not care about hygiene. All that mattered is that we were drinking water.
• Our dorky little cheer.
• That moan that comes out after you step out of the van for the first time after running.
• Getting really excited to see the “portas.”
• Noticing the same vans over and over and giving them nicknames. (Jesus van, dirty van, running buddy van etc.)
• Trying to find food with the most calories and carbs possible. (You need all the energy you can get during Ragnar)
• The enthusiastic, helpful volunteers all along the way.

Crossing the finish line felt so good!

Sam was so amazing at supporting me in this! I love him so much! (He took all the pictures in this post. Except the one his in in.)

-Meg

Things that make me happy right now

There is much rejoicing in the land!

My cousin Kyle got his mission call to Lyon, France. He leaves in September.

These penguins named after the Prince William and the Duchess of Cambridge are expecting a baby penguin. Yes.

Also, Will, Kate, and Harry wave wands in Harry Potter world.

This really expensive, but effective shaving cream from Lush. Sometimes my skin is very sensitive when I shave, which is why I need to go all out sometimes.

The Salt Lake Community Co-op. (Yay for awesome veggies!)

A million and a half weddings this summer. Love is in the air.

Everyone is getting jobs! One of note is my husband: Sam has a new job at America First. (I guess that makes us DINKs now?) My mom also got a job as a kindergarten teacher.

This video by Mr. Hill and Mr. Hoye.

Yoga. Especially hot yoga.

Namaste.

The Big Apple

New York City couldn’t be more iconic. I feel like I know exactly what to expect when I get there because I have heard so much about it and seen so many movies and TV shows that take place there.

At the same time, I know it’s going unexpected because that’s what New York makes New York. You can’t understand it until you’ve been there.

I leave for NYC Saturday. Since I’m going for work, I won’t have a lot of time to explore. But I’ll be taking the subway, eating local food, and talking with hair stylists who live and work in New York. I’ll also probably be battling my people claustrophobia.

Wish me luck!

Trust in the Invisable

I loving learning by antecdotes. That's why I love blogs so much. Stories are one of my favorite parts of church. Stories are what make the scriptures come alive for me.

I love sharing my own stories. I'm my favorite person to write about. And while I get pretty personal, there are many things that I don't tell the whole world. There are myriad reasons that I don't share, and I can't even tell you those reasons.

You're just going to have to trust that there are good reasons. Some of these invisable, untold stories are the most moving and important stories of my life, but they must remain untold.

Thinking about my own invisable stories can be frustrating, but it has also helped me have more compassion for others. Everyone has untold stories. We have to be OK with not knowing everything about everyone and still being kind to them even though we don't understand their whole story. My mom always said that the people who are hardest to love need it the most.

I've also realized that other people don't think about invisable stories. So they're judgemental and rude. And that's OK. They just haven't learned that lesson in life yet. They will get there.

This weekend has been so wonderful. LDS General Conference concluded today and it warmed my soul and strengthened my spirit. I just wanted to share some of my thoughts with you. I want to start writing more on this blog. Because I have plenty of very visable stories.

-Meg

My life story: Hairs in Mysterious Places

If you're a girl who wears her hair long, or if you're a dude has ever had long hair, then you know what the unpleasantness of having a long hair stuck in your butt crack is like.

I don't know exactly how they get there, but they do, and it's miserable until you can get to the bathroom and get it out.

But when you're in elementary school, you can't just go to the bathroom whenever you want. ("That's what recess is for!")

One time. when I was in third grade, I had a really terrible hair in my butt. It was made worse by the fact that I was wearing leggings, and I just couldn't wait until recess to go get it out. So when I thought that no one was looking, I reached my hand down the back of my pants and got that butt hair out.

But of course, to my horror, what do I hear from across the room?

"Megan's itching her butt!"

I felt as stupid and useless as a hair stuck in a butt crack.

And the kid's name was Ty. I remember him because he was pretty much bald himself and I was bothered by the fact that his name didn't have any proper vowels.

I'm sorry if you were offended by this post. But this is a true story, and the world needs to know that butt crack hairs are the worst, and there are millions of men and women with long hair who have to deal with this misery.

-Meg

I'm going to the windy city tomorrow

I like the way that the second C and G softly ricochet around my mouth when I say “Chicago.”

