best. day. ever.

Tuesday, March 25th, 2014
It was a pretty darn stinkin' fabulous day.

First of all it started off feeling like a Saturday.  No complaints here.  A pho-Saturday morning and then a text updating the family that my siser-in-law was in labor and the first Tobler grand-baby would be born in the next 24-ish hours??  Pretty fantastic.

Then Dave stayed and worked from home until I dropped him off at the airport in the afternoon to catch a flight to Dallas for business and I headed down to Orange County to spend the rest of the week with my parents.

When I got home my mom and I putzed around, ate Golden Spoon, and got a few things done until (at 5:39 PM California time) Brooke ran down the stairs with her computer bubbling about how she got an email from BYU Admissions and how she only got past Congratulations.  This cute girl has worked so hard to get into her #1 college of choice and it finally paid off.  We danced and cried and couldn't have been happier.  And then promptly signed her up for fall classes ASAP.

Then, a few hours later, we got the most wonderful text saying that the cutest (and first!) Tobler grandbaby had been born!!!!

Hazel Michelle Tobler

6 pounds, 13 ounces, perfectly perfect, and born at 8:38 PM Ohio time.  That was ONE MINUTE before Brooke got her acceptance email.  Just saying, that was a pretty good two minutes in the Tobler household.

We were all pretty giddy from AM to PM and I'm pretty sure today won't be able to top that.

And PS can it be April 21st already so I can fly to Ohio and snuggle that cutest of cute baby??  I'm dying over here!!

on going places

 Cruisin' in Amsterdam

A few days ago I was rummaging through old pictures taken while I was traveling through Europe in 2010.  This was a time pre-David, pre-declaring my major, pre-responsibilities, and pre-real life.  Which basically means it was (besides no David) a wonderful time of my life and a perfect time to gallivant through England, France, and Italy.   I was trying to remember the things we did and places we went to make a few recommendations...

Yesterday I somehow stumbled upon friend's blog from college who now lives in Manhattan with her husband that is chronicling their time spent eastward.  She reminded me how fun New York is.  I also found myself spending a fair bit of time wondering through this pretty London vs. Paris blog...

These few things started me thinking about what it would be like to really live somewhere so metropolitan and different from my suburban ways.

 Let it officially be known that I have a soft spot for my Californian suburban homes.  They are familiar, and wonderful, and will always be home.  And I love being able to always find a parking spot.

But...sometimes I'm up of a challenge.

Like how would grocery shopping in NYC be different without my car?  No more buying in bulk.  And walking most places/ using public transit on a daily basis?  I lived in London for a few months and rode the Tube all over, but it surely wasn't really living in London and using the Tube to get to doctor's appointments, school, and work.

What would be different?
What would be the same?
What would I miss?
What would I love?

Today, these are my wonderlusting thoughts...

time flies

One year ago this holiday weekend we were loaded up in our U-haul cruisin' down the I-15 towards sunny CA.  Honestly the most memorable part of that trip was trying to figure out how to park our huge truck, staying at Buffalo Bills for the night (leaving much to be desired...), and waiting in bumper to bumper traffic for over an hour to drive less than a mile to our pit stop.  Oh and then unloading the contents of said truck into our apartment...on the 3rd floor.  Thank goodness for our elder's quorum and the missionaries.  They were LIFESAVERS.  Literally.

Needless to say, I'm really pretty glad we're not driving too far this weekend (cough cough, please be kind LA traffic).  We'll be hanging out with my fam down in Orange County, and, weather permitting, we're planning to be soaking up some rays at the beach.  Fingers crossed.  Sunscreen packed.

Three day weekends are really my favorite kind of weekends.  Waking up Monday morning and knowing you have no responsibilities is bliss.  Can't wait.

Pictures via Pinterest: left, right

happy grad-iversary

It is so strange to think about, but this time one year ago I was GRADUATING from COLLEGE.  I'm still not used to the idea of being a college alumni, of being old.  My laurels laughed when I told them I turned 23 this last week - they couldn't believe I'm that young.  Truth be told, I'm only five or six years older than them, which seems like nothing and a lifetime all at the same time. 

