Dear 16-Year-Old Me

I know summer is coming to a close, but I found this video today, and I thought it would be important to share. My family has a history of melanoma (my aunt was diagnosed with it when she was in her early 20s), and because we have a fair skin and blonde hair background, avoiding harmful tanning beds and rays is important. I have friends who bake in tanning beds on a regular basis, and people, it's just not healthy! Not only do you end up looking like Snooki and age faster than you should, not being smart about these tanning beds (or "death" beds as a dermatologist I know calls them) can even result in painful surgeries and death. Please be smart, and know that this is not a "girls only" disease. Guys like to tan, too! Share this with any teenagers and young adults you know, and let's be safe together.

As for me, I'm a fan of Jergens Daily Glow line. Use it 3 times a week and you have a natural-looking, NON-ORANGE, UVA/UVB rays-free tan.

The Best Day

It rained again today. And when I say "rained" I mean "poured."

Jenni, Audrey, and I decided to take a rainy day trip to Barnes and Noble. We got our hot chocolate and did some browsing. I could spend all day here if I could!

Who wants to buy me a Christmas gift?

Genius.

I still don't know if this book is serious.

My favorite childhood book

So Audrey. It's called "Pink Think: Becoming a Woman in Many Uneasy Lessons"

Now onto the rain. On our way home, we got caught in a flash flood. So of course we drove through puddles as fast as we could. Sorry if you're the runner or biker we drenched on our way...

This is what the Santa Barbara parking lot looked like. So naturally I played in it. I love rainy days and bookstores.

Rainy Days

I love rainy days.

I love sitting on my couch next to my window with a book and watching the rain and listening to thunder.

School starts in 34 days. Only 34 more glorious days left of the best summer of my life. I'm going home in 18 days. I can't tell you how excited that makes me!

Brother Tyler graduated from BYU-I this weekend. I'm so proud of him! I cried the whole time. That Processional March sure gets to me, apparently. Or maybe it was knowing that that's going to be me in December. Boo-yah. He's moving to Provo in 14 days. Another Justesen in Provo...that can only mean one thing. There will be two Justesens in Provo.

Anyway, I'm going to get back to my book. In the meantime, here are some pictures from the Harry Potter premiere. I was a non-ginger Ginny Weasely. I cried during the end of the movie, too. I sound like I've been an emotional wreck this week!

Also, Instagram is the neatest thing on the iPhone app block.

Gorgeous

But really. This is what summer is all about.

Welcome Summer. I've been waiting for you.

Okay folks, summer is here. And we know what that means. Summer music. And my need to create a playlist for every aspect of my life kicks in especially hard here. Call me pathetic, but I have an inability to drive without music. And when my little Batmobile has the sunroof open and all its little windows down so the warm breeze can come on through and whip my hair back and forth, I crave music. So without further ado, I introduce you to some of my favorite songs that SCREAM Summer 2011. I've been waiting for this.

1. Hotel California by The Eagles. Classic. Makes me think of a warm summer night at home

2. Summertime by Kenny Chesney. Obviously

3. California Girls by The Beach Boys. I take pride in this song

4. I Woke Up in a Car by Something Corporate. Makes me want to roadtrip across America. Who's with me?

5. In This Diary by The Ataris. I get into a huge Ataris phase in the summer

6. Summer Wind was Always Our Song by The Ataris

7. Boys of Summer by The Ataris. See? No joke

8. More than a Feeling by Boston. Sappy EFY memories

9. Good Life by One Republic. Listen to this and tell me your problems didn't go away after

10. E.T. by Katy Perry. I know, I know. But still

11. One Day by Matisyahu. Perfect for Provo Canyon drives

12. Summer Girls by LFO. How could this NOT make a summer playlist?

13. Free Fallin' by Tom Petty. Somehow this song makes it into every playlist I make. And for good reason

14. Jaded by Aerosmith. I just love it

15. Mean by Taylor Swift. So sassy

16. King of Anything by Sara Bareilles. Also sassy

17. Miles Apart by Yellowcard. Also more memories

18. Good Morning by Chamillionaire. Haters gonna hate

19. Grace Kelly by Mika. It's just fun

20. And finally...Thunder by Boys Like Girls. Because summer thunderstorms in Utah are the best

So there you have it. My actual playlist has 208 songs, but these are my top faves. And I would be here forever if I listed them all. But there's some Fleetwood Mac, more T. Swift and Katy Perry, and Blink 182. So this just means you'll have to pay me a visit if you want the rest.

Summer Life.

I've been home from London for about 3 weeks, and I can't believe how fast it's gone by! I'm going to be back at BYU before I know it. I've been looking for a job, and that's been driving me nuts. But I have two interviews next week for jobs on campus, so maybe something will come of that!

My roommate Laura is engaged, and she asked me to bake her wedding cake! This has always been a dream of mine, and I am so excited. I'm thinking a 3-tiered lemon poppyseed cake with lemon curd filling and buttercream frosting. I can envision in my head what I want it to look like, it's just creating it that I'm nervous about. But all great cooks start somewhere right? And a goal of mine is to be a great cook!

I'm loving the warm weather. I came home nice and pasty from London, and thanks to some good old sun my freckles are beginning to come back. I've brought my Ray Ban Wayfarers out, and I've been loving it. And all the rain has made the Salt Lake Valley beautiful. I love waking up early in the morning, looking out my window, and seeing green everywhere. I hope it stays that way.

Yesterday my family went through the Oquirrh Mountain Temple open house, and it's beautiful. When we arrived, there was a storm raging. I don't think I've ever seen it rain so hard in my life! But once we got into the temple, I couldn't even hear it. And there are pictures of Christ everywhere, which I absolutely love. I just love that our church builds such beautiful structures for us to come and sit, and just feel at peace.

So far summer has been going well. Life is good.