i may need a bigger bread pan.

i made a loaf of bread this weekend.

don't worry though -- it still tastes delicious.

also tonight i'm experimenting -- cupcakes with frosting inside?

we'll see how those turn out in a short while.

 and now i'm going to publicly announce a goal i made for myself.

(mostly so that i actually follow up and do it)

GO FOR A RUN ON RIB MOUNTAIN EVERY SATURDAY.

 here's how it looked from the top this week.

now that the colors are changing, it's going to start being awesome.

plus i've actually done a bunch of my DZP goals in the past little while.

so...expect blog posts about them later this week?

all better.

lex got fixed this week!

he went from this...

...to this...

 yes, it's raining and dark but i wanted to blog about it
NOW instead of waiting for the storm to pass.

yay for a new bumper and whatever else
 because now lex looks as good as new.
(take that, girl-who-hit-me's insurance company)

as for the question of whether i have travelled farther than lex in my lifetime...i'm going to have to give that one to myself in a landslide. 

i got him when he was around 50K, so i've shared (nearly) all of the miles after that with him.

when i count my mileage -- just with air travel -- i beat him by a lot.

* trips to chile (about 10K round-trip)

* back and forth between ohio and utah during college (1,700 miles if i flew straight over, but with layovers, i know i did more than that)

THEN take into account my drives before lex came into the picture.

* vacations to disney world (900+ miles each way)
* trips to myrtle beach (600 miles each way)

* roadtrips to california, vegas, pittsburgh, vacations out west, etc.

...i think you get the idea.

anna - 1.

lex - 0.

anyways, now that he's better and we put a 100K miles on him already, sean and i decided a few more hundred wouldn't hurt and headed to milwaukee for the brewers game on wednesday.

 ^ sweet view from the press box

we barely dodged getting hit by the sprinklers after the game

(going on the field: yet another perk of being in the tv biz)

^ awkwardly scrunching down so he 

doesn't look nearly as tall as he actually is...

 ^ seriously, so tall.

but he's my best friend (in wausau) so it's no big deal.

p.s. just found out you can click on any of the pics to see them bigger ( :

getting old.

also of note:

yesterday, lex went from this...

 ...to this...

happy 100,000 miles, lex.

(and thanks for not blowing up or going all Y2K on me or anything)

<3 <3 <3

everywhere.

ten years ago, i walked into my fourth period biology class and watched as the second plane crashed into the world trade center. it seemed surreal then and it still feels weird now. there's no denying the sadness and the heartbreak, the lives lost or the tears shed. some have argued how there could possibly be a god -- why would He allow something so terrible to happen?

but the world didn't end after the towers fell. first responders rushed to answer the call, volunteers pitched in and everyone held their loved ones a little closer. on september 12, 2011, the sun rose again, just like it had done for thousands of years before. the pain was still there, but it was mother earth's reminder -- life goes on.

when i look around my little slice of the world, i see His influence everywhere. from the cool breeze on my face -- to the traffic light turning green at the perfect moment -- in the wondering eyes of the kids in my sunday school class -- and the way dustbuster tells us what sound a fish makes. for all the awful things in the world, there are certainly so many wonderful things too.

He never said it would be easy, only that it would be worth it.

and when all else fails, He will be there.

an american girl.

last week, i got this in the mail:

the GREAT AMERICAN SURVEY.

basically, they ask you a lot of (anonymous) questions about how many toilets you have at your house, how long it takes you to get to work, how much money you make, etc.

as of next week, i'll have been employed for an entire year.

(actually: i get to do fun things with cool people every day and twice a month, i magically have money deposited into my bank account)

i drive a car i almost fully own (xox lex xox).

and i have a toilet at my apartment.

i'm sort of like a real human / adult.

weird.