On Being Brave. {& Haircuts--kinda}

I am really shy. Because of that I am always really impressed with people who can start {and carry on} a conversation with just anyone they meet.

For the past few weeks I was trying to figure out where to get my hair cut {I got a pixie cut and those are a little scary--especially when you don't have a hair dresser you know you love}. I was constantly on the lookout for people with cute pixies so that I could ask them who cuts their hair. None of my Idaho friends have short hair and my ward here is pretty  heavy on the elderly population {we have FOUR retirement communities in our ward boundaries} so I didn't really know where to start. I wanted something really cute and chic {what does chic really mean?}--not a "mom" or "grandma" haircut.

I started to keep my eyes peeled whenever I left the house. I didn't see much when I went out but I can honestly say I didn't look that hard because I knew I wouldn't be brave enough to actually walk up to some random stranger and first, compliment them on their cute hair and second, ask them who cuts it. So I set up an appointment with a recommendation from a friend of a friend and hoped for the best.

The night before the appointment Holland and I were wandering around Target when I saw a really cute, stylish girl {for some reason the stylish part was pretty important to me} with a really cute pixie cut. I just knew that I had to get up the nerve to ask her about it. I walked by her a few times and was about to walk away without asking when suddenly she was walking right towards me! I HAD to ask her.

So I did. I stopped her, complimented her on her cute hair, and asked her who did it. She told me how she had gotten it done at a nearby beauty school and hated it so she cut it herself and then enrolled herself in beauty school!

Ever since this happened I have been thinking about it a lot. I loved learning about this random girl's life. I know I just learned this one little thing but if I hadn't complimented her on her hair and talked to her for a whole one minute I wouldn't even know that. In fact, I probably wouldn't think about the cute girl with the pixie haircut again.

People are so much more real and memorable when you know something about them. I want the people I'm around to be real to me. I want to know more about the people I come in contact with throughout my life. I have my close friends and family that I know so much about but I think I often I forget to interact with all of the other real people around me.

Even though it was something so small I am grateful I was brave and I really feel like I was rewarded with a piece of that girl's story. I think I need to always be on the lookout for something to ask strangers about. I need more random conversations in my life! What about you? When was the last time you had a conversation with a stranger? Did you start it or did they? Did you think about it much afterwards or am I just weird like that? 

Some Other Random Notes:
-In about six months I will be going to that cute girl to get my hair cut!! I got her information and I am so excited to have her start doing my regular trims!
-Now that I have a pixie cut I see girls with pixies ALL. THE. TIME. {go figure} and I feel a special kinship with them. I'm not sure if it's reciprocated but that's okay! :]
-And a couple questions for any hairdressers out there--Do you like to carry on a conversation while you are cutting a client's hair? And do you usually initiate the conversation or does the client?

Here is my hair for those of you who haven't seen it on Instagram yet.

Phone Photos Episode Four

Sneak peek of an outfit post that is up on Thrifty {Modest} Threads. Check it out!

Snow/hail in Flagstaff, AZ on October 7, 2011

Socks with flats. {They have snowflakes on them in case you can't tell.} Tacky--maybe. Warm--definitely!

Funny towel ears. {Check out this post by Kaycie of Redhead Memories to learn how to wear your towel like this and not damage your hair! You also get to look like a Babushka!}

My adorable shoes that I had forgotten about {Target clearance from forever ago}. Plus some cute floral.

My super cute husband on his way to class. I always scare him as he messes with his phone walking down the hill from our apartment and then I make him stop and give me hugs and kisses and let me take his picture. Haha. He still smiles for the pictures. Thank goodness! :]

My cute little sisters. Although pretty soon they will both be taller than me. Helena {the one in the adorable maxi skirt} already his and Gelsey is about the same height that I was when I was in sixth grade and she's in third grade. So it won't be long. {So far only two of my siblings have NOT surpassed me in height. That's out of eleven of us and I am the fourth oldest!}

A bow that I did in my friend's SUPER thick hair. It lasted about two seconds because I didn't have any good bobby pins. Next time though...next time. :] I do love playing with people's hair though!! 

My adorable lil neighbor in the valley/my fourth cousin once removed or something like that. This picture is super old but I love this little girl and her chunky sad face. Haha.

The triplets I used to watch on their second birthday. {I hung out with one of the other nannies that I worked with today and got to see pictures and videos of them now. They are so grown up and  I miss them like CRAZY!}

My Halloween costume from a couple of years ago. Does anyone know what it's from because no one did when I was wearing it and it was kind of embarrassing. Haha. {This was not my whole costume just the helmet part that I made with the help of my sister-in-law and sister}.
Oh, and I need help figuring out costume ideas for Race and I. So you all should help and throw some ideas out in your comments, eh?

A scarf made into earwarmers/a bow. How cool is that?! Does anyone else think this is cute?

Because I totally did and everyone laughed at me.

But if I actually made this it's something I would seriously wear.

Am I weird?

Well, that's all for now! Have a lovely week everyone and tell me a little somethin' about your weekend! :]

P.S. Check out this post  if you're interested in swap sponsoring.

Check out my new blog about all things crafty, cute, and cheap here.

And check out my soon-to-be three lovely swap sponsors here, here, and here.