I hadn’t really thought about the city a lot until I knew that I would be going there. But I knew that it was one of those giant cities that was different from New York and Los Angeles, the first two biggest cities in the US. Chicago is the third biggest, and I know it has its own identity, even if I couldn’t put my finger on exactly what it is. I think I'll know more after I visit it.

Chicago reminds me of red, the world fair, deep-dish pizza, and that really big fire. Oh, and Michael Jordan and the Bulls. I know it is a windy city and that it is really cold.

I go to Chicago for the first time in my life tomorrow. I am excited to eat, fly, and hear other accents. Those are my favorite things about traveling.

Eating is the best part of any trip. I love eating good food.

I will miss Sam while I am gone.

Nothing as lovely as a tree

We took in a stray tree a few days ago. We just found it on our apartment doorstep and couldn’t bare to send it back into the cold.

We weren’t sure about its breed, but we knew it was sick and hungry and that it needed our help.

We’ve never been parents, so we turned to one of the experts for help--Sam’s mom, Sue.

She suggested some disciplinary tactics...AKA pruning. Sam lovingly started working with our newly adopted child, clipping away and cleaning up the poor little tree. Although the mother in me kept saying, “You’re being too hard on him!”, Sam kept trimming and shaping the disheveled tree.



I know that it doesn’t look like much now, but at least no one can accuse us of being sissy parents.

We are working on nurturing this little guy back to health. Our apartment is not well lit and painfully small, but we hope to turn it into a positive environment for the tree so it can grow up healthy and strong.

-Meg

Laissez les bons temps rouler

We're not Catholic or anything (Mormons, if you must know), but we celebrated Mardi Gras yesterday. This is mostly because Sam served his mission in Louisiana, and that's the land of Mardi Gras. So I figured it was a great excuse to have New Orleans food and celebrate in our very tame, Mormon way.

I made seafood gumbo. It was hard to pick a recipe because there are so many different types of gumbo out there, but one can always trust Martha Stewart.

 Notice the "Bon Appetite" sign. And you thought I didn't like French.

OK so the masks make us look kind of creepy. OK, so they make Sam look kind of creepy.

We were also going to have bananas foster, but it got late and we were tired. So we'll make them tomorrow.

-Meg

An Update

I guess it took a sick day to force me into writing a blog post finally! Life has been pretty crazy for us Thorntons lately, but we are getting settled.

We moved into a new apartment. I would post pictures but it's kind of scary right now and trust me, it's nothing you'd want to put on pinterest.

We were sad to leave our old place, but we came up on the list for Married Student Housing, so we decided to take the offer and make a change! We love our neighbors and it's nice to be so close to campus. Even though I am done with school, Sam is still going strong.

Christmas and New Year's was great! It was our first as a married couple. That meant a lot of figuring out how to split our time between our families and creating new traditions.

The year 2012 was a crazy year for us. I graduated and got a job, Sam and I got married, and we've already moved twice! (I moved three times this year!)

I know I still haven't posted wedding pictures yet, but I promise one day I will. We got more than one thousand pictures, I kid you not. It's a lot to sort through.

Well, that's a little update! I'm hoping to start feeling better by tomorrow because tomorrow I am turning 22 years old. But whatever.

All the Words!

I know I was really naughty and didn't write a single word on this blog the entire month of November and half of December. But I was writing 50,000 words somewhere else--on a Google document that held my novel. And after that was over, I just had to have a break from social media and crap.

Every year, thousands of writers all over the world participate in National Novel Writing Month. The goal is to write a 50,000-word novel during the month of November. That equates to about 1667 words a day, and the end result is novel that's about 100 pages.

I have tried the past two years, but I decided not to finish both years because I was in college and was working 30 hours a week.

This year I have a full time job, but I don't have homework. So I decided that this was going to be the year that I finished.

I wrote every day except one, and it was one of the longest months of my entire life. It was a blast, but it was harder than I ever expected it would be.

I had to give up a lot of things. This blog was one of them. I also didn't write in my journal, or read the book of the month for book group. I barely did house work or laundry and cooked really simple meals. I still found myself staying up late to get my word count in for the day, but I got it done.

I did tweet a lot. Sorry if you follow me and I spammed your feed. It was one way to really get the crazies out when I was really frustrated.

