Taking off

HAPPY MEMORIAL DAY WEEKEND!

Heavens, I'm ready for a break. 

I'll be back in the blogging world after the long weekend. 

California, heeerreee we coooomeeee!!!

Hot & Dangerous. HA.

Disclaimer: I realized while packing last night that I have a full outfit of matching seersucker material. I can't wait to rock this outfit. 

(I keed, I keed- California would hate me.)

Mouthwatering Goodness

On Sunday my world changed. 

I didn't know a dessert could do that. 

But it did. 

And it will for you. 

Brooke, Lauren and Looney made the king of all royal creations and shared it with the rest of us hoodrats/ the bike gang. Bless them forever.

Okay, picture this. 

   Pie crust
 + Chocolate chip cookie dough
 + Funfetti cake
 + Frosting
 + Sprinkles = 
So sinfully good.

 Don't tell your momma. 

Brooke, we are eternally indebted to your discovery slash creation. 

Check out Brooke's blog for deets or find the full recipe here.

Oh, and happy PRW (Post-rapture week). 

This is awkward...I'm still here. 

Fambam

Here's a fun fact from someone who makes the drive to Salt Lake twice weekly: 

The billboards in Utah are horrible. Ugly. Stupid. 

Other thoughts from this morning's drive:

I am so grateful for my family. 

So, today I would like to give you a little glimpse into the Pingree family.

We have a lot of family hugs. No, I'm serious. At home we always try to have a family hug before we go to bed. Sunny, our canine princess, understands  "family huuuug" (said in a high tone) and comes running to be in the middle.  

My dog is brilliant, shhh. 

The Ping Party:

Timbo, Loulou, Jandro, Larry, Chin, Hales and G.

If you would like to meet Tim Ping, I would refer you to a cross between George Banks (Steve Martin in Father of the Bride) and Bill Murray. Hilariously quotable. The most optimistic and cheery guy on the planet. 

If you would like to meet my Mom, LouAnn, I would tell you these things: She is self-less, she's a saint, and she's got serious class. 

My brother A is the most mature, patient and giving guy I know. Only seen him mad once in my life. The example for the rest of us kids and always my "defender."

My sister-in-law L is a bug whisperer and an ever-curious, bundle of fun. She is part fish (loves to be in water), part bug (she is the bug-whisperer), and part dog (if you are looking for dog training tips, she's your woman).  An amazingly loving and insightful friend.

My brother Christian (although we call him chin) is a gentle giant. Comes off serious, but goofy as heck. Such a thoughtful brother. An intelligent, gentlemanly baller.

My sister-in-law Hayley is about as eloquent as they come. Graceful and an expert homemaker. Bubbly, with a silly side of gold. A younger sister that I look up to in many ways. 

My little brother Graham is one talented, yet humble, kid. He loves family time, which is more than most high schoolers could say. A mature, loyal brother and my little snugglebutter.

 I will spare you the descriptions of "the girls" (our dogs).

Just know that I love my dogs more than most mortals in this world.

Ladies and gentlemen, the 8 people [and 2 dogs] I love most.     

                                               

Most people don't really know how weird we are when we're alone. You will probably never fully understand unless you marry into the fam. 

That leaves only two other humans in this world.

Good luck making the cut.

A Rainy Day in Provo

Top of the morning to ya.

Today I'm loving this rainy weather.  My classes were cancelled for the day, so I slept in for the first time in a LONG time. I woke up on my own to pattering raindrops outside my window. 

I made a thick piece of homemade whole wheat toast (thanks to my wonderful Nana), lathered on a good amount of homemade jam (seriously- my Nana is a gem), then brought it upstairs to eat while reading in bed. 

Song choices of the morning: 

1. Blackbird by Sarah McLachlan 

2. Re: Stacks by Bon Iver

3. See You Soon by Coldplay 

4. Why Georgia by John Mayer

5. Shoot the Moon by Norah Jones 

6. Heartbeats by Jose Gonzalez (sweet video worth watching)

7. Nowhere, No One by Adam and Darcie (you will just have to itunes this one, can't find it on the internet)

Looney and I designated today for some serious missionary shopping. Wish us luck and hope that we don't come back looking like frumpy lumpies. 

 It's days like today that I am grateful for my yellow rain boots Momma Ping gave me for Christmas. 

I'm starting to wonder whether I'm living in Provo or Seattle this week. It's May. 

Weather man... bring back the sun soon because I'm starting to feel a little squirrely. 

And on this rainy day, a bit of cheer for your day...

"Those who bring sunshine to the lives of others cannot keep it from themselves."

Phone pics for the day

My roommate Maddie sleeps in a variety of positions.

