The Adventures of Holly Mo

Conference Weekend

2011-10-04T21:31:00.000-06:00

I remember being little and sleepily semi-watching General Conference... or at least being in the same room where conference was on. Now I look forward to Conference twice a year and enjoy watching all the sessions! General Conference is so incredible! Its amazing to have the opportunity to listen to a living Prophet and Apostles and leaders of the Church!

My Dad and Jill flew up to Utah for conference weekend so Scott and I got to pick them up Saturday morning, get some lunch together, and then attend the Saturday Afternoon Session at the Conference Center together. We then got a snack, the guys went back for Priesthood Session, and then we enjoyed dinner together.

Sunday morning Scott and I watched the Morning Session together and then drove back up to Salt Lake to meet up with my parents for the Sunday Afternoon Session at the Conference Center. It was amazing to be in the conference center for 2 sessions and hear the words of the General Authorities.

I also loved being able to spend time with family and enjoy the weekend :) Good times for sure!

Busy Semester

2011-10-04T15:32:00.000-06:00

It is already October and I am over a month into my last semester of classes at BYU. WOW. The time has just flown by! I really like my schedule and the professors that I have so that helps the time go by quickly.

In a month though, my classes will stop and I will have my second Practicum. This is where I will work with a mentor teacher and spend my days in an elementary classroom gaining experience and teaching lessons. Just last week I found out that I will be placed in a 3rd grade classroom at Orchard Hills Elementary in Santaquin, UT. I am very excited! I have always said that I want to teach either 2nd or 3rd grade so I am excited that my 2 practicums will have been in both a 2nd grade and a 3rd grade classroom. Its gonna be a busy/crazy/amazing experience!

But for now I am trying to keep up with my class assignments, I'm working a fair amount with Catering, and we are getting plans all set for the wedding on December 17th [74 days away!!]

Speaking of which - Scott and I took our engagement pictures a few weeks ago. We had the chance to meet up with a local photographer whose blog I have followed for over a year. It went so great and I am super happy with the preview we have so far. Go to Sheena's Blog to see a glimpse :)

10 years ago

2011-09-11T12:32:00.000-06:00

My mom and I had planned to go for a walk around a park before my school started at 9:30, but in the morning she called me on her way over and told me that she was pretty upset and we wouldn't be going for our walk that day. She was upset because someone had flown some planes into some towers in New York.

I had no idea what that meant. I was only 11 years old. I had never heard of the Twin Towers before, or of a Terrorist Attack. We watched the news in the living room of my dad's house for a while and then I had to go to school, but at school we had the news on the tv in the classroom also. I still didn't really know what everything meant or what was going on, but I remember my 6th grade teacher having us write down a journal entry about that day. She said that someday we would want to remember our experiences that day, so maybe that is why I remember it the way I do even though I was only 11.

I remember that everyone was really scared for a while, waiting for another attack. And everyone bought US flags to hang up, especially the ones that you place on your car windows. Those were everywhere.

I don't remember when I really understood what happened on September 11, 2001. Maybe I still don't fully understand it. But now I am proud of those who willingly went into those burning towers to help those in need. I am grateful for those who serve this country to keep us safe. I am now 21 years old and I will always remember September 11th.

Life is just awesome - - but busy

2011-09-06T15:37:00.000-06:00

I can hardly believe that this summer is over. I looked forward to Summer 2011 for so long that it is strange it is pretty much complete! I had the absolute best summer and I am so extremely happy with life :)

It was a different experience to stay in Utah all summer rather than packing up and going back home like usual. It was nice to spend time with Scott, work, and see another side to Provo than I was used to, but I'm glad that I was able to make trips and attend family vacations though, cause I sure love my family!

Once Summer term ended for Scott we both flew out to Virginia to spend some time with the Whitlocks in Ashburn. That was an awesome trip! I had the best time with the Whitlocks and I am so grateful that they invited me out there :D I stayed for 10 days and then had to come back for work while Scott got to stay a full 2 weeks. We made the most of our time and had a really good balance of fun active adventures as well as relaxing times.

