It Can't Be Over!

I just can't seem to quite come to grips with the fact that this year is almost come and gone. It has been a fantastic year for both myself and my family. It has been one with many changes. Some have have more trying than others like the death of my grandma in April. Some have been bittersweet like Heather leaving for her mission to Texas. And finally, others have been exciting and terrifying all wrapped up in one. I'm referring mainly to my acceptance and admittance to BYU and the multitude of changes that have accompanied it.

I have moved into my brother's and sister's home recently. It has been an enjoyable experience to live with them. I get to spoil my nieces and nephews on a daily basis. How lucky am I?!

My family had a fantastic Christmas yet a little more unconventional than ones in years past. We got up at about 7/7:30am and left our home to go to my brother's and sister in love's home. We arrived around 9am and made some breakfast preparations and visited until 10am. It was then when we got to speak to my twin sister! We talked for about an hour. We all hated to be the one to hang up the phone, but we wanted to be obedient to Heather's mission rules. We ate a brunch and then opened our drawn gifts to each other. We didn't stay too long due to the weather. When we arrived home we all elected to take a Christmas day nap. It turns out that we didn't open our gifts till about 5pm! So, however unconventional from Christmases past, we enjoyed it thoroughly.
I am looking to this new year with anticipation and excitement. See you next year!

Christmas "Getting to Know You" Questionaire

So I saw this Christmas questionaire online and thought I would answer it here. So here goes!
1. Wrapping paper or gift bags?
Umm... I use both but I like how easy gifts bags are to use!
2. Real tree or fake?
Fake. I'm allergic to real ones.
3. When do you put up the tree?
Whenever we can actually get the chance!
4. When do you take the tree down?
Around the first week of January.
5. Do you like eggnog?
The funny thing is that I loved it when I was younger. Not so much now.
6. Favorite gift received as a child?
A pink convertable for Barbie. She rode around in style!
7. Hardest person to buy for?
It's a tie between my Dad and my brother David.
8. Easiest person to buy for?
My twin sister! We have similar tastes and interests.
9. Do you have a nativity scene?
Sure do!
10. Mail or Christmas cards?
Love 'em both!
11. Worst Christmas you ever received?
A box of pencils.
12. Favorite Christmas movie?
Muppet Christmas Carol!
13. When do you start shopping for Christmas?
Around the last of November.
14. Have you ever recycled a Christmas present?
I plead the fifth.
15. Favorite thing to eat at Christmas?
Coffee cake on Christmas morning. Yumm!
16. Lights on the tree?
You betcha!
17. Favorite Christmas song?
O Holy Night and Silent Night.
18. Travel at Christmas or stay home?
HOME!
19. Can you name all of Santa's reindeer?
If I say yes will that suffice?
20. Angel or star on top of the tree?
I prefer a star.
21. Open the presents on Christmas or morn?
Morning.
22. Most annoying thing about this time of year?
Mucky roads.
23. Favorite ornament or theme or color?
Not particular.
24. Favorite for Christmas dinner?
No preference.
25. What do you want for Christmas?
I am most looking forward to speaking to my twins sister on the phone. (She is on a mission in Texas)
26. Favorite thing about Christmas?
Being with my family.

Wow! So much has transpired since I last wrote! For one, I am now employed at BYU! I am so glad to be working there. I enjoy the atmosphere in which it work. Lately, I have been fervently trying to learn all the necessary policies and procedures of the job as well as the names and faces of fellow coworkers. I am excited for my future at at BYU.

With the ushering in of a new job I ended another. It has been seven wonderful and certainly unforgettable years at El Matador!
I learned and grew a lot in my time there as it was one of my first jobs I ever had. While I miss the close associations I have formed during my time there, I do NOT miss perpetually smelling like a burrito!

I recently ended my time at Salt lake Community College. It is without question very different from the campus of BYU, but I have immensely enjoyed and valued my educational experience at SLCC. It has provided me with invaluable experiences and knowledge that will greatly aid me in both my educational pursuits and my personal life. I am going to miss it a lot.

I have enjoyed this time of year and the music that accompanies it. Music has the ability to invite in the Spirit for me. This Christmas myself and my family has had the opportunity to attend many concerts and events such as "The Forgotten Carols" -which my brother Doug was involved in.

