What Happens in Vegas Should Probably Happen Every Day of My Life, but Minus the Vegas Part...

Due to the fact that I am really amazing and awesome, and husband + me = even more amazingness and awesomeness, we have to fly out-of-state to get together with friends. For Halloween we did just that. My best friend Holly and I have been planning to meet up in Vegas for some time now, and we finally did. I really, really, really hate Las Vegas (Every time we go there, we tell ourselves that we will never return, even though we've been there 7 times since we've been married), but it was a perfect half-way point for us.



We didn't have time to plan for costumes this year, so this is what we all came up with:

Fire Fighters:



Facebook:



and:



We ate (drank) my favorite dessert from Serendipity:



Loved in Elevators (Thank you Steven Tyler, you song has been in my head for 6 days now):



Showcased our Awesomeness:



Went to the Stratosphere and went on rides that made me decide that I wasted $50, and that rides not found at Disneyland are too scary and I hate them:



Took pictures that we thought were cool, but later realized they weren't:

Ate a lot of food at our favorite buffet, and later went into food comas:



Did I mention that my breakfast consisted of three glasses of water, two glasses of orange juice, an omelet with cheese, onions and ham, Eggs Benedict, a piece of bacon, four triangles of French toast with berries, a quesadilla with guacamole, sour cream and salsa, one chip (yes, one chip), a crepe with strawberries and bananas and chocolate, two cotton candies, and an ice cream cone? And yes, I also ate dinner that night.



I realized why I have gained so much weight since marriage, it's not because I eat cotton candy for breakfast, it's because I don't have Holly to cackle off the pounds with. Behold, this is why Holly is my best friend:



When the weekend was over, I literally cried in my bed...possibly with my blankie.



Holly and Ray, thanks for a much-needed, fun weekend that was full of drunk people, skanks, pranks, and laughs.

Oh and P.S., Holly, I figured out a little too late what we should have been for Halloween, Subtle Sexuality:

Because it's My Blog and I Can Say What I Want

Mean people are mean. People who demand being served are rude, and they should calm down. Drivers who cut you off, or almost hit you, or turn left in front of you when you are already half-way through the intersection are stupid. They are especially stupid when they pretend like they don't see you, because they know that their driving is crap. Being talked-down to makes me sad. Being treated differently because you don’t have children is wrong. Superficial people are obnoxious. Girls who flaunt themselves or their possessions are dumb and unoriginal--no one cares. Utah is weird and cold and boring. When you try to fit in and don’t, it is depressing. Smoking is yucky and smelly and unattractive and tumor-causing.

On the other hand:

Nice people are nice. Soft, squishy, white covers are cozy and perfect--my bed is perfect. Brown hair is pretty. Pineapple is delicious. Fine-point sharpies are amazing. Disney Land is happy. Old girlfriends are always the best girlfriends to have (I miss you, my Holly. Sad face). Eggs Benedict is my favorite. Ellen is funny and I love her. My imagination is my awesome. Giraffes are cute. And so are Koalas. Nail polish is fantastic. My father-in-law’s omelets are perfection in my mouth. Writing with dull pencils makes my hand writing look really great.

The End.

You Really Want to Help Me

I'm sending donations to Ghana again this year (see this and this). If you want to help, email me or leave a comment and I can send you some ideas.

Septemeber 11th. I Liked This One.

Suprises Are Happy

Back in April, a friend of mine from work (I work with her, and husband works with her husband) and I planned a surprise trip for our husbands to Las Vegas to see Blue Man Group (Which I highly recommend to all…pure amazement). Husband and I had our third anniversary back in June, so he and my friend’s husband decided to surprise us with a weekend cruise for our anniversary.

Our cruise went to Catalina Island and Ensenada, Mexico. We went to Catalina on our honeymoon, so it was fun to go back and take the same pictures we took three years ago. It was not fun to compare my three-year-ago body to my current body in the pictures.

June 2006:

June 2009:




June 2006:

June 2009:

June 2006:



June 2009:

June 2006:

June 2009:

On Catalina Island, we rented a golf cart and drove all over the island:

And went parasailing...so fun, but so scary. I had a melt-down up in the air. I made Mac sing me primary songs while I cried. When we returned back to the boat, mascara was streaming down my face:

Our cute little honeymoon hotel:

This old man was adorable, and Mac loved him:

Ensenada was...kind of an odd place for a cruise ship to go, but we liked it:

I loved the cute towel animals:

And playing Titanic with husband:

And our adorable waiter from El Salvador, Manuel:

And being with our friends, Matt and Adina:

And we kind of liked the food, not the best, though:

Turns out that husband is quite the karaoker. Not one, but two nights in a row:

What the skanks? So I'm sitting back, slouching in my chair, watching husband make a fool of him self, and the army of skanks walk up on the stage, whisper something in his ear, and start dancing with MY husband. I was about ready to walk up on the stage and beat them up.