Here's a glimpse of our trip:
-attending Ashley and Mark's wedding reception in New Jersey
-water skiing at Lake Anna
-hiking the Billy Goat Trail along the Potomac river
-picking our own Raspberries
-celebrating Mike and Shannon's 23rd wedding anniversary
-watching the entire 6th season of Lost [thank you Netflix!]
-Kayaking near some memorials in DC on the Potomac
-hearing Scott speak in church

Plus lots of sleeping in, hanging out, great dinners [with cooking lessons for Scott :)], etc. I was so sad to be leaving Virginia- I was very tempted to just stay with the Whitlocks rather than return to work and school... :)

I came back late on the 21st and then had a crazy busy week with my cleaning check to be completed all by myself on the 22nd and then I worked about 34 hours Monday-Friday. I was very tired by the end of the week and REALLY looking forward to picking up Scott at the airport on Friday night :D We had a great weekend together and then on the 29th my last semester of classes on BYU campus started. It was a whirlwind of a couple weeks! Like I said- life is busy, but it is just awesome :)

Owl City, Snowy Hikes, and Sunrises

2011-08-09T16:06:00.001-06:00

I don't know how I forgot to mention that Scott and I went to an Owl City concert the week before Lake Powell! I found out that they were coming to Utah several months ago and as soon as I knew that I would be in town the day of the concert I bought tickets for Scott and I to go!

The concert was so great! It was a hot day and we were surrounded by many people, but we had a great time! Mat Kearney even opened for Owl City! He was a great singer and performer! Then Owl City was great! This was my third time seeing Owl City in concert, but my first time with Scott! :D Then afterwards we got slurpees together - a concert tradition that Scott shared with me :) It was an amazing night!

So, I would consider myself a pretty adventurous girl. I am pretty much open for anything - but at the same time I can tend to be a bit lazy... Scott has helped me to get out in the world and enjoy beautiful nature with healthy physical activity, haha. I previously blogged about hiking Stewart Falls but since then we have been on several more hikes.

On July 25th Scott didn't have any classes for Pioneer Day Weekend so we took advantage of the day off to take a hike up at Snowbird Ski and Summer Resort. I had never been up there before - it was so beautiful up the canyon! The hike was a bit intense at parts, and I felt like my legs were still a bit tired from my previous week at Lake Powell. So we took many breaks and enjoyed the scenery. And Scott was the camera man for the day again.

There were several parts of the trail that were still covered in several feet of snow. In JULY! Craziness... But we made it all the way to the top of the mountain at Hidden Peak. It was difficult, but very rewarding! We got to the top right before a tram tour did and so we rested and then were able to catch a ride back down on the tram which we were VERY grateful for! Going UP the mountain is what really counts, right? :)

Then that Friday my roommate Ashley and her Fiance Mark were flying to New Jersey to spend time with his family before their wedding on August 13th. So Scott went with me to drive them to the airport at 4:30 am to catch their flight. On our way back we decided to make the most of our time up in Salt Lake so early and take a hike to see the sun rise. We went back up the canyon and drove past Snowbird and Alta resorts and took a gorgeous little hike to Cecret/Secret Lake.

The hike had a little snow like Snowbird did, as well as some rocky portions, but we made it easily and got to the lake just a little before the sun rose over the mountains. It was beautiful! We took lots of pictures and enjoyed the gorgeous mountain morning before hiking back to the car and getting Scott back to Provo for class. And then we each took 3 hour naps while the other was at work. Sleep is great - but only when there's nothing else better to do :)

July 23rd / Our Engagement Story

2011-08-02T17:21:00.001-06:00

I left Lake Powell on Saturday morning and was so excited to get back to Provo! I made super good time driving and got back in just over 5 hours :) I had been talking to Scott about whether I should go straight to his apartment or to mine first and then compromised by making a quick trip home to freshen up a bit and then he would come over. I was so excited to see him that I didn't want to waste any time apart!

He came and picked me up not much later and we got In-N-Out together. I asked him what he wanted to do that night and Scott said he was sorry that he didn't make any fun plans but suggested watching a movie. I didn't care what we did, I was just happy to be back with him! So we went back to my apartment and watched the classic - Napoleon Dynamite! It was hilarious, as always.

When it was dark Scott asked me if I wanted to go over to his apartment to pick up the bag his grandma made for me and the friendship bracelet that he had made for me. I excitedly agreed and so we drove off towards his apartment... but then he did not turn into his complex. I was confused and asked him if we were going to his apartment and he told me that we were going to make a detour first. I had a few suspicions at this point, but I wasn't sure...

So we drove over to Kiwanis Park and saw tons of people lighting little fireworks and playing frisbee. Scott told me that he found something that he wanted to show me so we parked the car and made our way to the middle of the field. As we stood there though, a group of people came right next to us to set up some large aerial fireworks and so we wandered off to find another spot by ourselves.