I reached 50,000 words on the last day, at about 9 p.m. The event was pretty anticlimactic  All I wanted to do was just go to bed. And although I got the word count, my novel is not finished. It's close though.


Here are some of the songs that I listened to:







(And like every other Lana del Rey song out there.)



(And like every other Ellie Goulding song out there.)


Anyway, I'm going to write more on here. I'm ready to be back.

Wandering through Streets

I have a great sense of direction. Unfortunately, that does not translate to giving good driving directions, or at keeping myself from getting lost.

Sam has figured out by now that he can't trust me when I say I can get us somewhere. When we drive somewhere I've been but haven't been recently, I really can't be trusted. We usually end up kind of lost and then kind of getting where we need to go. Eventually.

Sam is not your ordinary man, which is why I married him. He has no problem asking for directions. He'll take the GPS, call our parents, or go into a gas station. No hesitation.

I'm all "no, I swear this will start looking familiar in a second" and "just follow the signs and we'll get there."

Living in Salt Lake City spoils you. It's so easy to get around here. Most of the roads have boring names, but at least they follow the grid system religiously. (That's what happens when a city is founded by religious people.)

Syracuse at large is even easier to navigate. The major streets are straight and they are numbered logically. Better yet, there are no east streets. Everything is west, because Syracuse is so western.

The subdivisions are another story. Most have catchy theme-named avenues and streets and cul-de-sacs. I don't think the developers wanted them to be easy to just wander into. They are private residences, after all. Neighborhoods aren't for finding things easily.

I also appreciate Syracuse because it's flat. Although this makes sledding hard, it makes driving a stick shift significantly easier. The first time I drove a manual for a significant distance by myself was in Syracuse. Sam's car is a stick shift, so I've been learning and I'm alright. The steep hill of Salt Lake still terrify me.

So this time when I drove stick all by myself... it was to Brittni's bridal shower. Do you know why this is significant? Because the first time I drove a car alone was going to Brittni's house for a party. True story.

I'll probably spend the rest of my life going places without knowing the way exactly, but just kind of figuring out. Looking at the signs, making U-turns.

-Meg

That time we went to Disneyland! (Honeymoon)

I guess I should tell you about our honeymoon! We'll work backward. I promise, wedding pictures are forthcoming.

We stayed the night at the Little America (thanks to some great aunts and uncles who gave us a great room!) and in the morning, we began our drive to California.

We were met with a storm, which washed away a lot of the window paint and decorations which our friends had so lovingly put on our car. We listened to "Matched" on audio book, and just talked a lot. It was great, but long, since we did the whole drive in one day.

But at long last, we reached Disneyland!

 Yes, we are wearing "Just Married" pins. It was so much fun. Wearing them started a lot of conversations, and almost every worker congratulated us. (Even though sometimes it was an obligatory, bored "congratulations.")

 It was so blasted hot. We carried around a water bottle all day long and kept filling it up even though the drinking fountain water is not cold. It's water. Whatever.

 We ate a fancy dinner at The Blue Bayou. Sam and I both love Cajun/Creole/Southern food. It was so yummy. And it was so fun watching all the people go into the scary depths of the Pirates of the Caribbean ride.

Roller coasters are so much fun, and I'm so glad Sam and I both will go on pretty much anything. We did have some firsts, though. (Please note the random bystanders in the photo. It's part of the DLand experience.)

 It was my first time on Storybook Land. Yes, it took me 21 years to go on this ride. I guess I was always too busy going on hard core rides to go on this simple, adorable Disneyland classic.

Sam went on the teacups for the first time! Usually spinning makes him dizzy...

He's OK. Don't worry.

 We waited an hour and forty-five minutes for the new Cars ride, Radiator Springs Racers. It was worth the wait. It was broken down for an hour, and took fourty-five minutes to fix it. But we met some new friends in line, so it was worth it.

It was a great way to begin our journey of marriage.


Our favorite rides (and why):

Meg--Space Mountain (We went on this about four times), Indiana Jones (just because), Thundermountain Railroad (we rode it right underneath a sky full of fireworks), and Matterhorn (Yeti, even though they don't have the snuggle seats anymore)

Sam--Space Mountain (music makes the ride super fun), Indiana Jones (Such a classic, and just so fun), and Midway Mania (reminds him of me, because I raved about it forever and it's way better than Astro Blasters)

-Meg