I kind of loved feeling the boat rock, too. I know that is supposed to make you feel sea sick and vomit, but I liked sitting in the lounge and looking up to see the curtains rocking back and fourth:

I loved all of the cute/funny/nice/entertaining crew:

I loved the sunsets:

But hated going home:

Yay for vacations and suprises and happy places. Boo for reality.

Happy three years to us...

Me, Too

When you see videos of U.S. presidents visiting countries abroad, you usually can't say that you have been there. When I saw this video, I was so excited to be able to say that I had actually walked that same road...

I remember walking down the flagged road in the beginning of this video, with an African man who I met on my last day in Ghana. I paid him to be my tour guide and take me to the markets and see the castle where the president of Ghana lives. I remember taking a shortcut and jumping over mud and sewage (Tears).

My own picture from the road in the video:




I heart Ghana.

Not So Little Car-Car Anymore

Meet Carly.



I have known Carly since she was three, and I was eleven. I started babysitting Carly and her siblings (there were actually only two of them when I started…Abby came along a little while later) back in 1996. What started out as babysitting, lead to being a nanny, and eleven years later I was practically a Robertson.



Carly turned 16 on June 12. I wanted to make a post for her on her birthday, but husband surprised me with an anniversary vacation.

The first time I met Carly, she was 3-years old, and I was 11-years old. It happened like this: I walked into her house for the first time; she and little brother Jack were running in circles around me. Carly pulls me down to the couch, pulls my hair out of its ponytail, and says, “Wow, you have long hair, I’m going to do it for you.” There was no, “Hi, I’m Carly,” or anything like that. At that moment, I told myself, I don’t think I’m going to baby sit for these crazy little kids anymore. Eleven years later…

Carly is my favorite girl in the whole world. Carly is not just the little girl I tended to for 11 years…She is a best friend and a sister to me, too. At age 16, most girls had a best friend that they told everything to, but for me, it was 8-year old Carly. You see, Carly has always been wise beyond her years. Little Carly has taught me a lot over the past 13 years.

One of my favorite Carly-pieces-of-advice:

“It hurts to be beautiful.”

While I was a nanny for the Robertson family, I did most of the hair styling for dance recitals, Halloween, etc. One day while curling Carly’s hair, I accidentally burned her with the curling iron. I felt so bad and was apologizing to Carly, and her little 6-year old face turns to me and says, “It’s ok, Kell, it hurts to be beautiful.”

During the summertime, I would always do Carly’s hair before she went to dance. She liked being the cutest girl in her studio, and she was.



Let me post that picture again:



Did you see those abs? Carly has had a six-pack since the late 90’s. But that is no surprise since she danced for 8 hours a day, every day of her little life.

And let me tell you, Carly is a great little dancer, and so fun to watch.







When Carly was younger, she liked to see what I was wearing and then dress accordingly.



One time I took Carly with me to a high school dance concert at my school, and everyone kept asking us if we were sisters. We loved that.



One of my favorite memories with Carly was going to Hawaii with her and her family.














I also loved doing nails, hair and makeup for her and her friends (with the my friend, Rachel) at one of he birthday parties when she was younger.





Carly has always known exactly what she wants. When Carly began middle school, I remember her feeling pressured to start kissing boys and other things that she didn’t feel comfortable with. Carly would come home from school crying all the time, because she felt like she wasn’t fitting in with her friends new mature ways. Carly decided to start a secret notebook with me. She would write down whatever was bothering her, and then leave it for me to write her back, so that we didn’t have to talk about it out loud so that other people could hear.

Carly is the funnest girl I know. Sometimes I had to take the kids with me to run my errands, because I was at their home from early until late every day. Carly liked to pretend that her and her siblings were my children, just so that we could get reactions from people in the store, or doctor’s office, etc. We always got a thrill out of others’ dirty looks.

Carly is a friend to everyone, and has so many of them.

I always joke with Carly that she will be my babysitter for my children when I have them, because she is the only one who know exactly how I want my children raised.












When most people leave on their honeymoons after getting married, they are ecstatic. Although I was really happy, I was really sad, too. The reason: Carly (and family). When I left to go on my honeymoon, I would not be coming back to Phoenix. The fact that I would not see Carly for a long time killed me. The tears were all directed towards my sadness of not seeing her.




The last thing I told Carly when I left was to be good. I have always been so protective of Carly. I kind of hate that she is now dating boys, and that in two years she will be graduating high school and moving out to go to college. I had this deal with Carly that if she could hold out until she was 16 to kiss a boy. I would give her $100 ($100 seemed like a lot when I was younger). Let’s just say that I have an extra $100 to spend this month.

Ok, so now I have to kind of brag a little bit, by sharing this essay that Carly wrote about me this past last year in school. Her mom e-mailed it to me because she knows how much I miss them…makes me cry every time:

From the time I was three years old I have looked up to a woman named Kelly Yates. When I think about it, Kelly has been a huge part of most of my life. She has been a role model, a best friend, and almost a second mother to me. She has impacted my life immensely and without her, I would not be who I am today.

