"So Long Sweet Summer"...

               For a few reasons, this song by Dashboard Confessional puts a pit in my stomach every time I hear it.  It all began in high school when my good friend Laura informed me that she and her boyfriend Colby broke up and they listened to this song right before they went their separate ways. I was sad, maybe a little too sad...I cried.  I'm not even kidding, we still laugh about it today.  What a sad song to break up to!  It's a song full of goodbyes and changes- two of my least favorite things.  It also makes me sad because I HATE saying goodbye to summer.  Summer has always been my very favorite season and each year when I notice the days growing shorter, the air getting chillier, the school supplies loading up on the store shelves, I can't help but feeling a little melancholy.  My summer of 2011 has been a great one.  I mean a GREAT one.  I've been busier than I've ever been in my entire life and loved ever second of it.
Some highlights of my summer include:
sleeping in, Seven Peaks, Lake Powell, scooter rides on my foster scooter Jes let me keep at my house, My sister Angie's wedding with the whole fam, got engaged for a day(really got punked and am still suffering the consequences), Arizona on the BEST trip to visit my sis and her family, Lotsa temple trips, tubing down the Salt river in Arizona, Diamondbacks game, Bee's games, BYU soccer, LOGAN, got a new car(more details to come), many dance parties, SHOPPING, hundreds of fabulous new friends, BBQ's, working full-time(the mula was nice?), many dates, Boondocks, Trafalga, lots of time with my family, Culvers runs, snow cones, THE GLEE PROJECT, Bachelor Pad, the Simpsons, Many movies, dinner group, Sundance ski lift, dinner parties, boating, long boarding, ReAl games, and the list goes on and on.  Loved it, will miss it... now, bring on the homework. Blah!!!

My name is Rachel Pitts and I am a summer girl through and through!!!

Car Shopping...

A few months ago- to my dismay, my dear sweet Percy gave up the ghost. After two unforgettable years together, memories shared, thousands of miles traveled, it was time to say goodbye.  I first fell in love with Percy in the summer of 2009.  I met him through a mutual friend Jenny Shaw and he soon became mine.  We were inseparable!  We went to work together, school together and rode home to West Jordan every week for Sunday dinner.  Percy was peppy, upbeat and always there to serve.  He broke down every now and again and had to make a few trips to the shop, but I loved him nonetheless.  As in life, good things often come to an end, so did the life of Percy.  A rod was thrown in the engine, which I don't completely understand, but it basically means the engine was done for.  We had the choice to replace the engine or look for a new car and since Percy was getting a little old, the latter was the smartest decision.  It was hard to say goodbye but I was excited to see what else was out there.  Now here I am...car shopping.  and believe me, it's been an interesting adventure.  While helping me through this process, my dad will often say, "We'll find the perfect car for you, don't you worry" or "Don't just settle for any car, the right ones out there for you, you just need to look."  The whole process has seemed vaguely familiar to me and I just can't pinpoint what it is :)  I've come across cars that are flashy on the outside and attract my attention but have a crappy interior or don't run well, cars that don't look all that great but run like a champ, cars that seem perfect but just aren't the car for me, there are cars that don't have a radio and bore the life out of me, there's always the car that I just know is my dream car but it cruises by too dang fast to even catch name of it, some are too old with too many miles, some are too freaking loud, and the list goes on and on.  After a couple weeks of searching, I've come to the conclusion that I'm most likely not gonna find a perfect car (especially with my price range).  It may have a few small dings and scratches, it may not be the perfect car in someone elses eyes, It may have been down a very different road than mine, it BETTER have a radio, it may not be what I was expecting or looking for, but it will make me happy and take me where I need to go.  Catchin' my drift???

 

My name is Rachel Pitts... and I'm shopping for cars.  Any suggestions???

Heaven on Earth...

 A little over a week ago I got to go to one of my favorite places on the planet earth...LAKE POWELL!!!!!  I think I've mentioned Lake Powell once before in one of my posts.  But I'm pretty sure Lake Powell, beats Disney Land as the happiest place on earth.  My little four day get away was absolutely perfect in every possible way.  I couldn't have asked for a better trip!

the whole crew!!!!

Learning to wake surf.  My new favorite thing to do now that I've learned skiing is a little old school                                                          

sitting on each other?  Don't really know who's idea this was

Doin the stanky leg

Dance parties every night

snorkelin for golf balls with with my fav Scott

hittin our golf balls into the water

TWINNERS in our "I love me" shirts

Love this pic :) I totally look like I'm yelling at him.  

I had a tanning contest with Jeff- he kicked my butt that dang Brazilian 

My new favorite gals!

My bestest pal Jen

                                         My name is Rachel Pitts... and I love love LOVE Lake Powell

Family Business...

When he's not insulting Taylor Swift or living the lifestyle of the rich and famous, Kanye West is a pretty decent dude.  I feel like I can connect with him on a lot of different levels: we both rap like g's, we have the utmost respect for Beyonce, we're both black (me at heart), we've both lost our moms, and most importantly, we're both crazy about our families!  My favorite song by Kanye is called Family Business.  He talks about the love and loyalty as well as the silly quirks in his family.  Family business is the good, bad, and the ugly.  It's what makes every family unique.  My favorite line in the song says, "I don't care about all the diamond rings, they don't mean a thing... all the glitter is not gold.  Gold is not reality."  Meaning that all the glitter in his life-specifically his family, is worth far more than gold.  A little over a week ago, my sweet sister Angie got married.  We had our entire family in town.  Although it was pretty insane having 20 people living under the same roof, my time spent with my family was PRICELESS!!!

    Things I always get to look forward to when the Pittsies get together:

little kids running everywhere,  trying to dodge flying toys,  at least one spit wad in my hair from Ace, puzzles,  laughing and reminiscing of childhood memories,  memories of mom,  midnight runs,  pedicures with the gals,  One for the money at least a hundred times,

finding the boogie man with Simon,  conversations on weight-loss and the latest diet or workout ( HCG, Body for Life,  barefoot running, P90X, training for a race),  one or two comments on our favorite Stein Sandberg,  stylin sisters,  couples everywhere,  preggies everywhere,  toys everywhere,  keeks,

debating for hours which movie to watch-only to change our minds the second a good preview comes on, Cola's,  bbq's with Pops famous burgs,  Hires Big H,  Smashburger,  trying to fit a million people around two tables pushed together for dinner,  Pitts Idol (new and glorious nose),  Triple D's,

Someone feeling left out,  someone sleeping on the couch,  QUEEN BEE,  dad asking for my keys when I'm ready to head back to Provo,  treat baggies in the movie theaters,  phase 10,  times up, Oprah...Fat...NAKED,  Sadie crying at the door when we're eating,  dads general authority prayers, mission memories,  G and G talking about the church, pioneers, or sports,

jokes about baked ziti,  waking up at 7 AM to squeaky kid voices,  delicious food,  Lynell running around trying to get something done,  hugs,  bagpipes,  random blowup fights that scatter everyone in awkward silence for a few hours,  someone following up on my dating life,  christian music...

 

My name is Rachel Pitts... and this is MY Family Business!!!