Well, that's about it for now. I hope everyone has a very merry Christmas!

Twilight "Your Theories"

I feel like a teenage girl admitting this but I just about hyperventilated when I saw this new movie clip for Twilight. I suggest that you have a paper bag readily available!

Just Enjoy the Show!

I have been loving this song by Australian songstress Lenka. Some songs just make you smile from ear to ear and this one certainly has that effect on me. Happy listening!

A Bootiful Halloween!

Well, this Halloween I decided to dress up in salute to the fifties era. I have the best Mom because she sewed a poodle skirt for me complete with a poodle of course! Top it off with saddle shoes and I was set to go. I just didn't realize that my costume would be such a hit with the senior citizens! I hope that rolled in some extra tips! (I work as a waitress for those who did not know).


Here is a picture of me in my costume with my boyfriend. His name is Fred. Please don't be hasty in your judgments of him. Yes, he does look a little gloomy but he is just great. He likes long walks on the beach, singing along to the radio and occasionally escorts individuals to the other side.

I hope that your Halloween was an enjoyable and safe one.

Happy Haunting!

A Fall Sunset In Bountiful

Just this last Thursday, Mom and I went to the Bountiful Post Office to mail a package to Heather. When we pulled up we were greeted with this beautiful fall scene.


That is the Bountiful Tabernacle in the forefront with the Bountiful Temple in the background.

Hayley Westenra

Quote Of The Week

“Even with such a solemn mission given to Him, the Savior found delight in living; He enjoyed people and told His disciples to be of good cheer. … Remember the unkind treatment He received, the rejection He experienced, and the injustice … He endured. When we, too, then face some of that in life, we can remember that Christ was also troubled on every side, but not distressed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; cast down, but not destroyed"

-Jeffrey R. Holland of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles

BYU here I come!

It has been a whirlwind of events lately. Many of you may be aware but for those who aren't, I recently applied for and was accepted to BYU! Yep. that's right. I am officially a cougar now! Brooke and Eric have kindly offered their home to me. Brooke and her dad Randy also are helping me secure employment at the university.

I am soooo excited to go live with the greatest nieces and nephews. When they visited last night I think that some of them wanted me to hop in the car with them. Jake asked me why I couldn't move there sooner. :) I told them to wait just a few months.

While school has been challenging, I have had great success and am excelling. I am doing better than I anticipated and that is always a pleasant surprise.

I am also taking an institute class. It is on the Doctrine and Covenants. I enjoy the teacher immensely and the class is a great atmosphere. I anticipate it every week.

While it has been an adjustment being apart from Heather, it has indeed been a growing experience. I believe that it is a positive one as well.

Well, that's it for now. Wait... I have one more thing to say. Rise and shout the cougars are out! He, he! I couldn't resist! But really, go cougars!

Twilight The Movie

Josh Groban's tribute to tv theme songs

It's no secret to those who know me that I am a fan of Josh Groban. I think that this just made me love him even more! Its so ridiculous its amazing. I laughed me behind off I did.

Heather MTC Video

I made a video but don't mock me on my lack of skills. Its like making fun of the disabled. That, and it would result in me crying and I don't have any tissues readily available. I think Mom used them all. ;) With that all said, I wish you happy viewing!

I Hope They Call Me On A Mission!

Yesterday came sooner than we thought it ever would and what a day it was too! Our family took Heather to the MTC yesterday afternoon. Many who have experienced this can empathize. I can only describe it as bittersweet. We felt so proud of the great decision she has made to go and preach the gospel yet we feel the sadness of losing her to the people of Texas for eighteen months. I know that blessings will come from the Lord during this time.

Here we are putting on her missionary tag that she will wear proudly for the next eighteen months. Hugs going around

One last picture together

As I said earlier, this whole experience has been a gamut of emotions. I enrolled in some challenging courses this time around so that when the time came I wouldn't have too much time on my hands to think of the situation. This has been both good and bad. Bad in that I was frustrated that I couldn't spend all my time with her in our last weeks together and good in that I now see the wisdom in my choice and am very occupied with my studies, work, church, etc.

