notes from amy

here are more notes from her life in london

: : enjoy : :

[sunny weather]

yesterday was the most beautiful, sunny, warm day we have had so far in london! it was perfect! everyone comes out of the wood works on days like that here. i love it!

[walking the city of london]

i love walking everywhere! i love that i don't have a car. i have only wished for a car one time and that was when i went to the grocery store the first time and bought way too much. i spent the afternoon after the museum just walking around looking at different shops and checking out new restaurants to go to. i think my calves are getting stronger, haha jk! but that is possible with how much i walk. you should bring your pedometer when you come.

[not a tourist]

i bought some postcards yesterday and the guy at the store asked hesitantly if i was visiting and i said yes. then he asked where i was from... he couldn't tell that i was a "tourist" and thought i may have been from europe! i L.O.V.E being american but it's so fun to feel like i am blending into this life here.

[evening walk]

critch got home at an abnormally early time yesterday... 7:30! which is still a long day but is great compared to what it usually is. we went on a walk down across the thames. it was so perfect! i LOVE this place! i really do... i wish i had a video camera rolling so i could share everything with you girls! it was so nice to enjoy the evening with christian! after the walk we went and tried this burger place called gourmet burger kitchen... it was sooo good! best burger i have had thus far in london. so if you are craving a burger while you are here, that is where we are going.

love you! i can't wait to SEE you girls!

xoxo

three.hundred.sixty.five

bypass

this post if you are sick of me writing, blogging, and talking about europe.

if not… keep calm and carry on:

in utah, one generally meets other utahn or idahoan and then the occasional californian who has migrated to utah for some odd reason. in europe, however, you meet people from literally all over the world.

-  what is it about europe?

-  what is it about europe that compels me so?

well… (to name a few)

gargoyles, lederhosen, gondolas, cheese, baguettes, gelato, crepes, accents, ruins, museums, churches, trains, subways, buses, architecture, and fashion.

i'll admit to romanticizing europe as much as the next person.

[perhaps more than the next person]

since my childhood, i've been interested in the culture of europe - its history, style, literature, languages, myths, legends, philosophies, and patterns of thought.

then i got to L-I-V-E there.

a year ago {today} i moved to switzerland.

---------> what a great decision 

i met great friends

i visited amazing cities

i saw amazing sites

i ate delicious food --- read here

*i lived the dream

. . . . my dream . . . .

europe's invitation to participate in its life and culture has formed new feelings and has given me amazing experiences. my exploration of other cultures as an adult has broadened my base as a human. i loved my adventure. i am so grateful to have had that experience.

* * talk about life.changing.

in a month from today i am going back. i can hear europe begging me to join in, to be a traveler again.

and i will be loving life.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . not to mention i will be with 3 best.friends.

(get that paper chain going)

spread it

did you spread {extra} love all week

i did.

♥

for you.

last day.

[yesterday]
. . . the final cancer treatment came for this young lady
endless prayers have now been answered

she is free

i was able to take part in this happy moment

words can't describe how relieved we all are

we needed a photo

c-o-n-g-r-a-t-s

if you want to hear a little more about how {she did it} click here

**gosh i hate the word-- cancer

and randi-dawn-may-trav

{beat it}

true life.

< agh >

in the words of john lennon.

"all you need is love."

{love} is understood by all nationalities
happy v. day
i {love} you all

Port.

i had a great weekend in portlandia
anne and i are going over the details of our oregon weekend
it was wonderful
it was relaxing
it was fun
why do we have to get on the plane back to slc

Destination: pdx

portland bound.
[all weekend]
starting right now.

notes from amy

i know people that love me

also love amy jensen ivins

- who doesn't love that girl -

i thought some readers would {L.O.V.E} to hear about her life in london

she doesn't have a blog

...yet...

but we are in the process of getting her started

so i have included parts of her recent email for you to enjoy

* * * * * * * * *

I walked down to Trafalgar Square and checked out this wonderful place called the National Gallery. It was amazing... they have paintings by Michelangelo that aren't even finished (and of course there are many that are completed) It was cool to see how he did the painting in sections... we will have to go so you can see it! They have paintings from artists all over Western Europe that date back to the 1200's all the way up to about the 1900's. I was fascinated by all of it. We will have to make a little stop in there when you girls are here. Another great thing about it.... it was FREE! So I only spent about 45 minutes in there and didn't feel like I needed to spend my whole day there.

We have had three sun shine days this week. We have really had some great weather over here. The past 3 days have been beautiful to say the least! It makes it so easy and enjoyable to go out and just walk around.

I now know what it feels like to be a real wife that COOKS! I have loved every minute of it. I now have a new confidence in my ability to cook. All it takes is time and I have had plenty of that to make this possible. I go out every day and will usually be home by about 5 or 5:30 so that I can start something for dinner. It is hard because Christian has such random hours but I have been able to time it pretty well so far... I LOVE having a nice dinner ready when he comes home. It is crazy too because I think I have cooked as much in three weeks here as I did for the last 8 months in Logan.

We are going to Sloane Square when you girls get here! It is similar to Covent Garden but a little cooler! I love it! I just went down there on Tuesday to go through some of the stores and then enjoyed some pistachio gelato. It was a perfect little outing.

