Allie's Spot

Mornings

2012-02-15T13:36:00.000-07:00

Apparently, I must be the odd ball at the bus stop in the mornings.

Everyone is always like super social and all like: "Oh my gosh! I love you! I am annoyingly too chipper this morning! I want to talk to you about nothing of any importance!"

Me, on the other hand, am more like this: "Shut up. Stop talking to me. I want to be in bed. I have headphones in because I don't want to be social right now. Arg!"

No matter how early I go to bed, 4 out of 5 times, I am just not a morning person. I love my bed. More than anyone should love a bed. I seriously dread getting out of bed in the mornings. If I could stay in bed forever, I probably would. Therefore, in the mornings, I put my headphones in to avoid talking to everyone. It's nothing personal. I just am not social in the mornings! Simple as that. If I have my headphones in, please don't try to start a conversation with me. There is a reason my ears are plugged. If I wanted to talk to you, I would take them out. Makes sense, doesn't it?

I know this makes me sound like a total bisnatch but guess what? I'd rather rant about it on my blog where pretty much nobody will see it rather than explode in your face one day cuz you won't leave me alone.

Uh-Oh

2012-02-13T11:41:00.000-07:00

Its happening again. That dark, empty feeling is creeping back inside of my heart. The last two months have been fantastic. I've felt great, productive, happy. But I think I knew all along that it was going to be short lived. I was distracting myself on a lost cause without actually dealing with any of the issues that I've needed to face. I've merely put them all off....and now, they are all ganging up on me, crushing me. Its time to grow up. Deal with the problems. Discard the distraction once and for all.

I can't deal with this. Its too much.

Messy Buns

2012-01-30T12:15:00.001-07:00

There is this trend that someone started that every girl thinks she needs to follow.

Take a look at the following photos:

WHY?!?! Guess what girls? The buns in these pictures are NOT attractive! You look like an idiot. This look says "I am lazy. I don't know how to do my hair. I want a bird to come crap on my head!"

I saw this girl on campus today with the most ridiculous high bun I have ever seen. Not even two minutes later, I saw ANOTHER girl with a super crapped up excuse for a bun.

Girls, there is a difference between a ballerina bun and a messy bun. A messy bun DOES NOT belong on the crown of your head or any higher. It makes you look ridiculous. Nobody wants to see that, so please stop embarrassing yourself. Now, don't get me wrong; I am not saying that messy buns are ugly or bashing against them in any way. I think they are super cute and make life a lot easier if i don't feel like doing anything with my hair. However, I am bashing against messy buns on top of your head. I think that they seriously just look so stupid!

This Semester

2012-01-13T12:44:00.000-07:00

This semester is going to be the most interesting, for sure. I am only taking ten credits, which drops me down to a part-time student status (but that's fine because I can put in more hours at work). I am only taking two "real" classes (Mental Health and Criminology) and the rest are all PE credits that I am very excited for!

I am taking a ballet class, which seriously just makes me feel so pretty and graceful and beautiful....and sore. Along with that, I am taking a third semester of gymnastics. What can I say? I love it! Steve convinced me to take Western Swing Dancing, which will be interesting, for sure. And Melanie and I are taking a Jazz Technique class that is just a blast and makes me feel like I am the most sexy being on this planet! Take a look at what we learned on the first day of class:

Yeah, it was freaking awesome!

..........

Ok. Fine, I admit it. This semester I am dedicating to the LGN Diet ;)

In Love With Davy

2012-01-06T14:09:00.002-07:00

Dear David Archuleta:
You are such a brave soul. This is why I love you. Thank you.
Love,
Allie

Bored

2012-01-04T15:41:00.000-07:00

So I'm at work. Its pretty dang slow today.

I am pretty dang bored. Normally at a time like this, I would surf Pinterest....but I'm getting bored with it. When I'm not doing that, I would stalk people on Facebook...but I'm getting bored with it. When I'm not on their of those, I watch random things on Youtube....but my work has asked that we no longer watch movies down at the front desk anymore.

The following video was made about a week ago when I was bored at work. I really am just such a weirdo! Mygoodness! Meh, oh well. I don't care. I'm bored.

What do I do now?

I think I'll blog.

....oh wait. I'm already doing that.....and I'm getting bored.

You know who else is bored? Jeffery.

Quotes That Seem Significant to Me Right Now

2011-12-26T23:35:00.000-07:00

People will forget what you said, people will forget what you did. But people will never forget how you made them feel.
-Maya Angelou

Trust is, everybody is going to hurt you. You just gotta find the ones worth suffering for.
-Bob Marely

Always behave like a duck - keep calm and unruffled on the surface, but paddle like crazy underneath.
-Unknown

I'm selfish, impatient and a little insecure. I make mistakes. I am out of control and at times hard to handle. But if you can't handle me at my worst, then you sure as hell don't deserve me at my best.
-Marilyn Monroe

Dear People

2011-12-20T16:15:00.001-07:00

So there is this big trend going around blogs right now called "Dear Boys". At first I thought it was kinda dumb but I think I am starting to like it more and more and I think that I will give it a go and see what happens.....except I'm gonna do it my way, cuz I'm Allie. Instead of limiting to just boys, it will also be including girls. But nobody will be able to tell which is which. Ha! Anyways, here goes nothing:

Dear Wilson,

I liked you alot better before you started showing your face.

Weirded out,

Tim "The Toolman" Taylor

Dear Kermit,

Its true. I'm into you. You're mine and everyone else better back off or I'm gonna go ninja on them!

Adoringly,

Miss Piggy

Dear Nacho,

You're fat. You smell bad. You can't cook worth a crap. But man, can you make me laugh! Let's have some toast some time! My place?

Hungry,

Encarnacion

Dear Peanut Butter,

You're sticky and kinda gross alone. Don't you think we work so much better together? :)

Awaiting our playdate,

Jelly

Dear Jasmine,

I don't need you to take care of me! I'm an adult and I'm potty trained. I don't need you to hover over me. Sheesh!

Maturely,

Raja

Dear Iron,

Thanks for getting all the kinks out of me. You're pretty hot and do exactly what you are made to do. Unfortunately, you are just too quiet and only have like 3 functions. But thanks for everthing else!

Crisp and clean,

Wrinkly Shirt

Dear Caffeine,

SHUT UP!!!!

Now deaf,

Grumpy

....that's all I got, I'm afraid....

Goodbye Semester from Hell!

2011-12-18T23:34:00.000-07:00

WORST semester of my LIFE!!!!

What a fluke of a school semester! Holy time management issues! Terrible group projects. Boy drama. Ridiculous professors. Crappy family issues. And holy-freaking-crap-my-social-life. What the??? Looking back, I feel like I was nothing but a downer this whole semester. Totally not me, totally not Allie. I'm done with that impostor. I want her dead.

And that, dear friends, is why I am overwhelmingly excited for this break and upcoming semester. Time to refresh and renew myself. A time to start over and have a clean slate...sorta. This is the first time in my life that I have been excited to make New Years Resolutions. I haven't made any for years because I never follow through with them. But this year is different. This year, I am SO excited to make goals and to have something I am working towards. This new year is going to be different because I am going to be different. You most likely will be hearing all about my resolutions in the next few weeks. I have even contemplated making an entire page on this blog to remind myself throughout the year that I have goals to be working on. I dunno, I just have this weird urge to be focusing on new things and different aspects of life. I don't want to forget the feelings I am feeling right this second. And I haven't even made up my goals yet!!! Weird!

Flash Mob

2011-12-12T11:06:00.000-07:00

Ok everyone. I have a new goal in life: To participate / witness a flash mob. I seriously think that that would be one of the coolest things in the entire world. I mean, watch this video:

Isn't that freaking amazing?! I can't get over it! I wanna do this way bad! Maybe I can convince my friends in the stairwell to do a flash mob somewhere awesome, like the USU library or Walmart or Taco Bell. Shrug. But seriously, I wanna do something like this WAY bad!!!!

This is a good one too!

No Candy for Me

2011-12-03T18:59:00.000-07:00

I feel like a child who's parent brings them into a candy shop. I am so excited, looking at all the candy and I start to salivate. I seriously cannot wait to place something sugary and delicious in my mouth. My parent keeps pointing out how delicious this candy looks and tells me that anyone who eats this candy must be so lucky! Me and the parent go from candy to candy and talk about how wonderful this candy is going to be and my excitement grows and grows. Then, abruptly, the parent's enthusiasm is completely gone with a smirk and I am told that I am not good enough to have candy. I offer to buy my own candy, but the cashier also tells me that I am not good enough to have candy. But nobody will tell me why. Out of all the confusion, I can only come up with one conclusion:

I can no longer trust the parent or the cashier. The taunting has become too much. Its time to withdrawal.

Just an Update

2011-11-30T13:08:00.000-07:00

Blah blah blah.

I wish I had something more interesting to say but that is the best thing I could think of to open this post. My life is just so chaotic that I'm not sure even I can keep up with it!

The week before Thanksgiving break was fun. I went on a group date with Steve. We went to Kneaders for dinner and then went to the DI where we all split up into boys and girls and picked out outfits for our dates. Seriously, SO fun! After that, we went back to our apartments to grab some warmer clothes and some extra people. We then went to Old Main hill come the USU campus and went sledding for a while. Oh, and we built a snowman and then had hot chocolate. Super fun night! Oh, the night before that, Kami, Jessiqa (yes, that is how she spells her name), Amber, Morgan, and myself all went to the midnight premier of "Breaking Dawn". Oh my goodness, we had SO much fun!!! Waiting in line was a blast! We played Tourettes and CatchPhrase and laughed our booties off! As for the film, personally, I loved it. There were some really cheesy parts, but I thought it was very well done and by far the best of all the previous Twilight movies so far. The day after Thanksgiving, I went to see it was my cousins Mandy and Aubree and my sisters Kristi and Kelly. I actually liked it even more the second time. I dunno why, I just really love the Twilight Saga.

Thanksgiving was pretty good this year. It was the first time I ever saw my niece and nephew in the same day, even though the two still have never met each other. The food was delicious, as usual, and there was tons of it! We didn't have as many pies as usual, but there was still like 12 different types. My frozen peppermint cheesecake got second place this year, while Emmy's strawberry citrus cream pie rightfully won first. Mmm, it was SO good! I'm salivating just thinking about it! The break was good though and much needed. I was able to space myself away from some specific people that I needed to withdraw myself from and think about my life.

I have been given the opportunity to go back down to Price to finish out the rest of my schooling in two years guaranteed. I have the option of being placed in any agency of my choosing down there for my practicum (that's just a fancy word for internship). My other option is to simply stay here in Logan, where I'm not guaranteed a spot next year, but I am guaranteed a job, which is lacking in Price. I have no idea what to do. There are so many pros and cons for both options. Some days I feel good about going back to Price and other days I don't. I just feel like something is missing, like I am forgetting about a key element, but I cannot think of what it could be. Oh well, a lot can happen in 5 months. Who knows where I will be?

PDA

2011-11-17T00:54:00.001-07:00

Public Display of Affection. PDA. Those 3 letters alone make me cringe, like seriously.

Dear people of this world who participate in CONSTANT PDA:
Freaking stop it!

I know I've written about my loathing for PDA before, but things don't change much apparently. But seriously, there are few things in this world that make me more uncomfortable than PDA. I'd rather lick the bottom of my shoe or eat an earthworm than have to endure a couple making out with each other.

In my opinion, when a couple can't keep their hands off each other, they are saying "I don't care about anyone else. All I care about are my hormones." Its rude, its disgusting, and it makes many, many people uneasy. Sure, there are some things that are perfectly fine, like holding hands or a hug. But its when you see these two constantly all over each other, barforama. To me, that's just proving that you don't really love the other person, you love their body. People, there is a time and place for everything. Keep your nasty hormones for a time and place where nobody else has to see it. Its a repellent. Just sayin.

Plus, if you are so touchy in public, everyone assumes what else goes on in private.

