my babies.

What do you think about my little new baby evie?
MakeMeBabies.com - What will your baby look like?



What do you think about my little new baby rusty?
MakeMeBabies.com - What will your baby look like?



What do you think about my little new baby leah?
MakeMeBabies.com - What will your baby look like?



What do you think about my little new baby adam jr.?
MakeMeBabies.com - What will your baby look like?

i love this website.

thirty-three.

today is the day of my oldest sister, kirsten's, birth.

let me tell you about her.

1. she is an amazing, amazing mother.
the birthday parties she throws for her kids are always so creative and look like they came out of a martha stewart magazine.
she has seemingly limitless patience.
she believes in her children and shows so much love for them.
she makes learning fun and encourages exploration and discovery.

2. she is one of the most creative and talented people i know.
just read her blog. you'll see what i mean.

3. she gives good, reasonable advice.
especially to a sister who doesn't always listen to reason.

4. she's an example to me in every way.
when i grow up, i want to be like her.


see? isn't she amazing?

kirsten, i love you and i'm so glad you're my sister!

happy birthday!

guinness book of world records!

thanks, aaron.

two days in a row.

this morning i woke up at 8:50.
my first class is at 9.
i jumped out of bed, threw on some jeans and a sweatshirt, hurriedly brushed my teeth, grabbed my bag, and ventured outside into the cold air.
it had snowed during the night. this time it was just a light dusting, though, so i thanked the Lord and continued on my way to the snow building, arriving at my film class two minutes late.
deja vu ensued.
[on my very first day of school at byu-idaho, i had a class in the romney and then a class ten minutes later in the ricks building. these two buildings are on opposite ends of campus. i couldn't remember exactly how to get to the ricks building, but i knew it was at the top of the hill. looking back on it now, i took the longest way possible and was five minutes late. the second i opened the door and walked into the lecture hall, my teacher was just beginning a lecture on how he does not tolerate tardiness.]
i found myself feeling like eighteen year-old kellie olivia jorgensen once again, scared and confused and completely embarrassed. i sat through my film professor's ten minute-long lecture on being late and wondered why i had even gone to class that day.
as he droned on and on about who knows what, i looked at him and wondered why he was here.
and then it hit me: film is this man's passion. he has studied film and theater for years [i dare say decades] all so that he can share his passion with others and teach them things they wouldn't even notice at first viewing.
my next question scared me, to say the least.

why am i here?

obviously, i'm studying to become a high school spanish teacher.
is it my passion?
no.
is it something i think about a lot and crave to learn more about?
definitely not.
then why am i here? why did i choose this path for myself?
i'm still trying to answer this question.

i thought the uncertainty would go away once i found my place,
but it is always present.

i constantly find myself aching for more, for something completely different.
i can't put my finger on exactly what that is, but i know it involves me living elsewhere, doing something different. something i'm excited about.

i don't know what that entails right now, but i hope i find out soon.

what i've been up to lately.

1. figuring out what to do with my hair.
i know i want my hair to be blonde again [although being a brunette was really fun and exciting], but i think i want to take a couple inches off my hair?
i'll probably change my mind tomorrow or get it done and regret the decision right away.
in other hair news, my roommate and i successfully gave my hair a trim! i got impatient and started cutting the dead ends off and she got scared [rightfully so] and finished the job.
also, i keep trying every once in a while to get my bangs to look like this:
but they always end up looking like they always do.
oh well.
c'est la vie.

2. album of the week
wednesday is probably my favorite day of the week because of this new tradition.
my friends and i take turns picking an album that we love/appreciate and lie down on the living room floor and listen to it in its entirety.
my first [and only] pick was bruce springsteen's nebraska.
it's my turn this week.
i'm thinking of picking bjork's homogenic or beirut's gulag orkestar or loretta lynn's van lear rose.
we'll see.

3. enjoying an unseasonably mild rexburg winter
i don't have any pictures yet, but the snow is melting! and it's march!
i can see the grass in my front yard!
and most of the blue track across the street from my house!
spring is literally right around the corner.

4. homework
eww.