Scott was holding a bag that I couldn't tell what was inside and he pulled out his phone. He started playing a song from his phone which I immediately recognized as I See the Light from my favorite movie Tangled! He had re-recorded it himself and changed the words- it is the most amazing thing ever! As the song was playing he pulled something out of the bag and after opening it up I realized it was a floating lantern!! I got SUPER excited! I had told Scott before how I really wanted to see a real floating lantern and he had found one for me!

We both had to work hard to get it floating, but we eventually figured it out! [Cause what's gonna work? TEAMWORK!] <-- haha I even said that out loud that night :) Once it was floating in the air Scott told me to make a wish and to close my eyes. When he told me that I could open my eyes he was kneeling down in front of me and he asked me to marry him! I said YES and then gave him a huge hug and a few kisses. He then pulled out the ring and placed it on my finger and it felt so surreal! I had just driven back from Lake Powell a few hours earlier and now I was engaged!!!

We then sent off another floating lantern that Scott had and as we watched the second one float away people all around us started setting off their huge fireworks. It was absolute perfect timing! I didn't know whether to look at the lantern, Scott, the fireworks, or my ring! It was all so incredible! :D The rest of the night was spend in a daze of pure happiness as Scott and I walked around the park and then began to share the wonderful news with friends and family.

So now I am the luckiest and happiest girl in the world - and that happiness will somehow increase when I marry Scott Whitlock on December 17th in the Los Angeles Temple!!!

July 2011 was my favorite month ever- - so far :)

2011-08-02T16:56:00.000-06:00

July was a month full of adventures and fun trips! And I will finally update about them all :)

Fourth of July Weekend Scott and I drove down to visit my family and spend some time in the California sun! We left Friday afternoon and rolled into Palmdale around 9:30. We had fun relaxing and hanging out with my family for the night.
Then on Saturday we met up with some of my extended family at a favorite restaurant of ours - Bear Pit! We then continued on to the beach where the weather was perfect.
Sunday we went to church with my family and then enjoyed dinner, games, and fireworks at my mom's house with my siblings. I love spending time with my nieces and nephews!
Monday we got all our stuff together, enjoyed some time at a BBQ at my dad's house, and then had to drive back to Utah. It was a quick trip, but it felt long as we made the most of all our time and had a blast!

The next weekend was the Harry Potter Marathon at Scott's aunt's house up in Salt Lake. We had a ton of fun there watching all the movies and even did a little Potter Trivia. Scott was not aware just how much I knew about Harry Potter, but now he knows! haha
The marathon had a break so that we could attended the homecoming for Scott's mission president. I loved meeting so many of the missionaries that I had heard stories about for so long! Many came up to us and asked "Is this the famous Holly?!" Apparently writing a letter a week can make a person famous! :) We had a great time there as Scott was able to catch up with old friends and companions and I was able to meet them in person.

The next weekend I drove to Page, AZ where I met up with family from California, Texas, and Idaho for a week on a houseboat at Lake Powell. This is my absolute favorite vacation! We get to wakeboard, wake surf, tube, play cards, eat delicious food, read, hang out with family, and enjoy the beautiful scenery. I was super excited for Powell, but at the same time I was sad to leave Scott behind. I enjoyed my time there, but I was ready to come home at the end of the week!

I drove back from Powell on Saturday July 23rd and that day was so amazing that it is going to deserve its very own post... :D

Fridays are for Traveling

2011-07-15T12:54:00.000-06:00

Friday June 17- drove to California for my family's vacation at a Beach House in Ventura
Friday June 24- drove up to Bountiful for a super fun double date with Scott and one of his former mission companions
Friday July 1- drove to California with Scott to spend the weekend with my family
Friday July 8- drove to Salt Lake to begin the epic Harry Potter Marathon
[Today] Friday July 15- I will be driving to Page, AZ to start off a week at Lake Powell with extended family

Fridays are just a day that must be spent in the car I guess. Next Friday I will not be driving anywhere as I will be out on the lake, but I'll get all my driving in the very next day when I return from Powell.