Re-Evaluation

2011-11-03T08:25:00.000-06:00

There comes a time in your life when you just have to take a step back and re-evaluate your life. You have to question yourself; are you the person you want to be or working towards becoming so? What really matters to you? What are you willing to fight for? Who matters and who doesn't? Where are you going?

I have really taken a step back the past week or so and realized a couple of things about myself. Because this is my blog and I live in America and have freedom of speech, I am going to tell you what I have learned about myself.

I really care alot about people. Probably more than need-be. I genuinely care about others' welfare and happiness. If I feel like I can contribute to making their day a little brighter, I try to take that opportunity, mostly just secretly though.
Piggy-backing the previous, I do not like disliking people. If I feel like I am starting to dislike someone, I feel like the way to cure that is to get to know that person better. You can't dislike someone that you understand.
I can be a very powerful influence for good. I have to potential to teach others and help them make good and righteous decisions if they so choose to confide in me.
I am WAY too loud for my own good. I laugh loud, I talk loud, I sing loud, I whisper loud....I need to definitely be more still and need to turn on the "gentle" switch on my vocal chords.
I truly love helping others. I feel so important when others feel like they can confide in me and are able to lean on me for anything. I dunno if it's selfish or not, but I would rather deal with other people's issues (or rather help them through their issues) than deal with my own. I tend to get consumed in my own problems when I'm not helping someone else.
I need to be more organized. The last month or so, I have just left my stuff all over my apartment and had a messy bedroom, etc. I tend to get that way when I'm stressed, which is ironic because I feel so much more at peace when everything is in it's place.
I love cooking. So much. Probably because I like eating. And I like being able to control what I eat.
I adore my family. I stink at letting them know how much I love them, but I seriously would be so incredibly lost without them and their support. They mean everything to me.
The Lord loves me. He is mindful of me and my afflictions and the yearnings of my soul. I really need to focus more on Him and serve Him better. Hopefully by my new efforts in helping others I can find a way to bring others closer to Him as well.
I find PDA (public display of affection) revolting. Barf-a-rama! Go find a freaking room!
My roommates are so amazing! I love Morgan and Kami and Amber SO much! The Lord clearly knew what He was doing when He put us together.
I can let go and still be okay.

New Blog

2011-10-18T14:56:00.000-06:00

Hey everyone! Just letting you know that aside from this blog, I have started another blog. The other blog will consist of random things I cook and am proud of, or things that I think the rest of the world should experience and cook for themselves. I am seriously falling madly in love with cooking!!! Therefore, I created another blog dedicated just to cooking! So, here's the link to my other blog. Enjoy! Bon appetite!

http://a-la-alleroonie.blogspot.com

Perspective

2011-10-12T11:35:00.001-06:00

I recently have been struggling alot recently because I feel like one of my best friends has been pushing me away. That obviously really bothers me because he means so much to me and I truly value him as a friend and the role he plays in my life. But I also need to remember that people come and go from our lives and sometimes you just have to let go.
Well this is never easy for me, especially when i feel like I still need that person. So I've been really bothered because I feel like I have been losing him....until I looked at it a different way. This is going to prove to you how big of a brat I am but this new perspective I have makes me feel better about things. So here's my new perspective on the situation: I'm not losing him, he's losing me. He's the one pushing me away, this is all his choice regardless to what I try to do to repair it.
And that reminds me that attitude is everything. So is perspective.

Loneliness

2011-10-10T00:05:00.000-06:00

I'm consumed. No words can express the loneliness I feel in my heart. When once I was surrounded by those I love dearly and who I knew loved me now stands acquaintances and friends I am getting to know better. But there are those I miss so dearly that my heart just feels so defeated.
I don't get close to people very easily. When I feel like I'm getting too close to someone, I run away. That's just how I've always been. Nevertheless, I've always had at least one person that I knew I could rely on, someone I felt close to, that I could tell anything to. Unfortunately, I don't even feel like I have one person. I felt like I had one for a while, but that person has pushed me away and changed in a way that I don't even know who they are anymore. This makes me question myself and wonder if I even know who I myself am. Who am I?!
I feel so alone. I sit in large crowds most of the time, but feel so ignored and unnoticed. It shouldn't matter, I should be able to be enough for myself. I shouldn't need anyone else. Oh, but how I ache for a friend, a TRUE friend. I feel like I can trust nobody though. Not even myself.
I screw everything up. I ruin everything. I don't know how to change. I'm lost.
Who am I?

Blue

2011-10-08T20:50:00.000-06:00

I never had a blue blog before and I found this background and thought it was cute. Plus, blue is the color the represents relaxation and renewal, which is exactly what I'm trying to focus on with my life. Yeah, I don't have anything to say other than that. Sorry. I'm a loserface ;)

Here We Go Again...

2011-09-02T23:02:00.000-06:00

Sorry you haven't heard from me in almost a month. Life has just been so crazy.

Another year of school. I have just completed the first week of my 4th year of college. I'm back at Utah State for the second year. Its going to be a really interesting year, thats for sure. This is the first time I have a job while being a full time student. I'm working on campus as an office assistant at the IT Helpdesk and so far, it is a pretty stimulating job. Lots of challenges but I learn something new every single shift and I seriously LOVE the girls I work with, they are just adorable.
I also am most likely no longer a social work major, which pretty much breaks my heart, but sometimes you have to make changes. At the moment, I am leaning towards majoring in public relations, but I haven't declared just yet.
I have the most AMAZING roommates! This is the fourth time I didn't request any roommates, but this is the first time I've actually known any of them before school started. I seriously feel like I just got so lucky to be placed with these girls. I feel like there is so much I can learn from each of them. Oh, its going to be a fun year with them, I can already tell.
Hmmm...what else can I tell you that you'd care to know....
I'm an aunt now! My sister had her baby on Wednesday. Brenna Jayne <3 I got to see her when she was only a few hours old and immediately fell in love with her.
Thats really all I can come up with. Perhaps my next post will be more interesting. ;)

Something New

2011-08-06T14:01:00.002-06:00

Ok, ok, I take full responsibility. I have the worst ADD when it comes to the design of my blog. I get so sick looking at the same thing all the time. I like to keep things moving, everchanging. A song from Pocahontas comes to mind:

What I love most about rivers is you can't step in the same river twice.

The water's always changing always flowing

But people I guess can't live like that.....

People can't live like that? Hmmm, watch me try.

As of Late

2011-08-01T20:52:00.007-06:00

Sorry I haven't really written anything for a while. Its been a difficult last few weeks for me. But no worries, I won't get into any stupid details on here. I'll just let you know what nothingness I've been up to.

About three weeks ago, I was able to go to Price to hang out with my best

girlfriends, Stevie and Whitney. Oh man, I freaking LOVE those girls! We have such a blast with each other every time we get together and its always SO stinking hard to leave. We did lots of fun stuff. While Whitney went off and hung out with her man, Stevie and I went shopping. We grabbed some disk chairs and set them up in Walmart and sat in an isle for a good half hour just talking. Then we found water noodles and sword-fought with them. Ha! And then we left

church early on Sunday to walk around campus. We got to the fountain and I decided to dip my feet in, which turned into me standing in the fountain, which turned into my slipping and falling into the fountain. (See picture on left) It was seriously the funniest

thing that happened all weekend!

The weekend after that, I went up to Logan and hung out with Steve and my sister and brother-in-law. We went and saw Harry Potter with Lissa and John Summit. The next day was just super relaxing, just hanging out at Steve's apartment. That night, we met up with Kristi and John Baxter in Mantua for fireworks. They were so close, it was awesome!

Last weekend, I took my siblings Jessie, Erik,

Emmy, and Danny downtown Salt Lake Sunday night and we camped out for the Days of 47 parade. Wow, yeah, that was a looooong

night. The witnessed drunk men, fights, and a drug bust, to say the least. Oh man, interesting stuff. I'm pretty sure that I will never do that again. We didn't really go for the parade as much as we went to support Steve doing the Deseret Marathon. Wow, impressive! My siblings are such good sports!

This last Friday, I decided to go up to Logan at like 4:20pm. I got to Logan and went shopping for a while (cuz all my friends were busy at that time) and

then I went over and hung out for a few hours with John Stanworth. I hadn't seen him since school got out in the beginning of May and it was SO good to see him!!!! Then I went and stayed at Morgan's for the night. Oh, how I love that girl! The next day, agroup of us went up to Tony's Grove to go swimming and canoeing. So beautiful, so fun! After a few hours, we came home, showered, got cute (as in Morgan got cute, heehee) and we met up with Steve and John for dinner at Wingers. Afterwards, we hung out and watched a movie and music videos and enjoyed each other's company. Church was great on Sunday. I actually stayed for the whole block! Then Steve and John made us lunch/dinner. Yum yum! The drive home was interesting. John drove by me from Logan to Brigham City but he stopped for gas and I kept going and that's when the weather got really scary. It was raining so hard and I was terrified, but it all ended well and I got home safe. But oh man, I am SO ready to move back up to Logan and have a life again. Whoot, only a few weeks left! :)

Rant - Terms of Endearment

2011-07-14T19:02:00.004-06:00

I don't want to use this blog as a means of complaining but I have just got to vent about something really quick.

Terms of endearment. Calling someone names like dear, sweetheart, baby, sugar-bum, sweetie, punkin, etc. Between you and your boyfriend/girlfriend, I think its totally and completely fine. Sometimes its even cute. Sometimes you can use them within your own family, like between child/parent, grandparent/grandchild, etc. I have no complaints there.

However, I do have a problem when terms of endearment are used between the same gender, mostly girls, and specifically at me. There is this lady I work with (whom I love to death; I think she's great!) but she calls me honey and sweetheart all the time. Not only does it make me feel like I'm five, but it makes me super uncomfortable. I am not your sweetheart and you are not my grandmother. You're like 5 years older than me. Its not like I have anything against her personally or this makes me dislike her, but when a girl calls me something like honey, sweetheart, babycakes, etc., it gives me the creeps and makes me want to run away screaming with my arms flailing all over the place.

Soul Surfer

2011-07-01T22:43:00.005-06:00

I went to the dollar theater tonight with my mom and sister. They suggested we go see a movie that I really didn't hear that much about. It was a film called "Soul Surfer". Let me tell you about this movie to those who haven't heard alot about it.

This movie is based on the true story of Bethany Hamilton, the pro surfer who lost her arm do to a shark attack. I wasn't expecting much from this film because I hadn't heard hardly anything about it and hadn't seen any advertising for it. But let me tell you something: This is one of the best films I have ever seen. Aside from the story itself, the quality of the film was fantastic. There was not a single swear word nor anything that would prevent viewers of all age to watch this (except the actual shark attack, which could be scary for young kids). Another thing I really loved about this film is the emphasis on God. A huge majority of this movie was about God's plan for us as individuals and how we can't see the big picture. This movie was truly inspirational and I cried through pretty much the entire thing, honestly. I strongly encourage this movie. Watch it with your family and friends. Click below the watch the trailer.

Soul Surfer Trailer

5K Weekend

2011-06-28T22:25:00.005-06:00

What an amazing weekend that just occurred! Saturday morning, I ran and completed a 5K! It wasn't like a big event or anything, but my stake puts on a 5K every year to encourage health and fitness and there is always a great turn out. I was really worried about doing it because I've been sick with a chest cold for the last two weeks and therefore haven't done ANYTHING physical for that amount of time. But I completed it and I was not the last one to finish! I'm not going to put my time on here though because I am kind of embarrassed but its a starting point and there is always room for improvement. I'm sure that when I do it again and am not sick and have been more consistent with my exercising that my time will be way better.

Later that day, I met up with Stevie, whom I haven't seen since November!, and we spend a few hours together for lunch and shopping at the mall. Oh my heck, I love that girl!