5. collage
pictures soon to come.
-----
what i'm anticipating:

1. summer
as most of you know, i'm staying in rexburg for the summer.
i couldn't be more excited. i'm expecting to have the best summer of my life.

2. mates of state
road trip!
denver!
so excited!

3. no school until september
i'm getting burned out.

4. ecuador

5. this.
-----
do you ever wake up in the morning and wonder what you're doing with your life?
lately i've found myself going about my day and wondering why i'm doing what i'm doing.
i'm terrified i've made a huge mistake.
-----
i can't stop listening to ok ikumi's spirits.
it's inspiring.
-----
when does it get easier?
-----
on particularly difficult days, i find myself listening to this song on repeat.

enjoy.

photos and a shout-out

this is what i look like as a brunette who didn't know the flash was going to go off.
i love lyndee and hannah.


this is a ring i fashioned from a broken guitar string.
i wear it everyday.
someone thought it was an engagement ring.
------------------------
today is my mother's birthday.
i planned on sending her a homemade birthday card, but i didn't finish it in time.
[i feel really bad about this.
but it will be in the mail by monday at the very latest.]

i love my mom a lot.
she is my best friend and she helps me so much.
i'm so glad i have her in my life.

i love you, mom!
have the happiest birthday today!

i am alive.

i am terrible at updating this.

i have a few pictures to post,

and a few stories to tell,

and a few albums i'm itching to talk about that i can't stop listening to,

but that will have to wait until a later date.

as in, after i upload said pictures to computer.

before i go, though, i will say this:

1. i'm happy.
2. i'm [mostly] healthy.
3. life is great.

love, kellie

even though

even though i woke up thirty minutes before my first class
and had to use my roommate's printer to print out my assignments,
and almost fell asleep ten times in my religion class,
and was publicly humiliated in my spanish class,
and found out that a friend of mine is transferring,
and forgot to finish my math homework this weekend,
and didn't get as much sleep as i would have liked last night,

i still had a wonderful day

because it is november seventeenth
and there is no snow on the ground
and the weather was so gloriously beautiful that i didn't even need to wear a coat
and alyx and i took advantage of wendy's value menu
and i made plans with my two favorite roommates
and tonight is music outlet
and i will be going home in exactly three days and a wake-up.

this post has seven lists.

i'm currently writing this blog entry after a long hiatus in the library, in a cubicle next to a window so i can see the blue sky and people-watch when i get bored of writing my spanish essay about whether byu-idaho should have intercollegiate sports or not. part of me thinks this is a bad idea [sitting by the window] because it is so beautiful outside and i would much rather be playing at the park instead of homeworking in the loudest library in the universe, but maybe it will motivate me to work harder [better, faster, stronger].

ten reasons why i am happy [in spite of the fact that i'm in idaho]:
1. i live in a house. a real house. one of these days i'll take pictures of my new home and post them here. i sleep in a cute, yellow room which i recently decorated with my pretty banner from kirsten and artwork and thoughtful cards from friends and family. i have a front porch with a bench and a couple of rusty, blue chairs [which i definitely do not utilize enough] and some pretty amazing roommates. basically, i lucked out in the living situation department.
2. seven days and a wake-up until thanksgiving break!
3. i am the teachings for our times teacher in relief society. it's a dream calling.
4. my hair is longgggggg.
5. i'm applying for a study abroad in merida, mexico through byu.
6. it hasn't snowed a lot yet [!!!!].
7. ninja tag*.
8. i am now an expert at guitar hero.
9. i talked to my sister today.
10. my group meeting for my american literature class was only five minutes long.

two funny things that have happened this semester:
1. my roommates and i had this great idea to dye my hair platinum blonde. my hair was YELLOW. like, crayola crayon yellow. alyx fixed it, though, and now it's pretty much back to my natural color. i cried, but now it's really funny.
2. i fell off a slide at the playground that was five feet off the ground and landed on my back. hahahaha.

classes i am taking this semester:
1. spanish advanced grammar and composition.
2. math for the real world [i'm still not convinced that i will use everything i have learned thus far in my real life].
3. american literature: realism to modernism.
4. teachings of the living prophets.
5. aerobics.

