Brave: Winter, Spring, and Everything in Between

What up?!

Sooooo I stopped blogging 3 months ago. Why? Well, I'm not really sure.

I guess because no one reads my blog? haha.

But really, I'm pretty sure my mom, my sisters, and my little friend (I'm talking about you V!) are my only readers.

Not that I'm not stoked about their support, but it seemed kinda like I was talking to a wall. I'm not sure who my audience is, so I was struggling to find my voice. But I think I've finally had my aha moment.

I've realized that the blogs I love most are the ones that are real. That just talk about everyday life. That make me feel like I'm talking to a friend.

So, let's get real here!

I think life is pretty cool, so imma blog about it!

Simple as that.

You can join me for the ride, and read all about it. Or not. I'm chill with it either way!

#CoolAsIce

[ insert smiling emoji with sunglasses ]

J A N U A R Y

Skiing Alta for dayyysss

late night grocery store run with these goobers somehow called for matching animal hats? Also, I seriously keep looking at these pictures and think my sister is me.. genetics man!

Still loving the capsule wardrobe concept (see more HERE)

Although, I haven't been constraining myself to an exact number. Buy Less, Choose Well is my motto. I could (and probably will) write a whole other post about how buying less has changed my life. But for now, suffice it to say I'm a fan of limiting all the stuff we sometimes let get in the way of life.

Meeting nascar driver/environmental activist Leilani Munter at Salt Lake's 2015 Sundance Summit was a total honor! She is so spunky, I love it! She saw my tote bag and said we just had to take a picture together with it so she could retweet it. #15secondsoffame

Also, the summit was pretty awesome too! A great introduction to all the environmental issues facing Utah and what a bunch of cool people/organizations across Salt Lake are doing about it.

During January and February it got freakishly warm (hello climate change!) so believe it or not, in these photos I am wearing an unzipped light jacket to an outdoor event in January!

Speaking of environmental issues, air pollution is a HUGE problem in Salt Lake! We are plagued with a geography, car culture, and host of industries that result in dangerous levels of air pollution. On red (low quality) air days children aren't even allowed to play outside at recess! How dystopian is that?!

It is hard for politicians (and even average people) to see how harmful air pollution is because it isn't a dramatic danger like an earthquake or wildfire. The full range of health impacts of air pollution are only just being explored and they take years upon years to research! Children and infants are particularly vulnerable to the impacts of poor air quality. New research is even showing that it is inadvisable for pregnant women to reside in the valley because of the impact on vulnerable, developing fetuses! Scary stuff!

The research is still in progress, but so far air pollution has been linked to increased birth defects, low birth weight, miscarriages, higher cancer rates, and more.

It's about time we put people before politics and address this serious issue!

Even if you don't believe the science, what harm could possibly come from cleaning up our air?! Nada!

Clearly, I'm pretty passionate about this issue! (well really I'm passionate about any issue that pertains to human wellness being eclipsed by human greed) So, I'm happy that so many people showed up at the Clean Air, No Excuses Rally at the Utah State Capitol that day! Hopefully one day our voices will be too loud to ignore.

As a part time student this spring semester I tried to utilize all the perks I could! Including a BRAND NEW $50 million state-of-the-art gym that opened on campus my first week of class! My brother and I took a T/TH evening class together this semester and we developed the best routine where we would go climbing right after class from 7:30 - 9:00ish. It was the perfect evening activity because I always came in tired and left feeling awake! Not going to lie, I think I've cried in frustration about 8 different times.. but I really do love climbing! It challenges me a lot (I'm not super athletic), but I love the feeling of conquering a route that used to seem impossible. For me, climbing has really been all about me pushing myself and my body to new heights (literally).

I'm really excited for this summer and the prospect of outdoors climbing! Crossing my fingers that it all works out and we can carve out some time for a few outdoor climbing adventures.

Lastly, I'd be remiss not to mention my most favoritest part of January, HAWAII. Literally, I want to go back to Hawaii every January! That trip was just good for my soul. Sunshine, warm sand, big waves, all the ingredients for a week in paradise. I promise I'll try and get back to those Hawaii posts soon!

