the trip

just got back from an amazing girl trip. we saw everything from the golden gate bridge to haight street. my sister has all of the pics, but these are a few from my phone. what an adventure! thanks to m&m for making this such a memorable trip. remember how we were mugged? yes, that happened.

Adventure...

i was moping recently. i do that sometimes. i think to myself, "i am only 24 and the most exciting part of my day is scrabble and a diet coke," and then I sigh and feel bad for myself. (i'm not saying this isn't diva-esque behavior but I occasionally wallow in in self-pity. what?). aaron noticed the other night and decided that in order for his wife to be happy she needed adventure.


so he took me to the Clark Planetarium and we saw this...



on Sunday we decided to explore this...



this is the spiral jetty in case you were wondering. it's out in the middle of nowhere and well, we almost made it until we ran out of gas..BUT an adventure it still was. (and i would show you pics of our adventure if my camera hadn't deleted all of them. sigh).

tomorrow i'm off to san fran. yay for feeling alive :)

memory lane

there is something about rainy weather that makes me think of the good ol' days. ha. last night aaron and i talked about how lucky we were to have gone on a cruise in europe. it makes me happy when i think about it :) here are some pics of the honeymoon..not that anyone cares...but i heart them. yes. i just said heart them.

side note. don't you hate when people use " " ..these too much. like we didn't get the "point"...duh. ha. random....

L is for the way you look at me...

valentines day. i sort of hate to love this holiday. it's the kind of day that builds every ridiculous expectation of relationships and romance only to leave you feeling sad and old. ha.(and let me just say, aaron makes an effort..did you see my 12 days of christmas? no, it just does something completely irrational to my sense of happiness). i suddenly expect to feel like i am dating again..and as we all know,

Marriage is NOT Dating.

That is to say, marriage is WAY harder but also more fulfilling and definitely more real, while dating is just excitement and flirtation. maybe that's it. i forget how amazing and important honesty, reality (i.e. being real) and loving a person even if their eyes swell shut everyday (allergic reaction, ask me later) really is. i just want to feel new, exciting, and smokin' hot. ha. so here are my goals for this year's love fest.

1. chill out
2. love unselfishly
3. eat a lot

and maybe make my traditional v-day sugar explosion. muah.

here is a video of aaron and me in paris..and in love. ahhhh

my feet are cold

pictures are SO much better than words sometimes right?

things and stuff...

yes. i am a horrible blogger. acknowledged. so yes, aaron did finish the 12 days of christmas. i now have a new i-phone, and other various electronic devices to prove it. and yes, an i-phone really is better than a google phone (or pretty much any other phone i've seen) so there. ha.

tonight i'm sitting in st. george. i've just finished singing three pieces with orchestra and it was SO amazing to perform again. i feel i've been out of solo singing practice for quite some time. it was a fun opportunity to jump back in (and get paid. thank you jack).

should we see if i can upload a video? probably not...but let's find out anyway.... here goes...

and nope. it seems it is too large to upload. sigh. welp. must sleep.

tick tock tick tock

well, i have been away. we took a little trip to rexburg for the grandpa ashton surprise b-day party. i love hangin' with the ashtons.

i know all three of you are wondering what the 5th, 6th, and 7th days of christmas were.....well the 5th was a replaced windshield (very useful and very very much appreciated, but i didn't think many people would want a pic of that one. ha)

the 6th & 7th were days of mirrors....check it out....

The top three mirrors will eventually swivel out after i mount them.
neat huh.

by the way..if anyone ever reads this you should also check out my cousin Katie's Blog..
it's on the left under..katie jo designs. (as i am obviously too lazy to post a link here). she is so creative it makes me feel sheepish. ha.

4th day of christmas ....

day #4= hours of brainless enjoyment. as i never buy these for myself but like to take subtle looks waiting in line at the store, aaron gave me a year subscription to one of these gems. any opinions?

doesn't that look just say, "i know i'm getting lovin' for this tonight?" yes. yes it does.

should I be posting this?

I feel slightly vain and/or spoiled posting these..but maybe someone will get gift ideas? ha. I'll just tell myself that. Today aaron gave me this beautiful glass clock. It's blending in this pic but you get the idea. This is on my desk in my music studio. awesome.

my true love gave to me.