My plan of action is to keep busy with school, work, family and friends and my church calling as a Sunday school teacher.

So it appears that The Richardson Twins blog duties fall solely to me for awhile! Wish me luck!

This morning we had an unexpected visitor. I was busy working on a paper for school at the kitchen table while heather and mom were busy doing last minute preparations such as hemming dresses and skirts for her mission.
Well, I was typing away when I heard a odd tapping sound outside. I summed it up to some construction of some sort. However, as the noise persisted so did my curiosity. Wanting a break anyhow I decided to do some investigating.
As the primary song goes, "I looked out the window and what did I see..."

and what I saw was a bird a lot like this cute little guy here

Making these holes here

And here

And this pile 'o wood here.

I was so disgruntled that the picture taker in me didn't emerge until I had shooed the pest away. He really was a cute birdie. Obnoxious, annoying, vandal of a bird. But yet, still cute.

We girls went on the internet to research about our visitor and found that perhaps he wasn't trying to build a shelter but attract a mate. Unfortunately for him we don't run a dating service so we studied methods of deterrents. And here is our solution here.
Yes, we are well aware it looks a wee bit white trash. Okay, okay! A lot white trash. But it sure has worked. No sign of return.
With all the foil and balloons, reminds me somehow of a an episode of The Red Green Show.

Sister Richardson

Sister Heather Lynn Richardson, daughter of Edmund and Ann Richardson, has been called to serve in the Texas Dallas Mission Spanish speaking.

Under the Sea!

Well, not really...but we got to go to Seaworld for a day. What a Splash! Literally! Here of some pictures of the killer whale show.

The first thing we did straightway was to head on over to the dolphin and beluga whale show. We were forewarned that to sit in the first twelve rows meant a soaking. It is called the "soak zone" after all. We just thought it was hyped up and were expecting to get wet like one does on a water ride. Au contraire! We had a grand time regardless. It was actually kinda fun to see the dolphins and beluga whales splashing everyone.

In addition to Seaworld we visited the San Diego Temple. Each time we visit a temple the spirit never fails to bear witness to our souls of the truthfulness of the gospel.

Well, there it is. Our family trip. We had such a wonderful time going on this little adventure with the people that mean so much to us. This will most certainly be a "remember when?" moment in the years to come.

Our Disneyland Trip!

Recently, our family had the opportunity to go to California. What a trip it was!

The highlight was Disneyland and California Adventures. It truly is the happiest place on earth! Our only complaint is that we wished we could stay longer. The last time that us girls visited was when we were the wee age of three. So it was like a whole new experience for us.

Here we are at the Castle!

That sword just wouldn't budge!

The family with Minnie Mouse.

Our nephew Jake and our Brother Doug @ the Matterhorn. Think Jake can take on the beast?

Our nephew Ben on the Tom Sawyer boat ride. Just look at that smile!

Here is Lindsey with Cinderella's fairy godmother. That girl was walking in the clouds after that!

And here is Mr. Ben, Heather, Jasmine, and our brother Doug. I don't know about you but Ben doesn't look that impressed.
















And here is our nieces Lindsey and Maggie with Sleeping Beauty. She turned out to be our favorite princess of our whole Disneyland experience. Instead of just posing for a quick picture, she spent several minutes talking and interacting with the girls. She IS a true princess.

Well, there is the first portion of our trip. We will update shortly with the second leg of our adventure that includes Seaworld.

I'm Bella!

I Do Declare!

What an awesome opportunity we have here in Utah! One of only 25 copies of the Declaration of Independence is touring and it is coming to Salt Lake City Utah! It will be located at the Salt Lake Capital Rotunda on August 15th - 16th.

Public viewing:
Friday, August 15 (10AM to 5PM)
Saturday, August 16 (10AM to 8PM)

Heather's mission call!

Heather's long awaited mission call has come at last! We thankfully have connections with a wonderful local postman :) who called daily to let us know if it was in yet.

Heather is excited to be serving in Texas and gets to speak some Espanol! This will be quite a learning experience since she knows just a few words and even fewer phrases.

The song Please Mr. Postman seems oh so appropriate with this entry! So, check it out on our playlist to the left.