F E B R U A R Y

ohhhh February. I affectionately think of this month as "the month where things got weird". It just was crazy busy and nothing like I expected. First off, I had to have foot surgery two different times that month and ended up gimping my way around for a few weeks. I couldn't walk on it, let alone hike or ski or climb. I hated every second of my crippledness. I'm a peacock you gotta let me fly!

Also, like I mentioned before, while the east coast was getting bounded with truck loads of snow on the daily, February in Utah was spring. It was BIZARRE. I swear that there were multiple days in the 60s, we broke every single record high temperature for 3 weeks in a row, and it even got up to 70 degrees one day! This is insane for Utah. Also, it was the worst because we got 0" of snow which is terrible for skiing and drought.

This is me as Gimpy Longstocking. The knee scooter was definitely the highlight of the whole thing. It was so fun to zip around on it. You should have seen people's faces when we put 2 of us on it and rode it down a hill.

Also, obligatory electric shopping carts at the grocery store thanks to my foot.

new climbing shoes from the backcountry.com store in Salt Lake! I could only try on one shoe (because of the injured foot) but I bought them anyway and they've been great.

A ridiculously sunny Feb hike that I took reeeallll slow (once my foot was mostly healed)

yes.

Related: valentines this year wasn't horrible. I was single (again) (still am)(not bitter) but I enjoyed some sparkling red grape juice and the Pearl Harbor movie.

When my foot was finally healed enough, between surgeries, I headed straight for the mountains. It was totally 55 degrees at the base. So weird, but still fun to be out on the snow!

And my babies! New skis that I got at an awesome deal at the Alta demo shop! I love 'em so much I still want to do a little happy dance when I see them on the wall in the garage. They are the perfect mix between a powder ski and a groomer ski. Fat enough I surf through powder, but not so big that they are unwieldy on the groomers. Am I gushing too much?

Never any need for filters/editing when it comes to Alta.

The Viola pizza at Pizzeria Limone was kinda my obsession for a good 2 weeks.

Music & The Spoken Word, courtesy of MoTab at the tabernacle downtown. We went two weeks in a row with visiting guests and I kind of loved it. For some reason music can really touch my heart when I'm open to it. Which is a surprise coming from me, one of the most non-musical people in the world.

And a selfie with my favorite godchild! Actually I'm not really his godmom (yet!) Although, I'm vaguely considering starting a campaign #jessicaforgodparent, or even better, I just stick to my current plan of calling myself his godmom until it just becomes reality! That's not delusional, right?

Also, where does the term "god parent" even come from. Kinda a weird one.

M A R C H

What a month! It was everything I feared it would be and more.

March really took me for a wild ride. But I made it. And I even had some good times along the way!

And I don't really have too much more to say about this month.. Let bygones be bygones you know?

(cutest parents in the world ^^)

First bite of dairy in over a year. Thank you 12 lactase pills!

A P R I L

Have I reached the 50 photo mark for this post yet? It sure feels like it! I guess that's what happen when you try and recap 4 months in 1 post!

April felt like a breath of fresh air and the winds of change.

With March behind me and summer ahead of me, I came into April full of uncertainty and left with purpose.

It was a month of transitions, but I addressed a lot of things that I'd been struggling with for years. Easy? No. Fun? Not really. Fulfilling? Absolutely.

An unexpected snow storm where the flakes were so big and beautiful that it made me want to cry! We hadn't seen snow in the valley since December!

Getting surgery = no bueno

But these two hams + soccer = yes bueno

oh, and I got pricked in the back 40+ times. Good to know I'm not allergic to anything.

Meeting one of my life heroes, Dr. Jane Goodall (!!!)

Then 2 weeks ago, I had a near death experience while biking where I flipped over my handle bars and my face plowed across the pavement. Luckily I walked away with just some road rash and bruises. But it really shocked me and made me think about how fragile and precious life is. If I had been in the road and not on the sidewalk, I could have easily been hit by a car and seriously injured (or killed). All in the blink of an eye.

A morbid thought, I know, but I'm thankful for learning moments like these.