For the first day of christmas....yes that's pine bough in those flowers. yummm




For the second day of christmas my true love gave to me...this loverly music stand....


aaron just started with the 12 days of Christmas. what a nice guy huh? sometimes i wonder why i'm a hater...i've never done the 12 days of christmas and this is aaron's SECOND time doing it for me. sigh. it's nice to feel loved :) (although if your husband isn't doing this for you..don't feel unloved -BECCA, just know that my man is better than your man. ha. JUST KIDDING).

Carmen

Tonight I found out I was accepted into the chorus of Carmen for Utah Opera.

Woo Hoo!!!

So in January go and see Carmen...with me....probably being a somewhat skanky local.

Awesome.

Voice Lessons

Hey all...

so i've been crazy motivated this week and put together my teaching website. woo hoo! halloween pics to come shortly but if you know anyone interested in singing...check this out....

http://nataliecope.musicteachershelper.com/home

it would make me less poor. ha

old lady

i am an old lady. aaron bought me a heating blanket so that i could finally sleep. my feet and hands get SO cold at night that i can't relax. ha. and this is with two blankets on. so here it is...me under my old lady heating blanket. yes!!!

update on the mirror: it still looks gold even after staining it a slightly less vegas gold, but i'm loving it. is that weird? I think it might go in my music room! yes!

I also wanted to put three mirrors up in my bedroom. one in the middle, and two that bend in at the sides. like this.....
with a light above it? What do you think?

the mirror

Aaron and I found THE mirror at DI a few days ago. This is the before pic. I'm planning on taking it from scary sun god mirror to wow...was that your grandma's amazing indie mirror? YES!

Potting

So in my attempt to collect more hobbies I went to a potting class at Red Butte with my madre and aunt. It was great girl bonding time. Apparently in December Red Butte classes are making wreaths! I know you're excited. ha.

stuffed...

yesterday I made stuffed green peppers. they were divine. you should make them too.
Recipe:
Ingredients:
6 large green peppers
1 28 oz can diced tomatoes/ S&W ready cut tomatoes are excellent
1 lb. beef
1 large onion
1/2 cup water
3/4 long grain rice
1 tsp. worcestershire sauce (yes I had to google that spelling and then go get the bottle..amazing)
4 oz colby jack cheese

Brown meat and chopped onion
Add tomatoes, water, rice and sauce
Cover and simmer for 15 minutes
Then stir in cheese

Cut off lids of green peppers and boil peppers for 6 minutes

Fill peppers and bake for 20-25 minutes at 350

lame blog post? ah well

everyone's doing it....

Random information you probably don't care about....

this is a quiz from andrea..and then becca..so if you're in the cool club, maybe you'll do it too. 2 cool 2 be 4 gotten. yep. that's me.

♥ What are your middle names?

Lynne with an "e" people, and EDWARD. yes, vampire jokes are often swapped in the cope-ashton household.

♥How long have you been together?

O geez, too long? ha. We dated for about two years and have been married for a year and five months. woot

♥ How long did you know each other before you started dating?

Mmm not very long, a few weeks? I dated him and another boy at the same time ...kissed other boy...stopped dating aaron. Aaron dated other girl. We both broke up with "others" ..and dated again. phew. long story.

♥ Who asked who out?

Aaron apparently left orchestra to ask me out. I was practicing sight singing. His approach was "I'm going to take you to lunch." What could I say...he was so dang confident.

♥ Who made the first move?

MMM depends on what kind of "move." I was first at hugs etc., but he kissed me on his couch. He claims I was "begging for it." Yeah I'm pretty sure I was. What. You weren't?

♥ How old are each of you?

24 and 34. Yep 10 years apart. I had to explain who Beyonce was once. ha. Slight age gap at moments but usually in a good way.

♥ Did you go to the same school?

Yes. BYU HFAC dwellers.

♥ Are you from the same home town?

I always think that's slightly creepy marrying someone from the same town. No offense anyone. But No, I'm from Hooper..he's from Logan.

♥ Who is the smartest?

I've got practical knowledge..and maybe slightly more business minded but he's got the right-minded creative genius thing going on.

♥ Who majored in what?

Moi: Vocal Performance Him (how do you say "him" in french. crap, I should know that): Violin Performance

♥ Who is the most sensitive?