Useless Fact of the Week

Frisbee got its name from William Russel Frisbee, who was a pie baker. He used to sell his pies in a thin tin pan, which had Frisbee written on it. When Walter Frederick Morrison thought of the idea of making saucer like disks to play catch, he visited the campus of Yale and noticed people there were using the pie pan to play catch so he therefore renamed his invention to Frisbee. Frisbee inventor Walter "Fred" Morrison test flies a re-issue of the Frisbee in December 2006, in Carpinteria, Calif.

Quote of the Week

“I do not ask that you reach beyond your capacity. I hope you will not nag yourselves with thoughts of failure. I hope you will not try to set goals far beyond your capacity to achieve. I hope you will simply do what you can do in the best way you know. If you do so, you will witness miracles come to pass.”

- President Gordon B. Hinckley

We Are So RAD!

No, really we are! Us girls, our mom and our longtime friend have recently graduated from a self defense class taught by our local university campus police department called RAD (Rape, Aggression, Defense).

Can we just say what a experience! (A fun, and bruising one) We certainly feel like we have not only grown in the physical ability aspect but in general confidence and personal empowerment as well.

We want to give many, many thanks to the instructors who volunteered their time and were so willing to let us beat up on them every week. ;)

We have unfortunately realized that after our graduation, we now suffer from a little case...ok, ok... a BIG case of RAD withdrawal. We just can't wait until the next time around. But until autumn we will just have to suffice with watching and re watching our simulation video!

So, hiiyah! Waatcha! POW! And a BAM!

From your lovable yet now more dangerous twins!

In Memory Of Lola Despain Richardson

February 24, 1916 - April 23, 2008

Heather's Pics

Katie's Pics

Celebrity Morph by MyHeritage

MyHeritage: Family tree - Genealogy - Celebrity

A Fine Frenzy - More Than Just Fine!

We had the wonderful opportunity this last week to go to A Fine Frenzy concert. We loved her music before but seeing her perform exceeded all expectations. She simply is fantastic. She connects so well with her audience and her voice is awesomely powerful in person!

Here is one of the many pictures we took from the concert.

We got to meet Alison Sudol after the show! She is genuinely nice and is so charming. We are so glad that we got the chance to see and meet her.

Here is a video someone took from the concert of a new song from the next album called, "What I Wouldn't Do."

Until next time,
Love, Luck, and Lollipops!

Sing Your Little Hearts Out!

Since David Archuleta (our top pick) and Brooke White (another favorite) have both made it into the top 10, and consequently into the American Idol tour, we may be convinced to buy concert tickets when they come to town. This surprises us because although we have watched the show since season one, we have not been persuaded to attend any of the concert tours. We may now be convinced.

Here is a link to a performance David did on a show we watch daily, Good Things Utah before his Idol days. Our favorite performance of his on the show is “Heaven.” He does Bryan Adams proud! Notice how his beautiful rendition brings one of the backup singers to tears.

Here is a performance Brooke gave when she was just 16 years old. It’s amazing to see her growth. When her audition first aired on the show we looked at each other and commented how familiar her voice was to us. Sure enough, after Googling her we found that we had come across her website before and just loved her music. One of us was even on her mailing list! Our favorite performances of hers on the show are “You’re So Vain,” and “Let It Be.”

One of our favorite new shows is Moonlight on CBS. We admit we have a weakness when it comes to gallant vampires. Our Tivo is set and we are anxious for April 25^th when new episodes air.

As a certain host says, “Seacrest out!”

Celebrity Morph by MyHeritage

MyHeritage: Celebrity Morph - Pedigree charts - Dynasty

BBC knows how to make a movie

Holy cow! Until we had seen the BBC adaptation of Elizabeth Gaskell's "North and South," we lived in complete ignorance of the gorgeousness that is Richard Armitage. For all you chicks, this is a definite must see. We are truly tempted to buy it.

We provide you with a couple of pictures of Mr. Armitage...strictly for illustration purposes of course!

In our zeal for Armitage we fear that we have overshadowed the lovely Daniela Denby-Ashe. What a superb actress! We love her portrayal of a powerful yet feminine woman; any Jane Austen fan would be made proud.

So until next time, we say goodbye in the good ol' British way. Cheerio!