classes i am taking next semester:
1. intro to spanish literature and analysis [eeek!].
2. aerobics.
3. old testament.
4. spanish phonetics
5. creative writing

ten songs i'm really into right now:
1. today // smashing pumpkins
2. lost! // coldplay
3. jesus // the velvet underground
4. lift up your eyes // ok ikumi
5. what you waiting for? // gwen stefani
6. army of me // bjork
7. the good life // weezer
8. please, please, please, let me get what i want // the smiths
9. lean on me // the bumbling jorgensens
10. old sept blues // my morning jacket

fifteen people i miss:
1. the cantrells.
2. kris and jenn and sam jorgensen.
3. kirk and eva.
4. kari.
5. karl.
6. mom and dad.
7. kiko.

one place i wish i could be right now:
1. south jordan. so i could go to the coolest star wars party ever [kirsten: talia and hannah and i were talking last night about driving down for the party and dressing up like chewbacca [talia (she can do the best wookie impression!)], han solo [hannah], and princess leia [me]. but we don't have a car].




*ninja tag recipe
one medium-sized playground
at least five people
nighttime

instructions:
1. assemble on the playground equipment.
2. volunteer to be "it."
3. put a blindfold on.
4. try to tag the ninjas.
5. play again [now you're a ninja].
6. evade the person who is "it" by not touching the ground, jumping from one slide to the other, etc.

a letter and thoughts

hair teasers of the world:
for years i have not only witnessed, but tolerated your choice of coiffure. but enough is enough. after a recent negative experience with one of your kind, i am forced to propose a ban on all hair heights exceeding one inch above one's scalp.
i assume there is some curiosity regarding the aforementioned experience.
i will begin to elaborate on this matter by informing the accused that i am only five feet, five inches [not counting hair-height (which, you can be assured, remains at a 1/8 inch height at all times)].
remember this.
it is crucial to the event.
my niece, a precocious eight year-old, is an aspiring ballerina and participated in a recital on friday night [14 june 2008]. the theme was "alice in wonderland" and i enjoyed her performance as a flower about halfway through the recital. however, my enjoyment ceased immediately as not one, not two, not three, but FOUR of your kind chose the row directly in front of me to occupy for the remainder of the performance. their collective inability to be on time, quiet, and courteous were enough for me to form my own opinion. but it was none of these items that irked me as much as the hair.
a tall lady sat directly in front of me. now, i am fine with people sitting in front of me as long as they keep still so i can see the performance/spectacle/movi

e/fight in the cafeteria. but this woman constantly talked to people on either side of her, causing her head to move from side to side and, consequently, causing me to get whiplash and a crick in my neck from changing sides as often as she.
which brings me to the matter at hand: the hair. this woman's hair was teased five inches [FIVE INCHES] above her scalp and put in a ponytail which was also teased to about the same height. it was impossible to see over her gigantic head. i missed half of my niece's dance recital because of someone who was just rude enough to tease her hair into oblivion without thinking a moment about the possible vertically-challenged people who would have the misfortune to sit behind her.
i think i have made myself clear.
any infractions of the law against utah/idaho/cmt/truck stop hair will be punished severely by the anti utah/idaho/cmt/truck stop/miss america hair coalition [you don't want to know the consquences... (alright, i'll give you a hint: it involves the use of a flowbee. consider yourselves adequately warned.)]

not teasing [in any sense of the word],
kellie olivia jorgensen
President of AUICMTTSMAHC

-----

a couple of weeks ago, kirsten et al came over for their weekly visit. tessa brought her piano books, per usual, and made me sit in the living room to hear her practice.
i didn't mind at all.

she is getting to be so good and i'm so proud of how hard she's working.

i reflected on the past thirteen years of my life as a piano student and remembered thirteen years of procrastination, arguments with my mom about practicing, scales, accompanying singers and instrumentalists, recitals,etc.

and i realized how much i missed it all.