Sunday was great too! The Salt Lake Valley has a huge YSA activity and they had a fireside at the Tabernacle Sunday night with guest speaker Brad Wilcox. It was such a great fireside! Afterwards, they had refreshments (yeah, for like 3,000 people!) over at the Brigham Young Historic Park. And that is where I saw a bajillion friends! Friends from high school, friends from CEU, friends from Logan! It was fabulous!!! I miss all my friends!!! But seriously, seeing

all those people this weekend seriously like made my whole summer. Oh you guys, I love you so much!!! :) I hope you all are doing well!!!

Spontaneous Date

2011-06-18T14:04:00.002-06:00

So, there I was. In my living room on a random Friday night. Watching "America's Funniest Home Videos" with my family. When suddenly I receive at text from my friend Steve.

"Allie, what are you doing in exactly 45 mins?"

This text confused me because I'm in South Jordan and he's in Logan, 2 hours apart. So I reply.

"Um, probably just watching a movie slash nothing. Why?"

"Are there any good shake places near your place?"

"Yeah"

"I'll pick you up at 9."

OMG!!! Freaking awesome! I love spontaneous get-togethers like this! I was way excited too, cuz I haven't seen Steve for a month and a half, since school ended. It was so great seeing him and enjoying his company.

This visit has made me so excited for school to start in August. I've realized how much I've missed Logan and my friends. So shout out to all those USU friends. I want you to know that you are missed by me! Hope ya'll are staying safe and having a fun summer!!! :)

Secrets of Adulthood

2011-06-05T17:32:00.002-06:00

I came across these "secrets" recently and felt like they would be a great addition to my blog:

Outer order contributes to inner calm.
People don’t notice your mistakes and flaws as much as you think.
Most decisions don't require extensive research.
If you can't find something, clean up.
The days are long, but the years are short.
Turning the computer on and off a few times often fixes a glitch.
It's okay to ask for help.
Happiness doesn't always make you feel happy.
What you do EVERY DAY matters more than what you do ONCE IN A WHILE.
You don't have to be good at everything.
Soap and water removes most stains.
It's important to be nice to EVERYONE.
You know as much as most people.
Over-the-counter medicines are very effective.
Don't let perfect be the enemy of good.
What's fun for other people may not be fun for you--and vice versa.
If you're not failing, you're not trying hard enough.
No deposit, no return.

First Kiss

2011-06-03T23:50:00.002-06:00

I dunno about everyone else, but I love hearing about people's first kiss stories. I think that they are just so fun and everyone (I'm quite sure) looks forward to their first kiss. I came across this video a few weeks ago on a friend's facebook wall and it seriously just makes me so happy every time I see it. This little boy is just hilarious when he gets his first kiss. He's so HAPPY! I love it!!! He makes some awesome faces too. Check this kid out!

First Kiss

Adorable, right?! Ahhh...

There's 104 Days of Summer Vacation...

2011-05-26T07:00:00.005-06:00

What an interesting summer break its been so far!

Interesting things that have happened:

My family flew to California and went to Magic Mountain. It was AWESOME!!! They has the most intense coasters I'd ever been on! It was such a long day though. We flew out at 5am and flew home on the same day around 9pm.
I completed one of my summer goals, way faster than I expected if I might add, and purchased a car. I got it for a fabulous deal, a real steal! (Rhyme, ha.) This car was definitely an answer to my prayers in more ways than one. Its a manual and I am learning how to drive that and its really frustrating for me. Hopefully I'll get it down soon so I can go visit friends across the state! :D

Another "big" thing that's happened is that I received a letter in the mail yesterday informing me that I was not accepted into the social work program for my major up at Utah State. Great. Now what am I supposed to do with my life? What am supposed to go into? Because of this, I will have to add on at LEAST another full year before I can graduate, if that ever happens. I'll be starting my senior year of college in August and I feel like I have nothing to show for it. Sure, I have an associates degree, but really? All that is is a piece of paper, honestly. I sometimes feel like I'm just wasting my time and money at school. I love learning, don't get me wrong! But I just don't have anything to show for it and it bothers me greatly. Getting my bachelors degree just seems so far off and I honestly don't know if it will even happen at this point. Ugh, what to do?!
I am attending the singles ward here in South Jordan and its really interesting to see some kids from my high school class and how much they have changed since graduating. Its also kinda awesome that I am becoming better friends with people I knew in high school, but didn't have the opportunity to get to know better than an aquaintence.

Well, I think that's basically it. If I think of anything else to fill you in on, I'll let you know.

Hidden in Christ

2011-05-14T00:49:00.004-06:00

I just came across a quote on a friend's facebook page that was just like a slap in the face to me. It touched me so much that I am now blogging about it! Here's the quote:

"A woman's heart should be so hidden in Christ that a man has to seek Him to find her."

OH MAH GOSH!!! Is that not like most brilliant thing you have ever heard?!

Maybe I'm just a little crazy here, but I seriously cannot even describe how much I love this. I can guarantee that in the matter of minutes, this quote will be posted on my bathroom mirror so

that every time I look at myself, I can have a fantastic reminder how I am and who loves me more than anyone else possibly can. I am a daughter of God and I will stand as a witness of Him at all times and in all things and in all places! Hopefully, with all the free time I have this summer, I become better at losing myself in His love and becoming a better servant to Him. I will become worthy of the love He has for me.

To finish, I just have one more quote I found that I really liked:

"Dance with God. He'll let the perfect man cut in."

Change

2011-05-13T20:16:00.002-06:00

I have changed my geographical location for the summer to my parent's house in South Jordan. I have changed the rhythm of my days. I have changed my employment. I have changed so much for the summer, I felt it appropriate to change my blog. Its more summery and bright. Um, yeah. Thats like all I've got for now. Yep. Bye.

I Know Its Today

2011-05-10T12:06:00.007-06:00

So, I went to my little sister's musical theater performance this last week. They sang a lot of random songs from various musicals with the theme of the performance being "I Wish...". The songs sung were about growing up, being popular, relationships, etc. But there was one song that I had never heard before and it hit me like a slap in the face. I've kind of been obsessed with it the last few days. The words are cute and hilarious and basically are exactly how I feel. So, I will now share this song with you. Its from "Shrek the Musical" and its Fiona singing about waiting for her prince as a little girl, then a teenager, and then a grown woman. Enjoy!

Click here: I Know Its Today

What is Real and What Isn't

2011-05-04T01:29:00.003-06:00

Its late and I have alot of feelings inside of myself right now and the only thing I can think to do to let them out is to blog. Depending on how I feel in the morning will determine if I delete this post or not. How exciting.

My sister always complains that I write too much about guys on my blog. Perhaps this is true, but its basically one of the only hobbies I have these days. I am stuck here, waiting for my life to begin and therefore, guys are on my mind quite a bit. So, if you don't want to read about what I have to say about stuff like this, close this window now. Simple as that.

I know I am young. I know I'm not perfect. But I am learning. I am trying to be the best person I can be, but I make mistakes sometimes. Making mistakes is a requirement for getting to know yourself, I think. Sometimes, you have to make mistakes to figure out what is real and what isn't. The hardest part is to not judge others on their mistakes. What's right for most people in most situations isn't right for everyone in every situation. Real morality lies in following your own heart and everyone's heart is different. Sometimes, that's hard to remember.

I don't really know where I am going with this. Its just kind of inside of me. I'm in the situation this bizarre yet common situation where I have fallen for a guy who had become a close friend to me and he unfortunately does not feel the same for me. At all. Surprisingly, being the way I am, its so difficult that it makes being mere friends nearly impossible for me. I'm just not that strong. I am craving summer vacation like I never have before to get away and forget those feelings. I am probably not making any sense and that is okay with me at the moment because life doesn't make sense sometimes and I think its that way on purpose. Its all in the Lord's hands. We can't always see what He wants for us; we just have to sit back and let him take the reins and trust that He knows what He's doing. Yes, easier said than done, but done it will be.

Its time to find a new hobby.

Dalai Lama's 19 Instructions for Life

2011-04-25T16:44:00.002-06:00

1. Take into account that great love and great achievements involve great risk.

2. When you lose, don't lose the lesson.

3. Follow the three Rs: respect for self, respect for others and responsibility for all your actions.

4. Remember that not getting what you want is sometimes a wonderful stroke of luck.

5. Learn the rules so you know how to break them properly.

6. Don't let a little dispute injure a great friendship.

7. When you realize you've made a mistake, take immediate steps to correct it.

8. Spend some time alone every day.

9. Open your arms to change, but don't let go of your values.

10. Remember that silence is sometimes the best answer.

11. Live a good, honorable life. Then when you get older and think back, you'll be able to enjoy it a second time

12. A loving atmosphere in your home is the foundation for your life.

13. In disagreements with loved ones, deal only with the current situation. Don't bring up the past.

14. Share your knowledge. It's a way to achieve immortality.

15. Be gentle with the earth.

16. Once a year, go someplace you've never been before.

17. Remember that the best relationship is one in which your love for each other exceeds your need for each other.

18. Judge your success by what you had to give up in order to get it.

19. Approach love and cooking with reckless abandon.

Ten Minutes with Ali

2011-04-21T16:30:00.008-06:00

30 Day Photo Challenge = complete! Now what to do with my blog....

So, I'm sitting at my table, listening to Ali just talk. She is one of the funniest girls I know. So, I figure as she talks, I'm just gonna sit here and document some funny things that she says. They might not make any sense to you, but they were enough to get me to laugh out loud and I found them good enough to add to my blog.

"I can't get my cookie out."

"Surprise, I am a thief."

Amy: "What would you do if you caught your husband stealing?" Ali: "I'd kiss him."

"Don't you just love the banjo?"

Me: "I won't stay long. Boys stink." Ali: "Not when they take showers!"

Sadly, this was only in a ten minute time span because I had to leave the room. But still, funny girl, that Ali.

Day 30

2011-04-20T12:59:00.003-06:00

Day 30 - A picture of someone you miss

I couldn't choose just one person who I miss, so I picked one picture with two people. This is a picture of my mother and father when I was about 7 years old. I miss them both terribly. My mother passed away when I was 10 and I lost my father not long after that. I love them both dearly.

Day 29

2011-04-19T18:20:00.002-06:00

Day 29 - A picture that can always make you smile

This picture is entitled "The Kiss" taken by Alfred Eisenstaedt and I have always loved this picture. Not sure exactly why, but it is an all time classic favorite. As you will notice, it is even displayed in my blog title.

I especially like in "Night at the Museum 2" when the two kissing in the picture are just going at it.

Day 28

2011-04-18T12:01:00.003-06:00

Day 28 - A picture of something you're afraid of

Spiders, bugs, moths, butterflies, worms, maggots, etc. Absolutely terrified. I can't even look at this picture for too long or I get goosebumps and the chills.

Also scared of needles, shots, IVs, etc. I don't like things poking through my skin. Freaks me out.

Day 27

2011-04-17T12:01:00.003-06:00

Day 27 - A picture of yourself and a family member

Me and my mother

Me and my father

Day 26

2011-04-16T15:47:00.003-06:00

Day 26 - A picture of something that means a lot to you

Maybe I'm psychotic, but I really thought I already did this one...oh well...

My family means more to me than anything else. Hands down.

(PS: There is a brother missing out of this photo. Sorry Michael)

Day 25

2011-04-15T12:57:00.004-06:00

Day 25 - A picture of your day

Despite my leg injury, I'm still planning on participating in the USU Relay for Life tonight. I've been looking forward to this for weeks and I told Steve that the only thing that would keep me from it was broken bones and death, so I have to abide by that statement.

Day 24

2011-04-14T14:24:00.003-06:00

Day 24 - A picture of something you wish you could change

In gymnastics yesterday, I threw my ROBHS for the first time on the ground with no spotter. I threw it not once, but twice! I was super excited! I went in to throw number 3....

....but I buckled and landed wrong on my leg. I sprained my MCL and overextended my ACL. I have to wear this brace for several weeks.
If I could change something, I wouldn't have attempted number 3.