This was the pose of the morning- arms outstretched and slightly elevated- holding her blanket over her head.

Janey Taylor has rescued some wee little ducklings and taken them in for shelter. Janey Taylor... yousa saint.

Puppies are one of the greatest perks of my human existence.

A Fair Warning: If you don't like dogs very much you can and should skip to the next post. (Janey Taylor...)

One of Claire's guidelines of life:

If my dog doesn't like someone, I probably shouldn't either.

On Thursday I had the pleasure of babysitting Nate's handsome puppy Brody.

Meet Brody.

It was a gorgeous, cloudless day at the park without a thing to bother us

(besides some long-haired hoodlums playing soccer suspiciously close to some sun bathing blondes).

My brother A brought by their beautiful black lab/ my canine niece Luna to meet little Brody. I think Brody fell in love... or lust.

On our way home he passed out on the warm car seat. A tired little tike.

I experimented and found that Brody responds to just about any name if you say it at a high enough pitch. I don't think he knows his name quite yet.

Thank you Nate for such a wonderful day with your youngling.

P.S. I would like to add Bucket List Item:

#24 Swim/ lounge/ sit in the new creek that was recently installed on the southwest end of BYU's campus.

tschüss!

The Return of the Looney

Whoah.

Word on the street: Ryan Looney is back in Provo for the week.

I would like you to meet some of human race's finest.

THE LOONEYS

Megan: My other half. (No, but seriously). We are both leaving to serve missions this summer and I am painfully concerned about my life without this beautiful girl. The master of pizookie (another addition to an excellent wife resume) and the most loyal friend I've ever had.

Ryan: A smoldering, handsome beast. All that is man. Die-hard Lakers fan (barf), but we get past that. The looks of a warrior, the heart of a gentleman.

One of my most prized possessions is the Party With Looney t-shirt Megan gave me on my 21st birthday.

I collapsed on the ground and shed some tears when I opened it. I tried to get my paws on one of those shirts for MONTHS.

8 lessons I've learned from the Looney fam:

1. If you eat healthy, you live happy.

2. If you want to do something, do it. And do it right.

3. Do something new/outside of your comfort zone every day.

4. Crunch time is game time baby.

5. Don't stress the small stuff.

6. Sometimes food tastes better if you pick it apart, piece by piece.

7. You would be surprised how little you actually need to sleep in order to get by.

8. Play hard.

For a blissful moment yesterday afternoon I was in a Looney sandwich and I realized life doesn't get much better.

The greatest honor of life:

A stranger asking if I'm related to a Looney.

Yeah. Everybody wants to be a Looney.

Mein Deutsch

Where I'm heading in the fall:

The Alpine German-speaking mission

All of Austria, the Eastern half of Switzerland, and Southeastern Germany.

Also Lichtenstein... which I didn't know existed until about a month ago. Apparently it's a tiny little country with a total population of about 35,000. It lies right between Austria and Switzerland.

HEYYO! You learned something new today.

I would like to share with you the litte bits of German that I have learned so far:

1. Danke Schön, which means "Thank you very much."

So, thank you Ferris Bueller’s Day Off (the parade scene- if you haven’t seen this movie you need to get your priorities straight, my friend. See below).

A friend recently informed me that Dankeschön is not pronounced “Danka-shane.”

(The dancing, glasses and hair styles at the end of this scene are superb.)

2.My Nana taught me “Ich liebe dich,” which means, “I love you.”

3. Nick Purse taught me:

"Das ist mein Koffer"

Translation: "That is my luggage."

4. Courtesy of Maddie Gallagher:

“I come from America”

“Ich komme aus Amerika”

5. Sarah Gerard taught me:

"Der Hund ist grün"

Translation: "That dog is green."

6.And last, but certainly not least, Garrett Tenney taught me

"Claire ist unter den Tisch," which means, "Claire is under the table."

Once in Germany I will calmly claim my luggage, point out any green dogs I see, let everyone know that I come from America, crawl under a table to let people know that I am, in fact, under a table and whisper “I love you” to passing strangers.

Something like this.

And some final infinite wisdom from Ferris Bueller:

"Life moves pretty fast. If you don't stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it."

Tchüss!!

Salute the Sun

Watch this. I promise it will put you in a good mood, or at least leave you aching for a vacation. Video cred: Lindsay Pike

(Please disregard the fact that it's a Corona sponsored music vid haha)

Ahhh, yes.

The long haul of ghostly white skin and extra puffiness from the holidays carries on. But alas, the sun comes out again and I realize that I can finally rid myself of the pastiness that has cursed my body for so long.

Yes, there is hope for the world.