I love that we are having this experience together. I am so grateful for Christian and that he has allowed me to be here and to enjoy this place without worrying about work. He is working so hard and it makes me feel so bad but he never complains! He is so selfless and I am so lucky to have him.

love you lots

xoxoxoxo



6

6 weeks

- already -

is that possible

[6 weeks till another europe adventure]

i warned everyone that until i departed, europe would always be on my mind (and blog)

6 weeks really

y-e-s

y-e-s

y-e-s

y-e-s
- - - - - - - - - - - - > time is flying

**oh and i am off to portland, oregon on friday morning

with anne

- - off to visit some [best] friends & family - -

yep

for the weekend

i am always going somewhere
and i kinda like it

- - - - - - - - - - - - - -

i am so excited to:

rendezvous with these ladies

and see this rock star

* * * this is a much needed weekend vay-cay * * *

body pump officially kicked my booty

last night i agreed to attend body pump class with my friend laura. i would say we are both athletic girls. i was a little hesitant at first but agreed to go because i knew it was a good class. plus we are members at 24 hour fitness and we need to be using our passes. i explained to her that it would be ok because we can control the amount of weight we use. i thought to myself, "perfect! i'll use the smallest amount possible! this won't be bad." when we got to class and started setting up our weights, of course, it was chaotic. who knew body pump class was in such demand in SLC? people were racing for spots.

{um not front and center for us. no thanks!}

for those of you that are not very familiar with body pump, let me explain. it’s an hour long class of strength training that works every muscle in your body. the instructor plays music [good music] and for each track, you work one muscle group. so really, that’s about 3-5 minutes on each! at first, it was a piece of cake... but once it got towards the second half of the class, my legs were shaking. especially during the single leg squats. i caught laura’s eye and we started laughing with this, “i am so screwed” look. don’t even get me started on the shoulder press workout. we {may} have dropped our 10 pound weights for the 2.5 pound dumbbells.

yep. no joke.

like i said earlier, we are athletic.... so i thought. but i really enjoyed the class, it gave me such a sense of accomplishment and made me feel so much better about myself after.

until next week.
[oh and we don't look anywhere near this photo below, but you get the idea right]

thank you technology

this afternoon around 1:15 pm

[vibration on the cellular telephone]

reading: “unavailable”

ohhhh p-l-e-a-s-e be a foreign caller

- - yes

“hello?”

“hi chels...”

"AAA-MMM-YYY!"

**and the rest of the convo was the {best} part of my day**

i sure miss this girl.

many the miles in between us besties, but that doesn’t matter.

she is living the life!

normal girls

i love this girl

she gets me

going through life with a best friend is great

today she said this to me:

"we are normal girls... why does this happen to us?"

: : it's true : :

[i'm sure you have wondered this before]

-- but then again, we are cooler than "normal"

( that i am positive of )

cupid. polish your bow & arrow

one week.

the store isles are packed with:

chocolate, candies, sweets, and treats

pink and red everywhere

and i love it.


these beauties may have found their way into my bag
-- yes

but i say remember to {love} someone everyday
not just one day

r-patt

i forgot to blog about this:
i thought i saw r.p. at sundance last weekend
it literally stopped me in my tracks and i stopped breathing for a mili-second
but i was wrong
they sure look alike (r.patt and this twin)
**even that "fake" excitment felt great

. . . . i am pathetic

american football

i enjoy superbowl sunday for [two] reasons
the food and the halftime entertainment
confession: i don't really care about the actual teams or the game
- - - - - -
i miss superbowl at the irons' house
my mom makes a boatload of food
enough to feed the players from both teams
dips galore (queso, 7-layer, guacemole, onion, ranch... and sooo on)
chips
nachos
wings
pizza
shrimp
crackers
meat
cheese
chili
- - - - - -
all for our family of 4
{yes four}
i miss those days... i wish i were home in idaho on this sunday

love letters

do i love sending mail
yes
valentine's cards are going to be sent out
i love this time of year

movies

[500 days of summer]

this movie makes me smile

i was thinking about it this morning

<> great cast

<> good soundtrack

<> conveys real love

 [tangled]

and this one

seen it twice

.obsessed.

i want a floating lantern

i love movies

re.vamp

switching the blog top
just for fun
it is feb-ru-ary
.hearts.

is it really "just hair"

no-

i have difficult hair

it's thick & curly

i've wasted a good part of my life trying to control it, straighten it, and battle the frizzies

[enough of that]

- it's time to EMBRACE MESSY HAIR -

lately it has gone w-i-l-d

.free.

it has its {own} personality

but i am ok..with..that

^she^ has frizz

i wish i were as cute as this model

but... i'm working on it

:: embrace ::

ps---> today is a curly hair day

groundhog.day

supposedly the groundhog didn't see his shadow
[s][p][r][i][n][g] is said to be near
* * * * i am finding that hard to believe
s.l.c has been bitter cold
-freezing-
> > > ughhh that wind
and for today

mostly sunny {deceiving warmth}

21°F
high
4°F
low

four degrees?
noooo (lots of lingering o's)
- i hope that groundhog is correct

i have had some time to day: :dream

in this {cold} weather, i wish i could be here:

seeing these:

doing this:

sipping one of these:

 wouldn't that be great

- - who is with me - -

? ? ??

my fingers dance on the keyboard

i wrote this post a long time ago.

who knows why i didn't post it.

writing makes me feel better. i think that's why [a lot] of people blog. sometimes i get asked, why do you blog? i usually answer with something random. but then i thought more about it. i think writing can be therapy. i believe this to be true. usually when i sit and type, my fingers move so fast that my brain cant get the ideas out fast enough. sometimes i cry, sometimes i smile, sometimes a luagh, and sometimes i feel like being silly. for me--- writing is: me + the paper (or the screen in this blogging world i live in.) it settles the mind. it is a de-stressor. it releases tension. it keeps my secrets safe. it is a mood-changer. it is an outlet. it is creative and curative. it is wonderful. so that is why i do it. to feel better. to log the special/crazy/funny/sad/adventurous moments in my life. to have something other than a journal to look back on. (photos galore) i know to some, blogging is silly and to others, well they feel the exact same as i do. so to whoever reads the stroies and random things i post, they will continue to be written.

**‎ enjoy. ♥


quite simply, writing is beyond words
xoxo