Day 23

2011-04-13T17:48:00.002-06:00

Day 23 - A picture of your favorite book

Day 22

2011-04-12T15:02:00.003-06:00

Day 22 - A picture of something you wish you were better at

I wish I was a better person. I wish that I was better at helping other people rather than being so worried about myself. I wish I were better at comforting others. One of the goals I have for my life is to help mankind and to touch someone's heart. Hopefully, by working on these wishes, I can accomplish that goal.

Day 21

2011-04-11T14:29:00.002-06:00

Day 21 - A picture of something you wish you could forget

One thing I wish I could forget is when I crashed my car. Ahh! I'm still so bitter!

Day 20

2011-04-10T20:45:00.002-06:00

Day 20 - A picture of somewhere you'd love to travel

I want to go to Europe SO BAD!!!!

Day 19

2011-04-09T14:17:00.003-06:00

Day 19 - A picture and a letter

Dear Pooh Bear:

I adore you! What is it about you that makes me love you so dang much?! Is it perhaps the fact that you are stuffed with fluff and I long to give you a nice long squeeze? Is it because you are so forgetful but never seem forget the important things? Is it because of your kind, gentle heart? Your love for honey? Your silly little giggle? Your exercise song? Perhaps, but I'm sure its more than just those mere facts. You are a great example and the best kind of person, even if you are a bear...and fictional.
Thanks a million,
Allie :)

Day 18

2011-04-08T14:35:00.003-06:00

Day 18 - A picture of your biggest insecurity

Holy cow, I am pretty much terrified to post to the world my biggest insecurity. Once I point it out, people will notice it more and....ugh. Oh well. Its not called the 30 Day Challenge for nothing apparently. Here goes, I guess...

No, my biggest insecurity is not Toothless or Hiccup! Its the fact that my body, for some reason, thinks it needs to hiccup 500 times a day! I'm pretty much serious here. I counted how many times I hiccuped in one hour once and I got up to 33. Sheesh! Sometimes, they are super loud and I just cannot control them. It happens all the time, everywhere. Ugh, so embarrassing. But its all good because sometimes, when I'm among friends, its just silly and I can just laugh it off. Other times though, I'm mortified. Yikes!

My second big insecurity is my laugh. Like my hiccups, sometimes I simply can't control it! The problem is that its just a big booming laugh and I'm pretty sure people in Europe can hear it sometimes! Sigh.

Day 17

2011-04-07T17:49:00.003-06:00

Day 17 - A picture of something that has made a huge impact on your life recently

Recently, as in the last 3 months of so, I have gotten to be really good friends with some amazing people! Each of them have impacted me in their own way and I love and value each of them dearly. I am so blessed to have had them enter my life and to be taught by all of their spirits. They are all such great people and I am a better person just by knowing them!

Special thanks to Morgan, John, Amber, Trevor, Ben, Emilee, and Steve.

Day 16

2011-04-06T14:20:00.003-06:00

Day 16 - A picture of someone who inspires you

Emma Smith inspires me to keep pushing forward. She went through so much in her life and stayed so strong. I can only wish to be as steadfast as Emma.

Julie Andrews inspires me because (this is going to sound so stupid) she is such a great musician. Nobody else has a wider range than her and she is always pitch perfect. I also love how classy Julie is.

And last but certainly not least, Jesus Christ inspires me beyond anyone or anything else. He is the reason I am here. He loves me regardless to how stupid I can be. He knows my weaknesses and helps me get through them. He is amazing and I cannot wait until the day I can thank Him for everything He did for me and to wrap my arms around Him.

Day 15

2011-04-05T15:32:00.003-06:00

Day 15 - A picture of something you want to do before you die

I thought it was interesting that this was the challenge of the day because it just so happens that I created a new page on my blog last night entitled "Allie's Bucket List". So, to know what else I'd like to do before I die, check that page out!

One of the most important goals I have for my life is to not only go through the temple, but to go there with my best friend and be married and sealed there for time and all eternity. It is so important to me and I simply cannot accept anything less than that.

The picture above is of the Draper Temple, which is my favorite of all the LDS temples.

Day 14

2011-04-04T14:07:00.003-06:00

Day 14 - A picture of someone you could never imagine your life without

(Side note: Of course it would be my family members, but for the sake of variety, I'll choose someone else.)

I could not imagine my life without my bestest friend Chelsey Wakefield Taylor. We met when we were like 7 in St. Peters, MO and have just been BFFs ever since! She has ALWAYS been there for me. I know she doesn't judge me and wants the best for me. She asked me to be her Maid of Honor and I felt so special. Ahh, she's pretty much the most amazing person ever! People, I freaking adore this girl!

Day 13

2011-04-02T12:09:00.003-06:00

Day 13 - A picture of your favorite band or artist

It is just too hard for me to choose just one! So, forgive me, but I choose two! :)

My first choice is a not-so-common band named Metric. They made a big debut with the film "Eclipse", but I've known about these guys for a few years. Although some of their songs are somewhat emo, I love their sound so much! If I were to suggest a song by them that I think you should listen to, I'd say to look up "All Yours" from Eclipse. Its a great song! Definitely. But they have some other great stuff as well.

If you don't recognize these boys, I dunno if we can remain friends....Just kidding! I have always been in love with the Backstreet Boys! I was so sad when they kinda crumbled apart (which happened to be the same time the Spice Girls broke up as well. What gives?!) But I was so happy when they made a great comeback, even if Kevin decided to not rejoin them. But nonetheless, I still love them!

Day 12

2011-04-01T18:40:00.002-06:00

Day 12 - A picture of something you love

My first thought was my family, obviously, but since they occupy like every other post with this challenge, I think I'll choose something else for now. Just know that they really were my first choice.

Not only do I love sunsets, but I love the beach. I especially love sunsets at the beach.

Day 11

2011-03-31T15:56:00.004-06:00

Day 11 - A picture of something you hate

There is absolutely nothing I hate more than hate itself. I cannot believe how hateful some people can be! When I heard about some of the things that the Westboro Baptist Church were doing at various soldiers' funerals, I was filled with disgust. We live in AMERICA! This is supposed to be the land of the free and home of the brave. How are we going to be "home of the brave" if we have people that discriminate and press fear into their hearts? I absolutely HATE discrimination and am completely intolerant of it. When I hear about stories such as Westboro's protest and hate crimes, it makes me so sick inside. And this, friends, is exactly why I am becoming a social worker.

Day 10

2011-03-30T13:58:00.004-06:00

Day 10 - A picture of the person you do the most crazy things with

Today is a tie between Stevie Robinson and Whitney Bates. Over the last few years, we've done some pretty insane things....but I freaking love these girls!

Day 9

2011-03-29T16:25:00.002-06:00

Day 09 - A picture of the person who has gotten you through the most

The person that has gotten me through the most is definitely my dad. He has ALWAYS been there for me and I know I can go to him for anything. He's one of the most amazing men that I know and I'm so lucky to have him in my life. I love him dearly.

Day 8

2011-03-28T15:05:00.002-06:00

Day 08 - A picture that makes you laugh

Day 7

2011-03-27T11:21:00.002-06:00

Day 07 - Picture of your most treasured item

My most treasured item(s) is my siblings, my family. They mean the world to me and I seriously don't know who I'd be without them. They are all SO amazing and bring so much into my life.

Day 6

2011-03-26T12:21:00.004-06:00

Day 06 - A picture of a person you'd love to trade places with for a day

I would change places with Willy Wonka for several reasons.
1. He can eat all the flipping candy he wants!
2. He can invent and make any kind of candy he wants!
3. He can be super weird and its awesome!
4. He gets to play with Oompa Loompas.
5. He gets free haircuts.
6. Face it, his factory is freaking sweet! (pun intended)

Day 5

2011-03-25T15:50:00.004-06:00

Day 05- A picture of your favorite memory

One of my most favorite memories is dancing as a little girl.

I danced for a professional dance company, the Performing Arts Centre, in St. Louis.

Such a beautiful grande jete!

This company helped teach me all about dance and to appreciate all styles of dance. Ahhh....good times.

Day 4

2011-03-24T16:21:00.003-06:00

Day 04 - Picture of your favorite night

Um, just so you know, I think this one is stupid because I don't have a favorite night. So, I'm just going to have to put more than one, again. Sorry.

ANY night with Whitney and Stevie is my favorite!

Spring Break was fantastic, but when we were at the beach with the guys at sunset after driving all across the state, this was my favorite night, I think. I just felt great to be with the guys and the girls with such an amazing sunset. Plus, there was some fun after the beach as well....

And the last one I could think of was the night my sister Kristi got hitched. She had a beautiful reception and it was just a great experience!

Ward Talent Show

2011-03-23T14:13:00.005-06:00

So, my singles ward has a talent show on Monday and it made me realize what a talented ward we have! The whole night was just a blast! I am posting two videos. The first is what Ben, Trevor, John, and Steve did for their talent. It was SO funny! Those fellows rock my world. Ah, I'm so lucky to be such good friends with them. The second video is the group that I participated in. We did an algorithm march. You have to pay close attention and possibly watch it a few times before you can really appreciate it.

Man of Constant Sorrow

Algorithm March

Day 3

2011-03-23T14:05:00.003-06:00

Day 03 - A picture of the cast from your favorite tv shows

First is "So You Think You Can Dance." Love this show. Always keeps you wanting more and always has something you've never seen before.

"Reba" is probably the funniest tv show ever and I always laugh my butt off.

"Gossip Girl" is just a show that has great fashion and great music and is somewhat entertaining. I love watching it with my roommate Ali. :D

Day 2

2011-03-22T10:51:00.002-06:00

Day 2 - A picture of you and the person you have been closest with the longest

The person I have been closet to the longest is my older brother Michael. We have been through a lot together and he may not know it, but I really look up to him and value him more than I can express. He can be a buttface sometimes, but that's because he's my brother and its like the law. But I want the world to know, I love my brother Mike very much. He makes me "vewy vewy happy"! Love you, Pokinokee!

Day 1

2011-03-21T17:04:00.003-06:00

So, I know I made a page for the photo challenge, but I can't figure out how to put photos on it, so I guess I'm just gonna have to do it this way. Sorry! Mybad.

Anyways, Day 1- picture of self with ten random facts

So, this is me. I already wrote a bunch of facts a while ago, so you should check out post "15 Things You May Not Have Already Known" from last month cuz I don't feel like writing 10 random things, lol. :D

Blog Pages

2011-03-20T17:26:00.002-06:00

Hey guys! Just letting you know I added two new pages to my blog. They are Really Cool People and 30 Day Photo Challenge. Each page has an explanation as to what it is all about. I encourage you to check them out from time to time. I have already begun my Really Cool People page and have posted about someone who I think is really cool.

Pictures from Spring Break :)

2011-03-18T13:43:00.005-06:00

As promised, here are some pics from spring break. There are more on my Facebook page, but I choose some good ones, I think. These are in reverse order and I'm too lazy to rearrange it, fyi.

We ended our trip at a friend's friend's family's house and they let us come crash their backyard which had a swimming pool, hot tub, trampoline, swing set, volleyball court, guest house, etc. Great way to end our fun week.

We went on a fun hike in the red rocks of St. George.

Brianne, me, and Morgan playing on an escalator in one of the malls in Vegas sometime after midnight. Oh, Amber was playing too, but she was taking the picture, so you can't see her....

We ate dinner at the Sugar Factor on the strip in Vegas. It was AMAZING!!!

Posing by the lady M&M at M&M World in Vegas.

Sunburn! :s

Sunset at Newport Beach

Me, Amber, and Morgan having fun along the shore at Newport Beach

Our full spring break group! I seriously LOVE these people!

John, Trevor, Brianne, and Morgan eating dinner at In 'N Out. Yum!

Besties! Brianne, Trevor, Steve, Morgan, me, and John...and I cannot forget Amber, who is taking the picture. She's a bestie too! :D...oh, and I dunno why Ben isn't in this pic, but he's included too.