i missed the excitement of getting a new piece to work on and progressing from playing just one hand at a time with no thought on dynamics or phrasing or the emotion of it all to a [mostly]beautifully crafted song.
i missed the feel of the cool keys beneath my fingertips, the frigid damper pedal against my foot.

but most of all, i missed the way i felt when i played. it sounds selfish, but ninety-nine percent of the time, i'm playing for myself. whether it's to calm anger, contain happiness, or ease pain, every note i play is for me. it's my way of sorting out my feelings.

so, i went out and bought "clair de lune" and "the entertainer," both of which i have wanted to learn since i was young, and got to work.

getting reacquainted with the piano is much like re-meeting someone you were good friends with in the past. at first, it's a little awkward and you find yourself fumbling for the right words, like fumbling for the right notes. but then, after a while, ease settles in and it feels as if no time had passed since your last meeting.

i remember one moment, specifically, when the change occurred, when it was no longer awkward.

i was playing a difficult measure of "clair de lune" over and over again to get a feel for what the transitions would sound like. then, after getting the hang of it, i decided to start over to sort of test myself to see if i really had it down. as i eased my way into the flowing melody and dissonant chords, i tensed up, knowing that infamous part was rapidly approaching. much to my surprise, the measure came and went and sounded like it was supposed to. at that moment, i felt so happy, i kept on playing, messing up almost every note but not caring at all.

it was beautiful. and i'm so grateful for the eight year-old who inspired me to reconcile with my past.

----

sometimes i wonder what the world looks like to a cat. my cat, specifically.
i find myself wanting to switch places with kiko for twenty-four hours on particularly difficult days because the life of a cat seems so peaceful.

but then i remember how cats clean themselves [gross].
and where they go to the bathroom [a dark, smelly box].
and what they do all day, every day [sleep, eat].

and then i take back the wish and go on with my life, feeling more grateful for the one i have.

whenever i find myself wishing i could be someone else, even for just a day, i should think about this.

i haven't posted since 31 january.

here's why:
1. the internet connection at my old apartment in rexburg was completely unreliable [one time it wasn't working at all for three days].
2. my camera is on its last leg and can only take a few pictures before dying.
3. i have had nothing to post about.

well, i thought i had nothing to post about. i was just looking through the pictures on my camera and found some old "picture a day" pictures that are pretty interesting, if i do say so myself. and some pictures of princess' eighth birthday party and a real salt lake game and a project i worked on.

so, here they are!


this is my old roommate, sharon, with an icicle that was almost as tall as me.
exhibit a of why rexburg is a horrible place: the icicles are deadly.
especially icicles that are four feet long.


this is a delicious dinner i made myself.
i think i made this when my roommates and i were hooked on watching bravo's "top chef". it just had beens and rice and corn and cheese and onions inside. i put all the stuff inside and folded it up and then crisped it up on the frying pan i heated the tortilla on.
needless to say, it was absolutely delicious.


mom made me this hat. it's so warm and soft and wonderful and pretty.


RSL V. LA GALAXY!
we had AMAZING seats [thanks, dad!] and we were right under where these streamers exploded! mom and i screamed. karl and dad laughed.


leo then came out riding a motorcycle.


leo's big exit and a five year old boy spreading peace.


hi, david beckham!
again, we had REEEEEALLY good seats!


this game was probably the most exciting rsl game i've seen! it's only the second game i've been to, so that's not saying much, but i think karl and mom and dad would agree that it was more fun than past games.
especially when the la galaxy players would kick the ball back into play and the rsl fans would scream "ooooooooooOOOOOOOOOOOOOO YOU SUUUUUUUUUUUUCK!"
that was fun.


i've always had this desire to make an embroidered pillow with rap lyrics on them like those pillow covers and needlepoints that say things like "a stitch in time saves nine" and "the early bird gets the worm."
so, i picked vanilla ice. "anything less than the best is a felony."
this was given as a gift.


princess' party! she was so excited. i think she was dancing around when i took this picture.
you can read kirsten's blog for more details. i have to say, though, that it was probably the best party i've been to in a long time!


this is kiko. she's been one of my best friends this summer and she always finds the weirdest places to sit/sleep.
one time, after kirsten and her kids came to hang out for the day, all of the couch cushions were on the floor in the living room and kiko sat on the back of the couch, looking completely uncomfortable. but she stayed there.


i think she's a beautiful cat.


the end.

ps: expect more regular updates in the future. i'm going to be better at this.

