Sugar and Spice and Something Way Cooler Than Nice

Happy Holidays everyone! Abbz and I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas and got everything on your wish lists :)
Now, as you may have seen from a couple weeks ago, Abbz surprised me with a post about . . . Well, me! She told me she was writing about one of our adventures but then surprised me with that sweet post. Well guess what? It's my turn now. Besides, you all need to know what an awesome person Abbz is.  So this is really a necessity.
From a statistical view, Abbz is a 5'6"ish, Caucasian female with black hair and blue eyes. She's 17 years, 4 months, and 20 days old. She likes chocolate, Michael Buble, dancing, whole apples, Starbucks, and the Bachelor, to name a few. She LOVES cookies. And she may or may not have a special place in her heart for boys.
But those are just the cold, hard facts. If you were to ask me, this is what I would tell you:
Abbz is one of the friendliest people you'll ever meet. Whether she's known you for 6 years or 6 minutes, she can instantly make you feel at home. Her bright smile and easy conversation will make you laugh (she makes everyone laugh; she could make a widow laugh at a funeral) and brighten your day. Especially when you don't have any friends yet - that would be me 3 1/2 years ago. See, I was the new kid at school Freshman year. I was confident that I could find friends (I'm a fairly outgoing person) but it was more intimidating than I thought. But in the middle of the swirling high school hallway, filled with unfamiliar faces, there stood Abbz. She was one of the first people to talk to me and suddenly, I wasn't friendless anymore.
But her bright personality isn't the only beautiful thing about her. She is also a girl of faith - a faith that inspires me every day. She loves the Lord with all of her heart and strives to reflect His light to the rest of the world with her life. In the times that I get distracted, or the times that I find myself in interesting situations, or even in the times where I'm just trotting through life being me, she always holds reminders for me of what a Christ centered life looks like. One of my favorite parts of our friendship is our conversations. We talk about life, love, faith, and growing up together all the time. (Along with our more frivolous conversations, which do happen obviously. We can't be saints ALL the time.) And in all of these talks, we are able to encourage each other and grow together because we are both centered (or try our hardest to be) on our relationship with Christ. And I am so blessed to have a friend to share that with.
But don't worry guys, she's not ONLY beautiful on the inside. I've got a pretty hot best friend, just so you all know. She's got a rockin' sense of style, and you should see that girl rock her sparkly heels :)
Obviously, the list goes on and on. If you can't tell, I love this girl. Since that first day of freshman year, we have been best friends. We've traveled the road of high school together - all the ups and downs. We've come a long way since we were 14. Sometimes we like to reminisce about our old selves, comparing them to our now-selves. We sure have grown up some since then, but the best part is that we've grown together. Now, as we near the half-way point in our senior year, we are some of the only kids in our class that have decided where we're going to go to college. She's going off to be a Cougar in Pullman, and I'm gonna be a Bronco in Boise. And for the first time in 4 years, we're not going to be taking our journey together. Not physically at least. But don't worry. There will be many skype dates, phone conversations, late-night facebook messages, and maybe some quick flights on that private jet some millionaire out there is going to buy for us ;)
All in all, Abbz is a pretty cool cat. Anyone who knows her is lucky, and anyone who doesn't, doesn't know what they're missing. Some guy out there is going to be blessed beyond measure when he gets her. Only after he get's past ME that is.
Love you Abbz! You are the bestest best friend a girl could ask for. We're about to walk into adulthood. Let's ROCK it!!

~Kenz
#partyprincess #cookiemonster #ThugLife

Two Pea’s in a Pod and One Pea in Particular

Hey friends, thanks for stopping by the little piece of our hearts! Today I was going to post about a particularly wonderful and disturbing adventure Kenz and I once experienced on a Friday Night Lights kind of night but I decided to surprise Kenz and post about that later (don’t worry, the epic adventure I just mentioned will be discussed another time!) Because our blog is fairly new I thought our lovely readers might want to learn a little bit more about the girls writing and who better to write about Kenz than me!

  Three years ago I walked into a new hallway and new chapter of my life, a freshman, full of new hopes, excitement, and so ready to meet new friends.  I mean, I was really, really, excited to meet new kids. You see, Kenz and I go to a very small high school that shares the same building as the middle school so at this point I had been with most of the same kids for 3 years. Anyway, I remember first glancing at McKenzie and immediately was struck by her curly, curly brown hair (post perm… don’t judge us, we both went there) and electrifying pink vest. But mostly, I was struck by her composed facial expression. Usually new kids have that squirrely, antsy expression on their face like they may pee their pants or vomit or do both at the same time… very obvious. Kenz though was different. She had such an honest, open look, like she was just happy to observe the surroundings and the dynamics before jumping right in. Naturally, I went to say hello and well to throw in a throw in a cliché but true statement “the rest is history…”

   Fast-forward three years and sometimes I can’t believe how close we are. Kenz has become my dearest friend, my soul sister. She makes me laugh like no one else, listens intently, and is always there for me. Kenz has a huge heart that is always full of love to give. Whether it is to her 3 year old sister, whom Kenz absolutely dotes on, or someone she just meets, she is quick to give her time, energy, and love. And boy can that girl listen. You may have realized this but Kenz and I are a tad… or okay, a lot chatty.  We enjoy and love the fine art of talking. But it is one thing to talk and another thing to listen and Kenz has mastered this skill. This is just one of the things I deeply admire about her. Also, she has an unshakable and inspiring faith,one that leaves me wanting to spend more of my own time with the Lord. She encourages and loves me in more ways than she knows and I am blessed that the Lord has knit our hearts together. In conclusion (lets be honest, I could go on about McKenzie forever but this post must end soon) Kenz is the smartest, most determined, sweetest, and most adventurous girl I know. She pushes me out of my comfort zone and inspires be to be better. Seriously, that girl has it all.  