Wondrous Weekend

My weekend was truly wonderful! It was spent in the valley with Race. Before heading down to the valley we did stop by our ward's chili and chocolate cook-off. We may or may not have eaten way too much chili and chocolate and then had stomachaches on our way down to the valley {Read: We did and Race may have had to stop at a gas station for some Pepto Bismol. Haha.}. Once we got to my family's house we enjoyed the rest of the weekend cuddling babies, taking TONS of pictures of aforementioned babies, watching General Conference, getting our pictures taken by the wonderful Lauren of Busy Bee Lauren {This was so much fun and I loved getting to meet Lauren. She is an amazing person and photographer! Oh, and her style is stinking cute! I wanted to steal her awesome boots!}, eating lots of food, shopping some {I got the cutest shirt from Old Navy!}, and other fun things with our family. I love being able to go home so often. :]

And now for LOTS of photos: 

My sister and I had fun trying out some new hairstyles {Oh, I forgot to mention that I met my sister's boyfriend for the first time! I approve of him. Thank goodness! It's fun helping my sister get dressed for dates and stuff. I'm so sad I won't be able to do her hair for Homecoming in a couple of weeks!}

This is me at our ward's chili cook-off. I am eating one of the winning chilis made by my cousin-in-law Ellie!

Tons of pictures of the adorable baby Edmond James Kvavle Olmstead:

I could not leave out my adorable twin nephews Waylen and Falcon! {They are six months old and are learning to crawl and wrestle with each other. It's hilarious! They made me laugh lots this weekend.}

And I definitely couldn't leave out my adorable nephew Jude! {He's the oldest and crawls so fast and stands up and gets into everything! He's lots of fun!}

Well, that's about it. If I ever figure out how to make videos then I will put a funny one up of Race singing in the car. Sadly you can't really see him very well {it was late} but you can hear him and it's pretty funny. :] I love when Race belts songs in the car. It makes me smile. :]

We got back from the valley tonight loaded up with lots of food from my mum. We came home and relaxed on the couch, danced in the kitchen and now we should be heading to bed. I guess I'd better make sure I don't have any major homework due tomorrow morning first!

Tell me all about your wondrous weekend now!

The Post in Which I Ask and Answer My Own Question

The other day I couldn't focus on anything but my flaws.

I felt like my flaws were way bigger than everyone else's.

{Not that I really know other people's flaws}

Anyway, I read a lot of blogs and I kept asking myself:

How do all these big bloggers make their flaws seems so small and silly?

These bloggers often have flaws similar to mine but when I do the same things they do I don't see it as funny or small...it's always HUGE and the end of the world kind of thing.

After thinking about this and writing down all of my thoughts on it I realized a couple of things:

1. People often blog to try and focus on the good, funny things in life, so they learn to find good and funniness in their flaws.

And 2. When we see flaws in ourselves we just make them WAY bigger than the flaws we see in everyone else.

I know that comparing isn't good for anyone and that my flaws really aren't HUGE things. They are things that I can learn to laugh at. And I can do that through blogging about the things that make me happy and the silly flaws that I have just like everyone else.

P.S. Race is tickling my back right now and singing "She's too sexy for her hair, too sexy for her lips, too sexy for her....etc." I love my husband! He also just asked me if I was blogging about how sexy my hair is. Haha. Let me add a picture of my hair on here so you can all see how unsexy it is right now...

Happy Hair Day!

This is gonna be short but I wore my hair in a ponytail for the
FIRST TIME since I got it cut! :] YAY!
It was way exciting and so I took pictures.

It still falls out a little bit in the back...but it works!Good face, eh? Haha.

Oh, the Joys of Hair :]

So I love my hair. It is fairly easy to do.

Low maintenance and I think it looks semi-decent usually.
But, I get sooo bored with my hair. So I switch it up a bit.
My general pattern is to grow it out kinda long then chop it all off.
Then I grow it out to ponytail length again and then chop it all the way off.
I love doing this and although I haven't loved all of my hair cuts over the years it is fun to look back at them. So that's what I'm going to do in this blog.
I hope it's as fun for whoever reads this as it is for me!

This is August 2007 (Senior Year of High School)
Messy bed hair. But long (for me) and light brown and down.


This is June 2008 Summer before heading off to college. Loooong hair!
August 2008 First Year of College. Chopped it all off!
This is September 2008 and I'm back into my ponytail phase.


December 2008 a little longer hair and actually downish for once.

Here is me with my brand new bangs! And my hair down! :]
March 2009 Bangs again but with my hair back in the ponytail.


May 2009 And now my bangs are long enough to sweep to the side.

August 2009 Back to the ponytail and my bangs are finally long enough to put all the way up again.

October 2009 Hair getting long again and I cut my bangs back to sweeping to the side length.

October 2009 The beginning of the craziness!

October 2009 BLACK HAIR!! And my roommates taught me how to curl it with a straightener and it works sooo good!

November 2009 I do also occasionally enjoy having my hair done all pretty. Crazy thing: A BOY did this hair. Looks good, huh??

November 2009 Here's my looong black straight hair. Just before the BIG change...
November 2009 And here's my hair as it is right now. I loooove it and I think it makes me look a little bit older than the fourteen years old that people normally guess.

Well, that's about it for my hair adventures. YAY for hair and it's endless possibilities!