FINALMENTE!

my internet works decently! hooray! i still need to upload my sunday, monday, tuesday, wednesday pictures, but here are all the pictures [except for sunday and monday] from last week.


tuesday: today we went to watch brenda play basketball. byu-i doesn't have intercollegiate sports, but it does have intramurals. our ward has two teams and they were actually playing against eachother in this picture. win-win-win!


wednesday: so, we have this big rosie the riveter poster in our living room and my friend caleb found this rosie the riveter action figure at a gas station and got it for me! it even comes with "lunchpail and 'riveting action' rivet gun!"
it's awesome.


thursday: i was talking to alyx on the phone on wednesday and i saw "drake passage" which is really funny because her older brother's name is drake. so i emailed the picture to him and it was awesome.


friday: for my latin dance class, we had to get these special latin dance shoes and these are mine! they're REALLY SPARKLY! i didn't know they would look like that! but they're really fun to dance in!


saturday: i moved my desk today. the back of it used to be against the foot of my bed, but i kept kicking things in my sleep and knocking them off my desk, so i changed it! i actually like it a LOT better this way! it makes the room look bigger and now i have a better place to put my guitar! win-win-win!


i'll post sunday, monday, tuesday, wednesday, and thursday pictures tomorrow providing the internet is still working!

i haven't forgotten

i haven't forgotten about this. i've been taking pictures every day and they're all on my computer, but the internet at my apartment is absolutely horrendous and i haven't been able to upload any of them. hopefully it will start working soon.

sabado, domingo, lunes

this is my injured leg. you can't see them very well, but i currently have sixteen bruises on this leg. how did it happen?
well, i fell down the stairs in my complex. it's a funny story, actually. my roommates and i were going latin dancing on campus and we were walking down the stairs and lesley was saying how she was scared to fall down the stairs. i was telling her that if she falls, she should just make it look like she meant for it to happen that way. but the second i said the word "fall," i completely biffed it and slid down the flight of stairs with my right leg under me and my left leg extended.
it was hilarious and i'm proud to be a part of our apartment's favorite anecdote.

this is caleb. he's pretty much our sixth roommate. he even has his own food cupboard and totinos party pizzas in the freezer.
oh, and he bakes us cookies and brownies and apple crisp all the time.
and yes, that is the apron mom made for me.
i don't know what it is about guys in rexburg wanting to wear that...

this is where i spend a lot of my time nowadays. i even went there today on my day off [thanks mlk!] because i have more homework this semester than i've ever had in my entire life.

esta nevando

this was taken on my way to the library at around 7:45 am. the snow was falling and it was beautiful.

the following was written during my advanced writing class.

i forget
sometimes how ethereal the snow is when it falls
until i walk through it's pure, sparkly curtain
into another world.
a thick, fragile comforter covers the
sidewalks, cars, trees, rooftops, people
enveloping them in a cold embrace.
it's funny how something so
bright, pure, beautiful
can be thought of as
ugly, ininviting, dreary.
it seems to me that the definition of love
is to feel the flakes float dreamily from the sky,
kissing my nose, eyelashes, cheeks.
it's all for me. it's all for everyone.
sometimes, when i feel the snow all around me,
i wonder how it's possible that
i forget.

miercoles y jueves

these are the "notes" i took during my intro to hispanic literature class. it's a little bird in a nest reminding me of the homework i have in that class [which i have not attempted yet].

this is my latin dance workbook. i almost dropped this class, but i didn't. and i'm really glad because today was awesome! and i ordered cute dance shoes [gold!] and i got to practice a lot today and it was great.
so, things are looking up. the internet here is still horrible [it didn't work AT ALL yesterday], my printer is still broken, and my homework load is seemingly insurmountable, but there's a silver lining on every cloud.