Ben, Steve, me, John, and Morgan along the shore of Sunset Beach

Sunset at Sunset Beach, how appropriate

Sunset just outside Knotts Berry Farm. Aren't Steve and John so good looking?! Ah, I cannot get over it! ;)

Steve, SNOOPY, me, and Ben at Knotts. I LOVE SNOOPY!!!

Happy Weeny Family...except Steve apparently.

Well, there you have it. Oh man, this was SUCH a great week. It was a blast! Ahhhh....

Spring Break 2011

2011-03-14T15:36:00.002-06:00

Holy cow, what a week! Spring break was awesome!
We left Logan Saturday morning and picked up Brianne in Provo and headed to St. George for the night. From St. George, we drove all the way to Murrieta, CA and made it just in time for church. Brianne's parents then fed us all dinner and we had a fabulous time staying at their house for the week!
On Monday, I went with Steve, John, Ben, and Trevor to Knotts Berry Farm while the girls went to Disneyland. It was PERFECT! We NEVER waited in line and rode every ride seriously like 6 times each. It was such a blast!!! (Theme song for the day: Tequila!)
Tuesday was interesting, but still good. We were to meet the guys at Sunset Beach but ended up driving 2 hours in the wrong direction. Oops. But we made it to the beach just in time for an amazing sunset! We then went to In'N'Out and ate some yummy food. Steve, John, Morgan, and I went back to the place the guys were staying and went swimming while everyone else went to visit Brianne's friend. We had a jolly good time!
Wednesday was amazing. We went straight to Newport Beach and stayed there most of the day. The guys came, but only stayed for a few hours and then took off and went home to Utah. But we stayed on the beach and had a blast...and got fried!
Thursday was when we went to Vegas!!! It was my first time there and I was SO excited! We went pretty much everywhere when we were there and had so much fun!
Friday, we spent the day in St. George. We went hiking and then went to a friend's house and went swimming and a BBQ and watched a movie and just hung out.
Saturday, we dropped Brianne off in Provo and then went and saw Jessica and Amber's family and stayed at my house for the night.
Sunday, we spent most of the day having an amazing time with Morgan's family and then returned back to Logan.
....and that is my trip in a nutshell. Pictures to come soon! :D

15 Things You May Not Have Already Known

2011-02-25T10:21:00.007-07:00

It seems like there is a trend going around on blogger. So, like the follower I am I will follow the trend....I guess....So, without further adieu, here is my moment of bragging: 15 things you may not have already known about Allie

15. There are two things I must have in order to sleep every night or else I will just not sleep well at all. 1- my stuffed animal dog Reginald, and 2- my fan must be on, regardless to how cold it is already.
14. Silence seriously freaks me out. I can't think when its silent and for some reason, it just scares me.
13. One of the weirdest mixtures I've ever had and actually quite enjoyed involves nacho cheese and a twix bar.
12. On my window sill is a potato with a face drawn on it. Me and Amy call him Geraldo, the window warrior.
11. It drives me crazy if a cabinet is left open or a shower curtain isn't closed all the way. Dunno why, just does.
10. I have "gone steady" with only two guys, one lasting 9 months, the other lasting 6 months. One in high school, one in college. The great thing is: I'm good friends with both of them still.
9. In high school, I was nominated for Sweethearts Queen.
8. Growing up, I was an avid dancer in a professional dance company in St. Louis. I was at the studio about 4 days a week, about 4 hours each time, except on Saturdays when I was there for about 12 hours. I competed on a national level and won many awards. I danced in The Nutcracker twice (as a Christmas Tree Angel both years) and dreamed of becoming either a famous dancer (or singer) or famous choreographer. I would make up dances in my basement with my spare time.
7. I have close relatives that have been in major movies such as Newsies, Addams Family Values, and various music videos.
6. My all-time favorite food (and my all-time favorite thing to cook ) is a family dish called Pollo del Sol. And my favorite drink is chocolate milk. But I do not like the two together :D
5. I secretly LOVE history. I took AP European History in high school because I loved it so much.
4. If I could marry a cartoon character, it would be Winnie the Pooh, hands down.
3. Aside from young womens, my first calling in the church was a gospel doctrine teacher in my college singles ward. I was only 17 and was terrified to be teaching to a bunch of returned missionaries.
2. I absolutely love to travel! I love planes, trains, road trips, you name it! I have been to 17 states, but never out of the country. One of my goals in life is to travel to Europe.
1. My dream job is to be a motivational speaker, specifically to females.

So, there you have it! Tell me something about you that I don't already know!

Emma Hale Smith: Strong, Determined, Heroic

2011-02-10T16:10:00.002-07:00

You know, there have been SO many people I have met in my life. There are so many different types of people, so many opinions and characteristics. I genuinely believe that everyone on this earth has something about them that makes them amazing.

With that being said, I'd like you all to know that I do not use the word hero lightly. I'm very conservative when it comes to putting that title on people because although I feel like everyone has some heroic tale they can tell, it takes a heck of a lot for me to consider someone my hero. And that, friends, is exactly why I only have a handful of them. One of said heroes that I wish to talk about today is Emma Hale Smith and why I consider her one of the most amazing women to ever walk this planet.

I recently attended a fireside featuring Katherine Nelson, the lady who played the role of Emma in "Joseph: Prophet of the Restoration" and "Emma: My Story". I can honestly say that this was the most amazing fireside I have ever been to. Katherine spoke a lot about Emma and helped to increase my understanding and respect for Emma. Emma endured so much during her time here on earth. She dealt with persecution, discrimination,death, hate, disownment, and so much more. Yet, through it all, she remained strong and focused more on helping those around her rather than dwelling on her own trials. Her main focus in life was to better the environment for those around her and to be the one to clothe the naked, feed the hungry, shelter the homeless, and comfort the downtrodden. How She gave her life to Christ, regardless of the consequences and actively strived to be the best person she could be. she lived! I can only hope to follow her example and to be more like her.

Crooked Teeth

2011-02-07T16:26:00.002-07:00

The SotW is "Crooked Teeth" by Death Cab for Cutie. This was my all time favorite song in high school. I haven't listened to it for several years and forgot about it until it came on my iPod this morning while walking to class. I seriously love the line "I built you a home in my heart with rotten wood and it decayed from the start. You can't find nothing at all if there was nothing there all along". It's a nice reminder to me that if you don't have a good foundation, you cannot build your way up, at all. In pretty much every situation. But yeah, I think this song has some beautiful lyrics and is just an overall easy listener….even though I haven't the slightest idea what it actually means. Oh well.

Wonder-Dummied

2011-01-30T10:30:00.003-07:00

I have chosen "Wonder-Dummied" by Brooke Waggoner for this week's Song of the Week. Not only did I come across this song during a blue period, but I haven't been able to stop listening to it for over a week. It has SUCH a relaxing feel to it and I'm in love with Brooke's voice. Plus, the strings just add so much more color to the sound!
Yeah, I know its a kind of different song, but tell me. What do you think about it?

New Love

2011-01-21T17:06:00.011-07:00

Looks like I've developed a new hobby, aside from suddenly being pro at offending people as of late. I have simply fallen in love with cooking. I seriously just love combining a lot of random things and having it turn into something amazing. Its awesome! I also like to create my own recipes and just mess around in the kitchen. Plus, I've also learned after 3 1/2 years of college that if you want good, delicious food, you just have to make it yourself. So, I have been doing more cooking this year than I have in my entire life combined and am LOVING IT!!!

Here's a jello salad I made for the 4th of July

Making some taco meat for Taco Tuesday hosted in my apt

Pork Sirloin Roast with rolls, mashed potatos, gravy, and stuffing we (my apt and our neighbors) ate before Christmas break

Barbeque chicken legs

My own weird creation: cream cheese sausage crescent rolls

Not only do I love making these and enjoying my accomplishment by feasting to delicious substances, but I seriously love sharing them with others and making them just as happy as me. So, if you have any amazing recipes that you’d like to share, I’d more interested in perhaps making a trade!
Happy inventing and eatings, reader! :)

Dear EC...

2011-01-17T17:48:00.003-07:00

Dear Future Husband:
I'm not sure why, but it appears that lots of girls write weird, strange letters to their future husbands, even before they meet them. Therefore, seeing as I'm done with my homework and don't really have anything to do at the moment, I guess I'll take a whack at it. Here goes...don't think less of me, k?
Husband, I want to show you that there's a reason to be sick with love. I want to show you the magic we'll feel when our lips touch. I want us to dance together to our own madness. I want us to skip along those fine lines in life. I want us to play video games together. I want us to go against the flow. I want us to kiss in the rain. I want us to enjoy the simple things in life. I want to cuddle next to you. I want to be able to never get enough of you. I want us to get lost in our own world. I want our hearts to skip a beat everytime we hear each other say "I love you." I want us to be an unstoppable force.
But most of all.....I want us to find each other.
Love, me

Just a Girl Trying to Find a Place In This World

2011-01-11T14:17:00.005-07:00

Wow, the SofW is "A Place in This World" by Taylor Swift. I never heard until I was watching the movie "Ramona and Beezus". (PS: That movie is a MUST SEE!!!) Anyways, this song is seriously the most PERFECT theme song for me and where I currently am in my life right now.

"I don't know what I want, so don't ask me because I'm still trying to figure it out. Don't know what's down this road, I'm just walking trying to see through the rain coming down. Even though I'm not the only one that feels the way I do."

Seriously? WOW! Its true, I don't know what I want, I just know what I don't want. I have no idea what's down the road I'm walking on right now, no idea. I'm just trying to deal with the curves and obstacles I face along the way.

"I'm alone, on my own, and that's all I know. I'll be strong, I'll be wrong, but life goes on. Oh, I'm just a girl, trying to find a place in this world."

Again, this chorus line seriously nails it on the head for me. I'm trying to be as strong as I can at this point and trying to help others as best I can as well. But no matter what happens, no matter how strong or weak I am, life still goes on. And yes, at this point, I'm still trying to figure what my place is in this world and where it is that I belong.

Have a great day!!! :)

A New Day Has Come

2011-01-03T21:46:00.002-07:00

New year, new look, new goals.

I started out by changing the look of my blog. If any of you have been on my blog over the last few days, you probably saw something different each time. I changed it around probably 3 times before settling on this one. Chances are though, I'll change it again by March. I just can't sit still with the same thing for too long. I get bored, I guess.

Anyway, happy 2011, everyone! Honestly, I'm kind of nervous going into this year. First off, I hate the number 11. Call me silly, but I just don't like odd numbers, especially when it comes to dates. But we shall see what 2011 has to offer, I guess. Aside from that nonsense, I kind of am excited for this year. I love when the year changes. Its an excuse to start anew, make goals, make changes, decide to grow and become a better person, etc. I know I have made several goals for this year. One specifically is to be a better friend and better mankind. What goals have you set for yourself?

The SofW I have chosen for this week is "A New Day Has Come" by Celine Dion. I know some of you will roll your eyes at the mention of Celine Dion, but that's too bad for you. I LOVE CELINE DION! I had plans this summer to go see her in Vegas, but something happened and it doesn't look like that's going to be happening. But I love her. She's amazing. I chose this song because of the following line:
"Let the rain come down and wash away my tears. Let it fill my soul and drown my fears. Let it shatter the walls for a new sun. A new day has come."
I really like this. Everyone has something from the previous year that they aren't proud of. But this new year, if we let it, can be the rain that washes away our tears and shatters the wall for a new sun and becoming better. (At least, that is how I am translating this song at this time.) So, good luck with your resolutions! Make this year count!

Stylish Blogger Award

2010-12-30T11:17:00.003-07:00

Well, I just informed by Elise that I was nominated for the

Apparently, there are 4 duties to perform to accept this award:
1. Thank and link back to the person who awarded you this award
2. Share 7 things about yourself
3. Award 15 recently discovered great bloggers
4. Contact these bloggers and tell them about the award!

So, thanks Elise at for the nomination! You're awesome and I have a message for you: Hey, girl, hey!!!