Kelly Yates was my babysitter. She lived down the street and began to first babysit me when I was just three years old. Kelly was only 7 years older than me but my mom swears she was very mature for her age. She instantly became a part of the family and practically lived with us. She watched me grow as I watched her and we shared a ton! Two years ago Kelly moved to Utah to experience new things. There she met her husband, and got married. It was the hardest thing for me because it meant that she would be moving her home to Utah and far away from me.

Kelly has overcome so many hardships during her life and is still the most giving person I know. About two months ago Kelly went to Africa for one month to teach children about AIDS. She lived in an orphanage and cared for ten orphans, walked them to school, and taught the students HIV education. She told me it was the most life changing experience she could ever imagine. She left her house, husband, and job to go make the world a better place. In my eyes, it took her so much courage to do such a task.

Through the years she has taught me so much about the person I want to be and how to be that person. I admire everything about her and she has so many traits that I strive to portray in myself. I aspire to be just like her. And some day I will make my mark on the world and I will have her to thank for it.

Carly, you are a good example to me, too. You are so fun, loving, outgoing and happy. I only wish I was as charismatic as you. You truly are a little star.

Other favorite memories of Carly:

Rubio’s, swim team, narrated phone calls to my high school boyfriends, the dollar store, the note game, singing to Sparks, bean burritos with barbeque sauce and ranch dressing, my voicemail messages, gin rummy, going to see Twilight together and going to Jack-in-the Box, hot dog throw up in my sink, etc.






























Carly, I love you so much. You know how much you mean to me. I hope you had the happiest birthday ever. I miss you everyday, and wish that I could see you more. I know that you are not little Car-Car anymore, but remember who you are and what your parents have taught you. You have turned into such a beautiful, bright and intelligent young lady. Thanks for being my best friend.

Love,
Kell

So Excited...

For this movie to finally come out. I read The Time Traveler's Wife last year and I have been waiting for the movie to come out for the longest time. It was supposed to come out last summer, but it kept getting pushed back. I don't know that I would recommend the book to most people...it has a lot of swearing (as in 10 F-bombs per chapter) and a lot of graphic (can a book be graphic if you can't see it?) descriptions of intimate scenes. But it was such a great story and it made me cry out loud at the end because it was so sad. I kind of have a girl crush on Rachel McAdams, so I am so excited that she is playing the character of Claire. Looks so good:



Speaking of girl crushes, I kind of have one on Zooey Deschanel, too. So, I can't wait for this one either:



Last month someone at my work told me that I reminded him of Zooey Deschanel, and that we have the same voice. That made my life.

While I'm at it...can't wait for this one either:



My idea of a perfect date is also getting hot wings at Applebee's.

Movies are my favorite. I heart them.

Stuff and Stuff

I finished school back in August 2008, and Mac in December 2008, but we decided to walk this past May...mostly for the photo opportunity:

As it turns out, graduation is the most boring thing that has ever happened to us:

And Mac's family:

And this girl:

But it was fun to see our families, though:

And hear him speak:

We went to the Tulip Festival with my parents...Loved it:

Recently, I saw a rainbow from end to end:

My life became 44% better when I discovered that this eating establishment has been in the state in which I reside for sometime now. Rubio's is my 6th favorite thing in the world, thus far. Bean burrito with lime juice + steak street taco + chips with lime juice and green salsa = 99% of Kelly's total body composition:

I eat here at least twice a week.

Mac had a birthday...he's now 30, flirty and thriving. I can't believe I am married to someone this old.

Bran-Bran (see this post) was in town last week. We were able to see him and Christian, his brother. They made him a cake, it was tender:

Mac and I have this thing...when he is really annoyed with me, or wants me to do something that I don't want to do, we have this deal. If he dances for 20 seconds without stopping, I will stop being annoying, or go to sleep, or pick up my messes or whatever...if you have seen him dance, you know how entertaining this can be. Last weekend we had already spent too much money come Saturday night, so Mac was my entertainment. I have no words to describe Mac's dancing. See for yourself (Half of the video is side-ways...woops):



Mac has been at Lake Mead since Wednesday with his "Man's Night" friends and wives. I'm lame and couldn't get the time off work. So Mac bought me a fish to keep me company. I named him Carlitos:

The End.

My Inbox Made Me Happy Today

Today I received this cute picture in my inbox from the orphanage in Ghana...



...It brought tears to my eyes. I miss them so much. I can't believe that as of Sunday, it will be a year since I left to Ghana.

Although they look really sad in the photo (they are not used to smiling for cameras, the reason I have so many pictures of them smiling is because I liked to make them laugh), they LOVED their backpacks, rain coats (which they are wearing in the photo) and other supplies.

Yay for donations that make them happy!!!