We're throwing our caps in the air in case you can't tell...

Since graduation we've started "real life," with our first "real" apartment, "real" jobs, "real" ward etc etc.  Everything's gettin' "real" around here, and even though it's hard sometimes, we're having a great time and trying to always look for the best in our situation.  Dave's nightly routine lately has been to come home, kiss me, and tell me that life is so sweet. 

Sometimes I agree with him more than others, but he's right.  Life is so sweet.

golden birthday

David has been giddy for about a week over his plans for my birthday, but on Monday I thought he might explode with excitement. He came home from work and was about to tell me what we were going to do, and then decided not to at the last minute.  When do I need to wake up? What do I need to wear?  I asked him tons of questions, but he sidestepped all of them and said he'd wake me up when it was time and I could figure everything out in the morning.

6:30 AM Tuesday morning:
David: "Carly, wake up!  It's your birthday!!!"

I have to admit.  That was a little earlier than I had anticipated, but I have no qualms with starting the celebration earlier rather than later.  After giving me his (very thoughtful) gift (which I love, love, love.  Mine has a little 'N' on it) - he pulled out his phone, opened an app and gave it to me.  "And," he said, " we're going there today."  The app was MouseWait - he got us tickets to Disneyland for the day!!  If that's not the best birthday present ever, I don't know what is.

The park doesn't open til 10:00, but Dave was so excited (okay, I was too), that we hopped in the car at 8:30, grabbed some McDonald's breakfast and hit the I-5.  We really had some birthday luck with us, because somehow we didn't hit any significant traffic, and we made it to Anaheim by 9:50.  That must be some kind of record.

First things first, we ran right into California Adventure and hopped in the line to get a fast pass for the new racers ride in Car's Land.  That's right.  We waited in a 20 minute long line to get our passes to move ahead of the line later in the day...it sort of made sense.  Now that I think about it we ended up waiting in line for 40 minutes for that ride...we just split it up between the morning and the afternoon.  Good thing it was worth it.  The ride was way fun, you know, when we rode it at later that day at 4PM.

After getting that out of the way, we ran to start riding actual rides!  California Screamin' did not disappoint (as seen by my rockin' windswept do), and we rode Toy Story Mania for the first time.  We mean business in those 3D glasses.  Please let it be known that I almost beat David playing a video game!  This may be a first.  But he blew past me in the bonus round of the last game.  Didn't somebody tell this boy it was my birthday??  I don't think that should be allowed...

To be honest, the lines were so quick in California Adventure that we were done with everything we wanted to do by 1:00!  So we ran over to Disneyland and got me a birthday badge, because, hey, it's only your birthday once a year right?  Everyone might as well know it!

It also ought to be mentioned that we didn't have to wait for any ride more than 35 minutes the whole day.  Happy birthday to me.  Thanks Disneyland.

Right about this time our fast passes were up for the racers ride in Car's Land so we jetted back across to California Adventure.  I have to say, I've never utilized a park hopper pass as much as I did yesterday.  We hopped between parks 4+ times!  Yes, both our feet are very sore today.

P.S. Car's Land was kind of incredible.  Definitely worth going to see.  We were very impressed.  And the racer's ride?  SO much fun.  Not worth standing in line for an hour for, but using our 20 minute fast pass line?  No brainer.

Mom and Brooke showed up around 4:30 (having dropped everything to come hang out with us last minute!  We're so glad they did), so we jetted back over to Disneyland to ride a few of our favorites with them.

 Hats were tried on:

The Tea Cups were ridden:

Dave creamed me on the Astro Blasters (as expected):

And, of course, we had to check out the Matterhorn's new bobsleds - you're not (as) squished anymore!  Woohoo! :

We ended the night by meeting up with dad and going back to California Adventure for dinner (because, let's be honest, their food is way better):

And we called it a day!  And what a good day it was.  Thanks Disneyland.  Contrary to previous conclusions, you are, indeed, the happiest place on earth.