Part 2:
1. I am the 4th oldest of 10 kids in my family. My family is amazing and they are such a huge part of me.
2. I am secretly (or perhaps not so secretly, depending on who you are) a HUGE fan of classical music. One of my favorite movies ever is Fantasia and Fantasia 2000. There is just something about it that touches my very core.
3. I have a chronic condition of the hiccups. Not really, but I seriously hiccup ALL THE TIME!
4. I'm a hopeless romantic. I love love. I love chick flicks, crushes, dating, and pretty much everything about love. I love talking to other people about their love-life and all that jazz.
5. As a child, I was an avid dancer. I danced with the Performing Arts Centre, a professional school of dance in St. Louis. I did all kinds of dance: ballet, tap, acro, hip hop, jazz, modern, lyrical, etc. I competed on a national level and spent four days a week (and literally ALL DAY Saturdays) at the studio. I absolutely loved dancing and wish I had stuck with it.
6. I first dyed my hair in the 7th grade. Why so early? Because my hair had already started to go gray!
7. I am a believer that chocolate can cure almost anything. Chocolate helped make the last few weeks a tad bit easier for me. I even brought chocolate to the funeral and as strange as it sounds, it honestly helped me feel a little bit better!

Anyways, I'm done with that. Lol. Here are blogs that I really enjoy reading and I think ya'll should check them out.

Ali on alihancey.blogspot.com
Amanda at mandascooby.blogspot.com
Malena via everillpride.blogspot.com
Dani on danimalloy.blogspot.com
Emilee at oodelaleeoodelalee.blogspot.com
Morgan at chew-like-you-have-a-secret.blogspot.com
Stevie on stevierobinson.blogspot.com
Teresa via groovystockdales.blogspot.com

Over and out! :)

A Day Without Rain

2010-12-25T19:14:00.002-07:00

Merry Christmas everyone. Hope all is well with you.

Thank you all for your prayers for my dear friend, Emily, whom I told you about in my previous post. Her injuries unfortunately were too serious and she passed away Thursday evening. Here is a link to her obituary if you are interested: http://obitsutah.com/obituary/3822/emily-ann-dutson.htm

With the passing of Emily, I've learned many lessons about the impact someone can make, human beings, myself, and was reminded of the power of God. Your whole entire life can change so drastically in the blink of an eye. Life is so fickle! Life is as constant as it is fair, I guess. Its been a rough couple of days for me and I can only imagine what her family is going through. My prayers continue to be with them in their time of need.

I have chosen "A Day Without Rain" by Enya because the emotions Enya portrays with this particular song captures the emotions I have felt the last week. Its calm and peaceful, but there are also various rises and falls, which for me personally displays the bittersweetness of recent events.

Once again, I wish you all a merry Christmas. Stay warm! Stay safe.

Prayers for Emily Dutson

2010-12-19T21:50:00.007-07:00

This is my dear friend Emily Ann Dutson.

She is one of the most amazing girls I've ever met. She always has a smile on her face and she just radiates with happiness. I've never heard her utter a negative word or been unkind to anyone. She also received a mission call to Canada next month. She really is just a wonderful girl!

On Friday night, she and her mother were driving home in the snow and their car lost control. They spun around several times into oncoming traffic. They were hit head on by a truck.

Those in the truck received minor injuries, however, Emily's mother died at the scene. Emily was transported to the hospital in critical condition. She has broken her foot, leg, arm, and some ribs. She also has some swelling in her brain and is on life support unconscious.

There is still hope for her though! Today, she has improved with her breathing, her body temperature is stable, and she has started responding to touch. However, she is still in need of your prayers! Please, take a second to pray for her recovery and the comforting of her family at this time. They are dealing with so much and could really use your help!

Thanks everyone! You're fantastic!

Bad Day

2010-12-14T00:50:00.003-07:00

The SotW isn't a favorite song. Its just kinda been my theme song over the course of...December.
Do you ever have those days where you try so hard to make everything right and you just end up tripping all over your own feet? I feel like I'm trying so hard to do what I'm supposed to be doing and trying to be happy. But everything is just going poorly. I say stupid things without thinking, I screw up, I make mistake after mistake. I feel like there is something wrong with me. And this frustrates me a great deal.
Anyways, enough complaints out of me. This blog was meant to bring joy to it's readers. So...here's a joke I heard a few days ago: What did the chinese couple name their baby who was mysteriously born black? Sum Ting Wong

Have a good day, reader.

Merry Christmas, Darling

2010-12-02T21:16:00.003-07:00

Now that it is Christmas time and I won't get my head bitten off for listening to Christmas music, I am going to post the first Christmas song of the season.
"Merry Christmas, Darling" is my all-time favorite Christmas song. Not only do I absolutely love Karen Carpenter's voice, but the lyrics to this song are just beautiful. I'm a terrible romantic and this song just melts my heart. That's really all I can say. I just immensely love this song!

Merry Christmas, darling blog-reader! :)

Like We Used To

2010-11-27T14:49:00.006-07:00

This week's SotW is "Like We Used To" by A Rocket to the Moon.
I've chosen this song for various reasons, actually. This song is about a guy singing about his ex-girlfriend's current boyfriend and questions if the new BF treats her as well as the old BF does. Now, I'm not experiencing anything like that in my life right now, but I heard this song on the radio the other day and it really touched me.
I have had my share of guys that are little more than scum. It really puts a damper on trying to find an EC who will treat a girl with respect and perhaps even like the lyrics in the song:

"Does he watch your favorite movies? Does he hold you when you cry? Does he let you tell him all your favorite parts when you've seen it a million times? Does he sing to all your music while you danced to 'Purple Rain'? Does he do all these things...?
Will he love you like I loved you? Will he tell you everyday? Will he make you feel like you're invincible with every word he'll say?"

I dunno, I just really hope to find him. Its just disheartening when the world basically shows you that he doesn't exist.

PS: I'm not desperate. This song just made me think about life a little more than normal, proving that its a good song. :)

So tell me, what do you think about this song, the melody, the lyrics....?

25 Things I am Thankful For

2010-11-24T00:42:00.002-07:00

25. Blankets - its just amazing how comforted you can feel consumed in a blanket.
24. The Internet - we are SO much more spoiled these days than those who lived in years passed. People used to have to look up information in encyclopedias and we just google, without even looking hard.
23. Money - even though I don't have hardly any, I am thankful for what I DO have and what I can do with it.
22. Chapstick - there is nothing more annoying than burning lips and there is nothing more satisfying as the relief chapstick can offer.
21. Being able to breathe through my nose - I am definitely not a mouth breather and it therefore is devastating when my nose gets clogged.
20. Electricity - Too broad of a subject to expound on...
19. Fuzzy socks - Is there anything more enjoyable than putting cold feet into warm fuzzy socks? I think not.
18. Disney - From "The Lion King" to Disneyland, I am SO grateful that there is such thing as Disney. What a joy it is in my life. Daily.
17. My Roommates - Deborah, Ali, and Amy! I dunno if any of you girls read my blog, but I am SO thankful to have you as my roomies. NEVER a dull moment. Always laughing.
16. Deodorant - There is nothing worse than having to stand close to someone who is sweating and smells terribly of B.O.
15. Flowers - Proof that God is real and that he loves us. Not only are they among the most beautiful creations of nature, but they smell amazing!
14. Chocolate - I'm a girl. Enough said.
13. Christmas Time - I absolutely LOVE Christmas time, everything about it. From the lights to the trees to the colors to the songs to the goodies...EVERYTHING!!!...except the snow.
12. Boys - Most of the time, they are nothing but a pain in the butt. They just don't get us girls. But then something amazing happens and they will do things that just melt your heart by saying something sweet or perhaps just smelling good.
11. Nature - Again, too broad of a subject to elaborate. I could seriously go on for HOURS about this one...
10. Babies - There is something just so special about a newborn. So precious, so innocent. Some of the most spiritual moments in my life have involved holding a baby.
9. Sunshine - Nothing helps brighten a day more than the sunshine, whether the bright beams or the warmth.
8. My Education - Ok, so I know I mostly just complain about school and homework, but I really am amazingly grateful for the opportunity I have to get an education. I love to learn!
7. Texting - Although rather annoying sometimes, texting is very convenient most of the time...
6. Transportation - Not only do we not have to walk for miles to get where we want to go, but most transportation options have air conditioning / heating and a radio!
5. Water - Not only do I love drinking water, but I love just being in water. Whether I'm swimming or taking a shower, I just love water! I love staring at water, watching its strange shadows on the bottom of the pool. Very amazing.
4. Music - Music touches my heart more than anything else I've ever known. It has a way of touching my heart in a way that words never can. Music is my life. Without music, my life would be dull and quiet.
3. Friends - There is nothing I love more than having a good time with amazing people. I wouldn't be anywhere in life without those who I have met along my way. I am SO thankful to everyone who has reached out to me and made me a better person.
2. My Family - Thanks Mom, Dad, Mike, Kristi and John, Kelly, Lizzie, Kevin, Jessica, Erik, Emily, Danny, and Roxie! You guys mean the world to me! I love how loud and crazy we are and I love our situation. Never, ever would I change the life I've had with all of you. You guys keep me going every day!
1. The Gospel / My Testimony - I am so thankful for the church and for those who have died for it. I am so thankful to know what I know and to have been able to be a part of such an amazing church. I can only hope to one day bring someone else to the happiness and peace I have found. This true doctrine is the reason life is bearable. I'd be nobody without it.

All of Me

2010-11-18T21:07:00.003-07:00

I figured that I would choose "All of Me" by Jon Schmidt for this week for several reasons.
1. This is my FAVORITE Jon Schmidt song. I love the melody of the song and, as heard in all is songs, the chords he chooses and the rise and falls. Absolutely beautiful. No matter how many times I hear this song, I can always interpret it differently and find various emotions throughout it. Its truly a heavenly melody.
2. For the past three weeks, I have been SO excited for Jon Schmidt's Christmas concert! Not only is it going to be an AMAZING concert, but its going to be great because I get to attend it with an amazing gentleman as well, who loves and appreciates music just as much as I do! :)
3. I have been feeling homesick alot more than normal this semester and this was the first Jon Schmidt song that my sister, Jessica, learned how to play. She could play it almost perfectly after running through it about 4 times and she was only 14 years old! So, this song makes me think of her.

Enjoy this song. Let it fill your soul and calm your heart.

Somebody Like You by Keith Urban

2010-11-11T10:26:00.002-07:00

Ok, I know I've gotten sloppy on my "Song of the Week" but that's going to change NOW! :) This week's SotW is "Somebody like You" by Keith Urban. The reason is because this song pretty much sums up my life right now. Yeah, there perhaps is someone specific that I'm thinking about or maybe a few in general. Depends on when you ask me, really. But I think the lyrics to this song is just amazing! Keith is so great with his lyrics but I really love this song.

"I wanna love somebody, love somebody like you!"

Update

2010-11-10T11:43:00.002-07:00

Its been a while since I last blogged. So, I figure that with the 10 mins I have before class, I'll go ahead and do some blogging.

Hmm, I feel like alot has happened since my last post. Something that immediately comes to mind is my car. I slid on some black ice in the Taco Bell parking lot into a pole. The cost of damage was more than the car was worth and I only had liability insurance, so I said farewell to my beloved Cavalier. It did, however, prove to me what great neighbors I have. Braden and Jeff came to help me out with towing details and making sure I was alright. They have NO idea how incredibly grateful I am to them for helping me. I don't know what I would have done without them! Thanks guys!!!

Forget Juliet. I got a letter from an ELDER!

2010-10-19T13:23:00.002-06:00

I'm feeling rather joyful, so I figured I'd blog about it. What is the source of my joy, you ask? Well, it just so happens that I received a letter from Elder Nestman today! Now, I know that every girl is excited to get a letter from her missionary, but its different with this boy and me. I told him not to write me so he can stay focused on his work. I told him to write his mom and don't worry about writing me, but guess what? He did it anyway! :) I'm not sure what it is exactly that makes girls so giddy about getting a letter. Maybe its the fact that its from a boy. Maybe its the fact that the boy thought enough about her to write her a letter. I mean, missionaries only have an 8 hour period a week to write letters and if he wrote one to you, that's gotta mean that you mean something to him! I don't know, but what I do know is how I feel when I get letters from him. And I feel awesome! I love hearing about what he's up to and how he's doing. I seriously love seeing / reading / feeling how much he's growing. It makes me so excited for when he comes home! Ahh!