ME ME ME ME ME ME ME. I'm slightly crazy...most of the time. It's pretty awesome.

♥ Where do you eat out most as a couple?

We don't really ever eat together. I know...but our schedules are so different. I would say..East Sea.

♥ Where is the furthest you two have traveled together as a couple?

Greece, Italy, France and Turkey. woot woot

♥ Who has the worst temper?

I get weepy..he gets angry. Pretty typical.

♥ How many children do you want?

As for the next five years. Zero..zip.....sorry mom.

♥ Who does the cooking?

We don't cook..but if necessary aaron makes a mean breakfast and I make pretty dang good stuffed green peppers.

♥ Who is more social?

That would be me. I need people. The bigger the crowd the better. It gives me energy and excitement. Love it.

♥ Who is the neat-freak?

Me. Yes I am slightly ocd. It really bothers me to have mail on the kitchen table. ahhhhhh

♥ Who is the most stubborn?

Aaron claims we're both an Alpha. This leads to many many power struggles. ha.

♥ Who wakes up earlier?

It depends on the job. I had to be at school around 7:15 last year so I was always up earlier. Times have changed so it's usually always aaron these days. He's a "morning person" gag.

♥ Where was your first date?

crap..Denny's? We had breakfast because my schedule was so crazy at the time. We did go river rafting later on...I think that's when the spark happened. ahhh.

♥ Who has the bigger family?

Aaron. Three brothers..One sister.

♥ Do you get flowers often?

As often as I care to get them. I don't really care about the flowers..it's the card or the affection that matters more.

♥ How do you spend the holidays?

Last year we did both families. We were stopped at a gas station on christmas day because it was snowing so badly. Good memories :) This year we're switching off.

♥ Who is more jealous?

Maybe me? He had a LOT of time to be crazy in his youth. ha I sometimes wish I would've let loose more often. Ah well.

♥ How long did it take to get serious?

A year? I was freaked out by marriage and we were a little on and off for awhile. I left for a study abroad for a couple of months...we broke up for awhile. Complicated mostly.

♥ Who eats more?

Aaron eats more breakfast..I eat more of everything else. ha.

♥ What do you do for a living?

I teach voice lessons/sing. Aaron is a studio musician. He loves it.

♥ Who does/did the laundry?

We each do our own. I don't think we've ever done a load together in a year and a half. Is that weird? O well. It works.

♥ Who’s better with the computer?

Aaron. I've learned Illustrator so I'm better at that program..but he's better with everything else...except maybe facebook.

♥ Who drives when you are together?

We switch off. Usually Aaron drives a little more.

♥ What is "your" song?

It's a coldplay song. We danced to it at our wedding. I know it as "import track #3." I think it's "I feel Safe" or something.

Okay. done and done. enjoy.

girl night

tonight my madre and i went to the gateway to hang out, where i promptly spent my b-day money buying this.....a good sale at anthropology is hard to find...but we did it. woot.





(with a gray cardigan). and coveting this (to the right)......ah cuteness. and it's called "delightfully askew blouse" (adorable huh). yes, i like fashion. this does not mean i'm a mindless barbie. although i bet barbie is pretty happy in her mindlessness. just sayin'. ha.




this week i finished rereading Les Miserables. i always love reading it. anyone have a new and exciting new book find? i'm in desperate need of good books as aaron is never home and we have no tv. ha yes!!!!

p r o c r a s t i n a t i o n

why hello. i need help. my big achievement of the day was getting my butt out of bed and making dinner. that's it. ha.

so i think i'm putting off looking for another job because i don't want to hate my life quite yet. yes, i still get a paycheck for the next three months (the benefit of being a school teacher) BUT, i get anxious after about a week. i must be active ALWAYS. so if any of you out there know of any music jobs give me a call.

anyone need a singer...anyone.....ANYONE? ha *eye twitch...slurp of vanilla zero. stare out window. sigh.

birfday

this goes out to bec...who i've always had to share everything with...even a birthday. ha.
the b-day started out with a trip to Spark lounge in provo, which was good i must say...good food and fun drinks. then we hung at bec's place before heading to dinner and lagoon. (o my, has anyone ever been on "wicked," the new ride? it was pretty dang scary, aaron has claw marks to prove it. what a fun and random day. woot to getting old and staying sexy. eh eh? validate me someone. here's some random pics....