#fail

Yesterday we were sort of running on time.  State Conference was at 7:00, it takes 5 minutes to get to the church,  and we were out the door by 6:50.

Cutting it close.

The door latch wasn't turning so I asked Dave to lock it.  As the door is swinging closed behind us I turn to him and say, "You've got the keys."  And he looks up and says, "No, you?" "Um, no."

"Click"

Crud.

Locked out.  If we were still in our basement Provo apartment we could have easily climbed in through our back window.  Now we're on the third floor with no such luck.  But don't fret: a phone call, 20 minutes, a locksmith, and 85 dollars later we got that door open and made it to the church for the last half of the meeting.

I think we win for the most dedication to get to Stake Conference.

fail & mail

Alright, so, I failed.
I honestly didn't take a single picture all during our 4th of July family reunion festivities.  I guess I was just too wrapped up in enjoying the day, the family, the fireworks, and the fact that David didn't have to go to work.  Ah well, we had a great time, and now it's back to reality (which isn't too bad either).

In other news we got ourselves TWO lovely packages in the mail the other day.  Don't you just love getting packages?  They're pretty much the best - I'm a big fan of snail mail.

1) In honor of the upcoming London Olympics, my mom* put together a red, white, & blue party in a box, complete with pom poms, glow bracelets, and pinwheels.
* To clue you in, my mom used to have the Olympic theme song as her ring tone - we're kind of big Olympics fans over in the Tobler home.

And I'm pretty sure we're going to have to throw a big celebratory shindig for the opening ceremonies (July 27th!) - I can't wait!

and 2) our WEDDING ALBUM is finally here!  And I love, love, love, love it!  Thank you Pinhole Press!  You're the best!

10 things I'll tell my grandkids

 (1) I'm older than Google, iphones & Facebook

(2) I was born in the 1900's

(3) I watched the rise and fall of the compact disc

(4) I remember thinking DVD's would never catch on (what could ever replace my VHS tapes?)

(5) I put rolls of film in my first camera & got them developed at Savon

(6) I've driven in cars that only have a tape player

(7) My first CD was 'N Sync

(8) My first phone was a Nokia Brick (and Snake was my favorite game)

(9) I remember having to check out books from the library to write a report

(10) and I used to Ask Jeeves


Picture via Style Me Pretty
Found on Pinterest

a taste of childhood

Lets be honest, Harry Potter pretty much equals childhood in my book (pun intended).

And last night a dream came true - we drank BUTTERBEER.

Your proof:

It was a bit too sweet for my non-magical tongue, but delightful all the same.

Cheers!

P.S. I want to make something like these with the left over bottles - so cute, right?

traditions

four years at BYU.

four trips to see the Christmas lights at Temple Square in Salt Lake.

I'm almost going to miss freezing my fingers/toes/nose off ever December when we're down in LA.

Almost...

There was even a choir singing Christmas songs in the assembly hall - how Christmasy right?  It was delightful.

After our walk around the square we celebrated being done with finals (WOOHOO!) with dinner at this darling restaurant.  Looking for a good Italian place in Salt Lake?  We found it. 

Good food & good company.  What more could you want?

Except maybe nutella gelato for dessert...?

Check & done.

xo

extra extra!

Look who made the front page!

My old roommate is in charge of putting together BYU's Bridal Guide magazine and she needed a picture for the cover so of course I told her she was welcome to choose from any of our wedding pictures and...

 whala! 

Presto cover girl!

I also might have picked up 5 copies yesterday to send to friends and family...and felt really weird about it while cramming them into my purse and running out of the building before anyone could see me.

In other news I got the sweetest package from my mom today.  

In 2005 (a whopping 6 years ago) I wrote a few letters to my future husband:

Apparently when I was 14 I had dreams of becoming an interior decorator (I forgot about that ambition) and I dotted my exclamation points with little hearts.

I talked about how I wanted him to propose ("in a cute way" - I wasn't quite particular), where we would live (I had my heart set on California back then) and what I thought he would look like (tall, dark & handsome).

Too funny.

But also too fun to read with my man all these years later.

I am officially a fan of time capsules.