So, who all is writing an elder?! Any good stories?

Life is Hard. But So Are Bricks.

2010-10-07T12:30:00.002-06:00

I have had an amazing time up here at Utah State so far. I'm enjoying so much of it and am loving getting to know so many new people! But I am still human and still have my bad days.

This week has been particularly rough, I'm afraid.

October 5 was the marking of the 10 year anniversary of my mother's death. It has been very hard for me to come to terms with the fact that I haven't heard her voice, seen her face, or embraced her for a decade. It makes me feel old and it makes me miss her all the more. I wish she were still here with me and I wish that I could talk to her about so many things. But I know that it was her time to leave this life and move right along in her eternal journey.

Aside from that, there has been boy drama. Specifically, there was this one guy who I started really liking. We went on a date and had a marvelous time! He had grabbed my hand, made me laugh, told me about how beautiful he thought my eyes were, the whole enchilada. He was very charming and I found him very attractive. I started crushing on this guy, hard. So I invited him over several times only to be told he was busy doing things elsewhere, which was fine! It happens. We're in college and get pretty busy. No big. But then, I find out basically by interrogation that he has a girlfriend he never told me about! He never told me about her and probably never would have, for all I know. Nobody knew about her, except his roommate. But yeah, this was hard for me because I totally put myself out there (which doesn't happen very often) and feel humiliated. I feel like I was lied to and made a fool of myself. Ugh. Trying to be the mature adult, I told him that I forgave him and didn't want to make a big deal over it and asked if he wanted to still be friends. And he said yes.

So, there you have it. Life gets poopy sometimes, but Heavenly Father ALWAYS sends a wipe to clean it up somehow. Lucky for me, he sent me mine in a dream last night. Haha, and I think that's where I shall end this entry before I sound any weirder.

Ciao!

Week One = Completed

2010-09-03T14:20:00.002-06:00

I successfully finished my first week at Utah State. Holy cow, let me just say how incredibly different this school is in comparison to Eastern Utah!!! There is people EVERYWHERE! And my classes are huge. Its overwhelming at times, but I think I'm adjusting just fine. I'm taking only 5 classes this year including Human Adjustment, Social Welfare, Social Problems, Philosophy of Ethics, and my institute class Gospel and the Productive Life. I think I'm really going to enjoy these classes, especially my philosophy class. I didn't know if before Monday, but I really love philosophy! Its so interesting and I'm really enjoying it. I like my other classes too and am really looking forward to my institute class. It'll be a good semester. I'm living in Bridgerland Apartments and I think its absolutely perfect. I love my apartment! I'll post pictures just as soon as everything is unpacked and there aren't random boxes all over! :) As roommates go, I think its going to be a good situation. My actual roomie is Amy Nixon and I really am liking her. She's such a sweetheart and probably the most social person I've ever met. She's super fun and we've had some really fun times this week. My other roommates are Ali and Deborah. I still don't know them very well, as we haven't spent alot of time together, but I'm looking forward to getting to know them. My ward seems pretty awesome. I've met SO many people this week and, I know I keep saying this, but I'm just so excited to get to know everyone. I have a good feeling about this year. :)

My Social Life Increase

2010-08-21T00:21:00.002-06:00

While being in Texas, I didn't really have a social life, like at all. I never made any friends to hang out with or party with or anything like that. But I'm not complaining, because that makes my friends just that much more important to me. This last week, I've spent so much time with a ton of my friends! On Saturday, I went and had dinner with Jacob and then saw "Despicable Me" with him and Sarah. On Monday, I spent a good chunk of my day shopping with Whitney B and was later joined by new friend Joe. Tuesday was spent replacing the brake pads on my car. Haha. It was fun, alright? Wednesday was spent at the theater with Amanda watching "Vampires Suck". On Thursday, Sarah and I spent the majority of the day together being stuck in the broken down car, tow truck, car dealership, and eventually up in Ogden with Terra. Then playing night games in Herriman with Whitney B, Joe, and Zach. Today was great too seeing "Eat Pray Love" with my mom, having a grand old time at the park and the Taco Bell parking lot with Vanessa, Meisha, Parker, John, Jeremy, Amanda, Chris, and Rachel. And tomorrow should be amazing once again with my plans to have lunch with Missy and then get together with Whitney M. Ah, to be back in a world where people know me. Life is good. Almost ready to move up to Logan next week, but not quite yet....

Life After Texas

2010-08-15T16:11:00.002-06:00

Well, I've been home for a week now and not much has really happened. On Monday and Tuesday, my family went camping at Cherry Hill is Kaysville. We had such a fun time mini golfing, rock climbing, and playing in the waterpark. It was a great few days! I am in the process of getting everything taken care of before school and that includes getting everything worked out with my car. While cleaning it out, I found tons of treasures, including a life time supply of gum, a bedspread, 5 tennis balls, a pogo stick, etc. Its been fun. On Friday, we (my mom, Jessie, and myself) all helped Kelly move in up in Logan. I had a job interview and had a safety inspection on my car. I'm really getting excited about moving in. On the way home from Logan, Jessie and I stopped in Plain City for Chelsey's bridal shower, which was a great party! Then yesterday, I went down to American Fork to hang out with Jacob, which eventually involved Sarah too! And we saw "Despicable Me". Ah, such a cute movie.

Anyways, that's like everything I've done since getting back. What a life, right?

Back Home in Utah

2010-08-08T20:41:00.003-06:00

After 3 months, I am back home in Utah! It was an adventure getting home though, lemme tell ya. I couldn't get a straightway flight from Houston to Salt Lake. So I had to get creative in my road home. I ended up going from Houston to New York City. The flight was perfect, other than the fact that I sat next to a foreign lesbian couple. But there was no problem with the flight or anything. I got to the airport and was surprised. It was more like a mall, complete with a spacious food court. It was awesome! I didn't have enough time to go out to Manhattan, which was really sad to me, but I was able to see it from the airplane. I stayed at the airport for about 3 hours and miraculously got onto a flight to Las Vegas via standby. This flight was awful. I sat next to two overweight people and was not able to even really have my chair to myself. The person who sat next to me needed some extra room on my chair and ended up falling asleep on me. Ugh! It was not a fun ride. It was a very long 6 hours. After landing in Vegas, I got some dinner and just hung around the airport. It was an interesting experience. Very bright, loud airport/casino. It took me by surprise. I was at the Vegas airport for only about 3 hours as well and then boarded my final flight to Salt Lake City. This flight was only an hour and 15 mins long, thank goodness, and I was able to sleep through most of it. I was overjoyed to see that my dad was able to meet me at the gate instead of me having to walk to long was out of the terminal to see him.

As amazing as this summer was, I cannot express the happiness I am feeling being home with my family. I missed them dearly and it just feels so right to be around them and with them. Its just an amazing feeling. Ah, I love them.

Adventures in Texas

2010-07-28T16:53:00.005-06:00

Since my last post, I've been able to do a lot of fun things. J and J took me to go see "Wicked"! I had the opportunity to see it a few years ago in Hollywood and LOVED it! So, I was extremely excited to have the chance to see it again. Its such a great show!

I went to the San Marcos River a few weeks back. We floated down the river on tubes. Everyone was complaining about how cold the water was, but I really didn't think it was that cold. Maybe that is because the lakes in Utah are colder than that river was, idk. All I know is that I had a

good time and it was a ton of fun, even though pretty much everyone had some form of a war wound.

A parking spot down by the river saved for Elvis! Awesome!

I also got to experience downtown Houston. We went through the underground tunnels. I was able to go up to the top of the Chase Tower, which is the tallest building in Houston with its 75 stories! Aside from the lack of mountains, the view was amazing!

While in Houston, we ate lunch at the most haunted restaurant in the United States!

I went to NASA as well. It was a pretty good experience. It was alot different than I thought it was would, mostly more boring than I thought. But it was very interesting at some spots. I was glad to have gone before Obama shuts everything down.

After going to NASA, we went to the Kemah Boardwalk. It was a ton of fun! We had a really nice dinner and then CH and I went on the roller coaster, which was awesome! It was also a very beautiful place! Very peaceful, minus the carnival-like setting.

A few weeks ago, B, J, and me all went to go see Pauly Shore at the HBO famous comedy club, Improv. He was really funny, minus all the f bombs he thought made him funnier. His openner, Slade Hamm, was quite funny also. We had a great time!

My most recent fun event was going to the Gulf of Mexico. We spent most of the day at the beach and had a blast body surfing and soaking in the sun. As you will see in the picture below, I got pretty burned. Ha!

Well, thats it for now. I'm sure that last week and a half I have left in Texas will be a great one!

Short Update

2010-07-19T21:02:00.003-06:00

I know its been a while and I will update soon, promise! I just had to share with the world what kind of people I'm working with. (And embarrass that crap out of my coworkers!) So, here's about 30 seconds of what consists of my daily life at work.

Yeah. I know. Haha. They were pretending to be chickens! How random!

So Far, So Good

2010-06-26T22:40:00.008-06:00

Wow, yeah. Its been a while. Sorry about that. Life has been crazy since I got here. I've been kept busy. Now to update you on all the wonderful things I've done since I got here a month ago....hmmm....

Let me start off by telling you about where I'm working and what I do with the majority of my time here. I am working as an administrative assistant for Grubb & Ellis Property Management. I work under three (well, actually only 2) ladies specifically and I love them to death! One of them is one of the sweetest ladies I've ever met and she really likes pickles. (Haha, inside joke.) The other lady is SO funny. She's basically psycho and is alot like how I probably will end up when I'm her age. She's so random and out there, always smiling. And the third is this amazing woman. She can be intimidating, but she's such a good person. Love ya, J. Anyways, I work on the top story of a building in The Woodlands. It has a beautiful view also. I could spend my entire 8 hours at work just looking out the window. There are alot of trees and its pretty flat, makes me miss the mountains. But for the most part, I am SO thankful for the experience I'm having working for this company. I really love what I'm doing and the people I get to interact with.

This is the sign on the wall right above my desk

This is the painting my desk faces. Very interesting. I think its fish. L thinks its a bra...

The Waterway view from L's office

That's the building I'm working at :) So pretty!

This is down at the entrance of the building. There are a ton of fish and about 8 turtles that live inside the pond.

Aside from work, life is going pretty dang good!

Me, chillin' poolside :)

Leftovers from one of the two crawfish boils J had at her home. LOTS of crawfish

(PS: Crawfish and Crawdads are the same thing.)

Me, B, and J on the night we went club hoppin'.

My Houston Texas Temple Experience

2010-05-21T20:45:00.002-06:00

Although I've been in Texas for almost a week, I haven't made any friends my age yet. I really didn't want to spend my Friday night moping around and being bored, so I decided to go to the Houston Temple. It was the first time I'd ever been to this temple and the first time I've ever gone to the temple alone. My, what an awesome experience it was!

I left the house right after dinner around 6:50 or so, hoping to make it before it closed at 8. I live about 20mins from it, so I figured I'd be fine. Well, I ended up driving for 45 mins before I started to freak out. I was crying and started believing that the reason I couldn't find the temple was because it was Heavenly Father's way of telling me I was unworthy or something. Anyways, I was really upset because I couldn't find the temple. So, I turned around and started to head back home. I was furious at myself for not taking down better directions and even madder because I was giving up but I didn't know what else to do. So, I start driving and out of nowhere, I see the Angel Moroni. Tears welled up inside of me again because I was so thankful to just find the temple. I got out of the car and walked around it and then decided to go in to ask if there was room for one more person for the baptistry. I was sure they'd tell me know because it was already after 8. But the temple worker smiled and said "You have perfect timing. We're just finishing up a group." Oh, I was SO thankful!