that's the way it goes, it'll all work out

circumstances have worsened since this post.

i've been listening to this song a lot.

el templo

this is the rexburg temple. it is gorgeous when it isn't surrounded by gray clouds and snow. today i got to go on a tour through it and it was absolutely amazing. i felt the spirit so strongly [in spite of the fiftymillion children crying] and it made me feel even more excited for when i someday take out my endowments. i loved being there. i never wanted to leave.


this is a picture of rexburg from the hill the temple is on.
impressive, eh?

this is the field across the street from the temple that will inevitably be dotted with housing developments before too long.

viernes, sabado, domingo

friday: this is my guitar. i've been writing a lot lately.


saturday: this is the poster alyx got me for christmas in 2006. she lost it but then found it right before she got to rexburg this weekend.

sunday: this is caleb and i reenacting two things at once: ET and "god creates adam" of sistine chapel fame.

a reason to be happy

i've had a tough couple of days. my laundry room key won't let me in, my printer is not working at the moment, the internet at my complex is slower than prodigy, and the snow just keeps on coming.
today was a good day in spite of all the bad.

christmas is over

today we took down all of our christmas decorations. it was sad.
and everything is still on the floor.

man bag

this is my friend, nathan, holding the purse i got for christmas.
yes, he's wearing shorts in the snow. we even played catch in the fields by our complex and he didn't even put pants on.
he's crazy.
ps: i tried to get a good rexburg picture, but it will have to wait until tomorrow. or some other day.

dos fotos: la comida

1. this is a vanilla almond crepe filled with sauteed cinnamon and sugar apple slices, whipped cream, powdered sugar, and nutella.
2. this is my delicious lunch. chicken cheese enchilada soup [from a can] and salad with tomatos, cheese, dried blueberries, and raspberry walnut vinaigrette.

delicioso.

bookends

this is a picture of caleb, jill, and nick [old fhe brother, roommate, friend]. when i took this picture i thought of that simon and garfunkel song "old friends." there's a line in it about two friends sitting on a park bench like bookends.
it looks like jill is the book in this picture.

same old lang syne

new years resolutions and i have sort of an on again off again relationship. some years i'm completely against making any because i know i won't follow through [a nice dose of self-deprecation is always a good way of starting the new year, eh?] and most other years i'm overly-ambitious and end up making more resolutions than i can handle/impractical and set lofty goals.
this year, i think i made some achievable resolutions. one of them applies to this blog.
i didn't take any pictures at all last semester [correction: i took about six of myself for facebook/myspace because i was sick of the pictures i had before--oh, the vanity] and so i have resolved to take one picture everyday of 2008.
starting today.
so here is a picture for each day i missed: january 5th, 4th, 3rd, 2nd, and 1st.

january 5th:
this is my food cupboard at school filled with the generosity of mom and dad.

i'm really excited to eat those thai instant dinners.

january 4th:
this is a snowflake i cut out when we were decorating our living room.

it's my favorite one.

january 3rd:
this is a gift for my friend, dan: two mix cds.

he said he wants to broaden his musical horizons.

january 2nd:
these are the booklets i made for the cds. i sewed the covers.

i was listening to etta james when i took this picture.

january 1st:
this is my room in rexburg.

the watercolor of the piano kris painted for me that one christmas is on my desk [the one that was mounted on a piece of cardboard with the nice note on the back]. i love it.

well, now i'm caught up. i'm excited to find things everyday i can capture on film [memory card].

in other news:
-i'm back in rexburg [unfortunately]. i'm thinking about transferring [but that doesn't mean much because i think about doing a lot of things i never end up doing].
-i also have found myself listening to jimmy eat world's most recent album chase this light nonstop. the songs on it aren't amazing, but they are extremely catchy and, therefore, addicting. but i will say this: when i first listened to the whole album, it felt like i was hearing from a longlost childhood friend. futures was a pretty bad album. it wasn't really jimmy eat world to me. but this new album is back to the band i know and love.
-i still hate snow.

love kellie