  Well there you have it, that is small bit of what I have to say about the lovely Mckenzie Lauren Joner, the best of the best. I hope this gives you just a little glimpse into the girl that I will never forget and who has a way of lacing words together much better than I could dream to do. Thanks for being you Kenz.

-Abbz

#donttestthesebesties #kenzforthewin #thuglife

Raindrops On Roses and Slightly Obscure Celebrities

   Now that the holiday season is definitely underway, some of you out there may be wondering, what's the perfect way to kick off the holidays for 2012? Well Abbz and I asked ourselves the same question a couple of weeks ago. And the answer was obvious: the Christmas tree lighting in Pioneer Square in Portland.
   Actually, I can't take much credit for the idea. It's something Abbz does with her family almost every year. But because I'm her best friend, it's her duty to drag me along to these things every once in a while. So we went.
   We began the evening with a little shopping excursion at Pioneer Square Mall. The place was lit up with Christmas decorations and the feel of holiday consumerism was thick in the air. We soaked up the Christmas vibe while aimlessly riding up and down escalators, wishing we had money and talking about being single. You know. The usual. We eventually made our way into a frozen yogurt shop where we made her dad buy us some caramel pretzel yogurt. And let me just say, for anyone out there who's unsure about trying caramel pretzel flavored fro-yo, do it. It's delicious.
   Our next stop was, of course, Pioneer Square. It was raining but that didn't dampen our spirits. We simply pulled out our umbrellas like every other good little Portlander in the Square and found a spot near the tree. And this, ladies and gentlemen, is where things got interesting.
   Every year, in the time leading up to the actual moment of the tree lighting, they have performers on the stage leading the crowd in Christmas carols. This year it was a whole conglomerate of people. They had Thomas Lauderdale, multiple children's choirs, and several individuals of different ethnic backgrounds. But that's not all. As we stood there, swaying to the music like cuckoos on a tree branch (and enacting evasive maneuvers to avoid the streams of water ornery boys were pouring off their umbrellas onto us) we heard someone on the stage introduce the four Von Trapps.
   As we quickly look back and forth from each other to the stage, we hear the names "Sofia, Melanie, Amanda, and Justin Von Trapp." Apparently, they are four of the actual, flesh and blood great grandchildren of Georg and Maria Von Trapp of the Sound of Music. They carry on the legacy of their lineage by singing on tours and doing performances. And they were here, in Portland, at the Christmas tree lighting.
   For many miscellaneous and sundry reasons (some of which being we're 17 year-old girls, our lives are a bit lacking in celebrity sized excitements, and we're awesome) we were thrilled. So thrilled, in fact, that we probably squealed once or twice. Think about it. There were basically legends standing right in front of us; close enough that we could have hit them in the head with a rock if we'd thrown it - which we obviously wouldn't have. Sure, they might have been legends twice removed, but our excitement has the magical ability to ignore nuances that are potentially detrimental to its health.
   Even more exciting than the above stated fact, though, was the fact that one of the twice-removed legends was a male specimen. Yes. Justin Von Trapp. And in addition to his stardom, from where we were standing, he had a pretty darn cute face.
   Immediately, I began scheming ways to get his attention. I kept telling Abbz, "He's so close! All we'd have to do is intercept him on his way out and we've met him!" Now, let me just pause here and give a disclaimer: we are not stalkers. We are simply good at enjoying God's creation in every form. That, and we're not afraid to take action in the midst of opportunity. A talent which can be good and bad, depending on the context. Anyway, we decided against sneaking around to the back of the stage, but that didn't stop us from getting an opportune position in the crowd. We chose a spot from which he was very visible. Then we waited. Every time he seemed to look in our general direction we would wave.
   At first, it didn't work. But then, after several failed attempts, I happened to catch his eye and I quickly waved and smiled wide. And sure enough, boom! He had seen me. I could see it in the look on his face. He smiled gingerly, then looked away, embarrassed, not quite knowing what to do about it. Abbz and I started laughing, enjoying our moment of success. As we continued to watch him we thoroughly enjoyed his sheepish awkwardness and intentional avoidance of looking again in our direction. Of all of the hundreds of people in the square, we two rain-soaked girls had his attention. And it was the ultimate success of our evening.
   Soon, we moved away from the stage to talk with some friends, but before we left the square, we ran back through the thinning crowd to wave goodbye. Just because we could. The four of them were singing again and this time, because there were fewer people left, it didn't take long for him to spot our bright smiles. He again resumed his half smile, timid glances, and obvious enjoyment. As I looked at him in that last minute, I realized he probably wasn't actually the cutest guy in the world. In fact we came to a consensus that he was probably a little awkward. But he was still a celebrity in our eyes, and if we had a celebrity blushing on our account, it was all worth it. Might as well have been Brad Pit.
   When I was sure I had captured his glance, I half turned and waved goodbye. That got a genuine goodbye-in-return smile from him, and we turned, raindrops on noses, and walked away, not looking back.
   The rest of the evening held further excitements including pizza, urban hikes, puddles, Starbucks and lots and lots more laughter (cause, let's face it, that's mostly what we do when we're together). But every other joy was only a cherry on top of our prime victory. In the words of Abby, it was the night that "girls became women on the streets of Portland . . . But NOT in the way that sounds!!"
   It was the perfect way to kick off the holiday season. It kicked off the Christmas mood and got us excited for the many more holiday adventures we're sure to have. On the drive home, as we held our Starbucks close and listened to Christmas music and the sound of rain on the roads, we felt content in the knowledge that we'd wrapped up another successful day in the office. We may not have the resources to conquer the whole world, but we sure know how to conquer OUR world. <3
Happy Holidays!!!