This little experience may not mean much to you, the reader, but it is just amazing to me. It just goes to show me that things get frustrating and complicated, but they'll always get better. There is always going to be a light at the end of the tunnel. It also was a object(ish) lesson for me. I felt SO lost because I couldn't find the temple. But as soon as I found it, I was FULL of peace. Life is kind of like that. When you can't see the temple being in your future, you're just going to be lost. But if you know where its going to be in your life, things will go smoother, more peaceful. This was a perfect ending to my first week in Texas. :)

Texas

2010-05-16T14:11:00.004-06:00

Well, I moved to Texas yesterday finally! My flight was at 7:05am so I left the house super early before anyone was awake, which was pretty sad, actually. Dad came with me to the airport and was able to walk me to the gate. And I was so grateful for that because I was already nervous and his presence helped me chill out a little bit. The time came for me to give him a hug and get on the plane. I got on the plane and ended up sitting next to some lady who kept telling me all about the best places to party in Houston. She was super cute and like 50 so it was really funny. However, about an hour before we landed, we hit some pretty intense turbulence. I was almost positive that I was going to die. I seriously had tears in my eyes because I was freaking out so bad! We finally landed after a bajillion years of bumpy-scariness.

As soon as I got off the plane, the humidity hit me like a brick wall. Holy crap, humidity! I cannot believe how gross it felt. Sick. I guess I'm just gonna have to get used to it. J and B picked me up from the airport and then took me to a sushi bar where I had my first real experience with sushi. Yum! Then we went back to their house to relax and get unloaded and all that jazz.

There are several things I noticed already about Texas. Everyone has an accent, running red lights is not a good idea, the people all call each other "darlin'" or "honey" and are generally nice, and their food variety is extremely wide. Things are looking up for this summer. It's gonna be an experience different than I've ever had before. I've never lived with so few people in my life and never lived with people of a different faith. I'm looking forward to seeing how this summer rolls out. It's gonna be good.

Road Trip to Nauvoo

2010-05-10T12:56:00.011-06:00

Let me first start off by saying that this is probably going to be a long post because this trip was SO amazing and I want to talk all about it! So....yeah!

Jacob and Chelsey were awesome enough to stay long enough to see me off. We left Price early Saturday evening. It was pretty interesting start to the trip. We had two charter buses driving us and the bus that I wasn't on ran over a nail and needed replace their bus. So, after driving through Spanish Fork Canyon, we ended up sitting in Draper for about 45 minutes, waiting for another bus to come. We ended up getting at our hotel in Rawlins, Wyoming around 1:00am or so.

The next morning, we left Rawlins around 9:00am. We went up to Martin's Cove for sacrament meeting, which was amazing! It was a 5 mile hike up to the actual cove and it was very peaceful! We almost got trampled by a herd of antelope on our way back for lunch. After lunch, we got back on the bus for another 530 miles. This particular bus ride was not enjoyable at all. There was a lot of contention on the bus regarding what movie to watch on the sabbath or to even watch a movie at all. Yeah, that was not fun.

After getting to the hotel after midnight again, we left the hotel in Kearney, Nebraska at 9:00am the following morning. We drove several hours to Winter Quarters.

We took a tour through the Winter Quarters museum and then went across the street to the Pioneer Cemetery, which was very peaceful and the spirit was amazing there! Not many of the graves were marked, but there were many pioneers buried there. It made me sad to think about how hard their lives must have been and everything they had to endure. At the same time though, it made me SO thankful for everything I have and for my life. Carved into the cement in the cemetery is the phrase "Gird up your loins, Fresh courage take. Our God will never Us forsake." I felt so warm inside when I read that and it was made known unto me how true that statement truly is. Heavenly Father LOVES us and will never abandon us.

Right next to the cemetery is the Winter Quarters Temple. Wow, beautiful temple!

After leaving Winter Quarters, we drove another 330 miles to Nauvoo. We stayed at a Manor House. Basically what that means is that we were in regular sized hotel rooms with 4 bunk beds, meaning 8 girls in one room with only one bathroom. Whoever came up with that arrangement didn't use their brain.

Anyways, Tuesday was a great day. I spent the morning in Old Nauvoo at the bakery, brickyard, blacksmith shop, and other various spots. It was a blast and those senior missionaries are just too cute!

We walked back from Old Nauvoo to our hotel and walked right next to the Nauvoo Temple, which (needless to say) was SO beautiful! There is such a special spirit that surrounds that temple!

After lunch at the hotel, we went over to Carthage Jail which, besides the temple, is probably one of the most spiritual places that I have ever been to in my life! This is where the prophet Joseph Smith gave his life. It just goes to show how true the Book of Mormon MUST be. I don't know of any other religion that has a martyr such as the LDS.

This is me with the statue of Joseph and Hyrum in front of the Carthage Jail Visitor's Center

The door with holes from the bullets that struck Hyrum Smith

The window the Joseph Smith fell from after being shot by the mob outside

After Carthage, we say a play that the senior missionaries preform in Nauvoo called "Rendezvous in Old Nauvoo" and it was the cutest and funnest play I have ever been to. I felt like a kid in a candy shop! It was just a ton of fun!

On Wednesday, I got to go to baptisms in the Nauvoo Temple. This temple is unlike any of the 8 temple I have been in before! As soon as you enter, you can see the assembly room and are free to view inside it. Right next to the assembly room is a long hallway. On the walls of the hallway are artifacts from when the pioneers lived in Nauvoo, such as temple shoes and clothing. There are also the original temple keys from the original temple and Joseph Smith's saber. The font was huge! I swear it was about 3 times the size of the average sized font. On our way out of the temple, we were able to see another awesome characteristic of this historical temple. There is a 6 story high spiral staircase. It was so beautiful! Of course, now being endowed yet, I was only allowed to go up to the second level. But I for sure will be back to climb the rest of that staircase!

The next day, we had to leave Nauvoo. We left the hotel at 5:00am! Yeah, it was pretty chaotic leaving that morning. We drove 230 miles to Adam-ondi-Ahman. Wow! What a beautiful piece of land! It was SO green and there were like a million trees. It was very peaceful and a very relaxing place to be. I was just thinking the whole time how wonderful it's going to be when all the Saints gather here! I couldn't think of any better place for the gathering.

My beloved ward! Oh how I shall miss them dearly!

We left Adam-ondi-Ahman and we scheduled to go to Haun's Mill, but our poor buses couldn't make it so we just went to Far West. We didn't stay at Far West very long. We had a devotional and soon after left for Liberty Jail.

Amanda, Me, Terra, and Sarah at the Liberty Jail sign

Liberty Jail was a great experience! I wasn't aware that the museum was built around the jail and I thought that was a pretty cool detail and thankful that it was being preserved as such. I was also overcome with gratitude for what Joseph Smith went through for us. He could have gotten out of it very easily by denying that the Book of Mormon was true. But he stood up tall for what he believed in. It made me realize that I have alot to work on and it made me want to become steadfast and immovable more than ever before.

Liberty Jail. There are mannequins inside to show how tight spaced it really was inside

That night, we drove to our hotel in Independence. We didn't see any sights that night. We actually stopped at a local church building and held a testimony meeting. It started out extremely spiritual. The spirit in that room was SO intense! Unfortunately, the meeting started to drag on and it felt like the spirit was decreasing. I think it was because everyone was getting pretty restless. That testimony meeting lasted two and a half hours long, which I think was just too long. But it was still amazingly awesome! When we got back to the hotel, most of us all walked across the street to the IHop. I swear, there had to be at least 50 of us. Poor employees.

The next day, we went over to the Independence Visitor's Center where they taught us what life was like for the pioneers that had lived there. Afterwards, we went across the street to the Community of Christ (aka the RLDS) temple.

As you can see, it looks as if it came straight out of a Tim Burton film and I was very hesitant to go inside. However, I was pleasantly surprised as to what I found inside. They took us first into their most sacred room, the sanctuary room. In this room, they told us that this was their main room for worship. They held daily prayer sessions in this room, praying everyday for a different country, which I thought was awesome honestly. The tour guide went on to say how their main goal of their church is peace and to spread it throughout the world.

This is the ceiling in the sanctuary room, which is the inside of the spire

I came out of that temple with a feeling that I never thought of before. Many people came out of their angry and upset we went over there, saying that "That's not a temple" or "I felt the spirit leave me as soon as I went in." Well, I didn't feel any other that. I felt that sure, its not a temple to US, but it's still THEIR temple and still a building dedicated to Heavenly Father where people worship Him. I also felt a definite spirit there, even though it was a different spirit than inside one of our temples. I just felt like if we want other religions to respect us then we MUST respect their's and there was just a ton of negativity that came from our group, which actually really annoyed me.

Well, that was basically my trip to Nauvoo. The next two days were just riding in the bus forever. Nothing exciting. But anyways, this was such an amazing trip and I SO needed it, especially at this time in my life. I still feel like I'm on a spiritual high from it! Oh, I cannot wait to go back. I do, however, honestly believe that the only thing that would have made this trip better would have been to have my family there with me because I have SUCH a better respect for them and my heritage.

Graduation

2010-05-04T00:43:00.003-06:00

Chelsey and Jacob came down for graduation. What great friends!!!

Stevie, me, and Whitney

After many hours of homework, stressing over studying, light nights, all-nighters, and random meltdowns, I'm finally a college graduate! Hooray! Sure, I only have my associates, but I'm still the first in my family to have a college degree. That is a big deal to me. It makes me feel very special, especially because I'm pretty much the biggest ditz in my family and say alot of stupid things. But I have a degree. Wahoo! Its incredible how awesome I feel right now. I can only imagine how much more awesome I'm going to feel when I receive my master's degree! Woo-ee.

Anyways, to celebrate graduating from Eastern Utah with a major in Liberal Studies and an emphasis on Psychology, I have gone on a week long trip with my institute. We are hitting up pretty much every historical church site from Utah to Nauvoo. Very exciting. I'll write more about that when the trip is over.

Make A Wish

2010-03-28T16:42:00.004-06:00

Last Tuesday, my family was blessed enough to be invited to the Make A Wish facility. When a cancer patient is well on their way to recovery, the Make A Wish foundation contacts them and ask them to list several different "wishes" that they'd like to be granted. With Emmy being in her maintenance stage of her chemo treatments, the Make A Wish foundation contacted her several months ago and had asked her to list several different "wishes" that she would like to be granted.

Anyways, now that the doctors have given her the "ok" to go back to school, Make A Wish invited her to visit their facility so they could present her with her Wish, unaware to which Wish she will be granted. Now, if you've never been to the Make A Wish facility, I strongly recommend going there sometime. This building is unlike any other. Half of the building is shaped like a castle tower, while the other half is a regular building, complete with a huge garden surrounding it.

When we got to the facility, we were given a tour of this amazing building. After a while, we were all invited into the Wishing Tower. This room was cylinder-shaped with white walls. In the center of the room was a waterfall. The floor were clear tiles with color-changing lights that shined up through them, giving the walls color. It was just magical. Before we entered this room, we all wrote down a wish we had for Emmy and her life. Once inside, we all read our wishes to her and let me tell you, this was a pretty emotional event for us. The feeling of love in that room was thick enough to cut with a knife! It was just so amazing. Anyways, they presented her with her Wish: She and my family will be spending a week the first week in May down in Orlando, Florida. Its a super exciting event for our family because we never have gone on a vacation like this before. (Well, I should probably mention that any siblings older than 18 have to pay their own way. Therefore, not all of us will be going. But thats ok and it's still super exciting!!!

This is Me, Emmy, Jessica, and Danny at the Make A Wish sign.

Family picture around Emmy's star which reads "Welcome to the Wishing Place Emily!"

The ceiling in the main hallway of the facility had many, many glass stars hanging from it. Each star represents a wish that was granted to a child.