                               


~Kenz
#ChristmasCOOKIEtime #Brownpaperpackagestiedupwithstrings #ThugLife

Turkey Day!

   Happy Thanksgiving everyone!! I hope you feel as blessed as I do today.

   Abbz and I have known each other since the first day of our Freshman year. If you do the math that means that our friendship is 3 years, 2 months and 12 days old. It's truly incredible how close you can become to someone in so short a time. Obviously, our friendship has grown as we have, but we both knew from the very beginning that we were soul mates. Now a'days we like to joke around and say that God put us in each others' lives to tide us over until we find our future husbands. 

   Who knows? Maybe that's true. 

   To celebrate the kickoff of the holiday season we decided to go out on the town last night with our 3rd musketeer, Autumn. As you are going to come to find out (and probably hear about very often) "going out on the town" has a different meaning to us than it does to most people. See, we live in Battle Ground. Here, in our two-mile wide town, shops close at 6:00pm, everyone goes into their houses, and the only thing left with the lights burning are the grocery stores. So when three attractive, fun-loving ladies decide to head out for some night life, it tends to be anticlimactic. But that's ok. Since we've grown up in this town, we've learned to embrace it. We do our hair, throw on our heels, and head to Fred Meyer; because if you live in Battle Ground, you know that Fred Meyer is the place to be on a Wednesday night. 

   Despite the usual potential Fred Meyer holds for us, (trust me, we've had some of our best adventures in that building) we realized after lapping the store one time that our usual stomping grounds wasn't going to do it for us that night. So we made our extravagant exit, and decided to head to Laurelwood, probably the best restaurant in Battle Ground. 

   With five dollars between the three of us (what?? We're going to be sooo prepared for college life) we got a table and ordered a dessert. Because when all else fails, dessert will never fail you. Cookies are man's true best friend. 

   And it was then, sitting across the table from my two best friends, that I really realized what true blessings look like. We sat and talked. We talked about life, and people, and physics teachers, and college, and family, and the future. We shared all of our concerns and excitements, and memories and hopes. You know you are truly blessed when you can manage to have an amazing girls night out when nothing is open and you have no money. 

   I have been blessed with so many things in my life and two of those things are my best friends. Today, I'm extremely thankful that I had a chance to kick off the holiday season with those girls. As we travel through our senior year, both the beginning of the end and the prequel to a new beginning, we get to travel the road together. And that is one of the things that I'm most thankful for today. 

    So happy Thanksgiving to all! I hope you have people in your life that are as wonderful as the people in mine. I doubt it. Because I don't think anyone can beat my friends. But go ahead and try :)

                                                                 Kenz and Autumn

~Kenz 

#hugyourmother #haveaturkey #ThugLife

All In a Day's Work

Welcome!
This is our newly created blog. We are just a couple of best friends who have some pretty fantastic adventures. So, one day it hit us: let's share those adventures with the world. Because it's really cruel to keep them in the dark.
We don't really care how many people read these. We just love life and fell like it would be fun to share the joy we find in small things.
Some things you'll find in this blog: sillyness, the occasional reference to good looking males who will never look our way, an inhuman love for cookies, probably a Voldemort reference or two, life lessons we are learning on our journey to adulthood, and the struggles and joys we face in our walk with Christ and with the people He has put in our lives.
Because this is a shared blog, you as viewers will get a taste of both worlds. Some posts will be from Kenz, and some will be from Abbz. And if we're feeling especially crazy, you will hear from both of us at the same time. We will always sign our posts, because even though we are unique and different we share blaringly obvious similarities- like our love for cookies- and wouldn't want you to be stumbling in the dark like an elephant without an headlight.
Stay tuned for coming attractions!!!

~Abbz & Kenz
#hugyourmother #haveacookie #ThugLife