This summer has just been so amazing and jam-packed with awesome adventures! Someday I'll catch up and write about them, like seeing Owl City in concert on Wednesday and seeing the midnight showing of Harry Potter 7 last night. But in order to do that I'll have to stop having so much fun... and that is not likely to happen for a verrrrry long time :D

This Weekend

2011-07-08T13:48:00.000-06:00

I had an amazing 4th of July weekend, but I do not have pictures of it because Scott was the photographer [check facebook for the photos if you are impatient :)]

But THIS weekend is going to be epic as well. In a few hours Scott and I will drive up to his aunt Diane's house for a HARRY POTTER MARATHON! Here is the schedule:

tonight: Harry Potter 1-3
Saturday: Harry Potter 4 & 5
Return to Provo where I will be catering a wedding
Sunday: Scott's Mission President's Homecoming
Harry Potter 6 & 7 pt 1

It is going to be EPIC! and it is getting us all ready for the premier in less than a week!

Summer 2011

2011-06-28T12:09:00.000-06:00

I have been having an amazing summer so far! Having Scott back is INCREDIBLE!

-I finished my classes and all my finals on June 16th

-Scott drove into Provo late on June 17th and we had about 4 hours together before we had to get some sleep and I left the next morning for the beach house
It was so surreal to be in the same room as Scott! I just couldn't help but stare at him with a HUGE smile on my face! I can't even express how happy I was and how amazing it was to finally be with him!! :D

-Before Katy and I left on our road trip to California we briefly stopped by Springville to see Scott and so Katy could meet him finally :) Then we had a very long and very fun drive to Ventura, CA

-The beach house was super fun! I LOVE my family! We had a great time together catching up, relaxing, and laughing!

-June 23rd I flew back up to Utah and got to spend more than 4 hours with Scott! We went on a walk, ate at In-N-Out, and hiked up to Stewart Falls in Provo Canyon before coming back to watch Tangled together :)

-June 24th Scott and I drove up to Bountiful to go on a double date with one of his former companions. It was so cool to hear them talk about different mission stories and experiences. We made pizza, played Bocci Ball, and watched The Italian Job - it was so much fun!

-June 25th I worked a wedding as the Captain and it went really well :) Then Scott and I were able to hang out, but got the fortune of getting my first flat tire ever. We had a nice walk home together and since I was with Scott I really didn't care much about it.

-June 26th Scott came over after church and we made dinner, had a really great talk, and played Phase 10 with Mark and Ashley. Mark also changed my flat tire for me during the day, but at night we noticed that the donut on my car was flat - great.

-June 27th I filled my donut with air and got a new tire, bleh. And then was called into work for a few hours so Scott and I walked to campus together. After FHE we helped a friend of Scott's roommate with a community mural and then enjoyed the beautiful warm night by taking a walk in the park. A word of advice - pretty much every park/grassy area in Provo turns on their sprinklers starting at 9:30 and this makes a walk a grand adventure, haha

And I get to spend the rest of the summer just like this! I am not taking classes for Summer Term, I'm just working and spending as much time with Scott as possible- its amazing!! I am loving Summer 2011 and I have a feeling its just gonna keep getting better and better! :D

Work Work Work

2011-06-14T15:07:00.000-06:00

Here at school I have the fortune of working for BYU Catering. I started there Fall 2009, so I've spent quite some time there. I really like the job and have made some great friends with some of my coworkers :)

Its a great job that is flexible with the hours and will allow me to take time off for family vacations this summer [like the Beach House at the end of this week!!] But with this flexibility there is a lot of adventures... Some weeks I work 0-2 shifts, sometimes I work every day of the week, and sometimes I have 3 shifts in a day for two days in a row.

Yeah, last Thursday and Friday were insane! I am training right now to be a Captain, the one in charge of a banquet that directs the whole crew of Wait Staff, so I had Captain-Trainee shifts on Thursday and Friday at 6:30 am. And EFY is in full swing here in Provo so We are feeding those hooligans every day, as well as many different Sports Camps that are going on here, so then both Thursday and Friday I worked on a shift for one of those groups of kids, and then each night I served or cleaned up a dinner banquet. Thursday I wasn't supposed to be in charge, but then kind of was anyway, and Friday was a wedding where I was a Captain-Trainee again.

Thursday 6:30 am - 11 pm. Thats when my first shift started and my last shift ended. Then Friday 6:30 am - 9:30 pm. Whew... needless to say on Saturday I did a whole lotta NOTHING! It was amazing :)

This week I just have one shift each day until Friday when I will be leaving with my cousin Katy to meet up with all of our awesome Aunts, Uncles, Cousins, etc at a beach house in Venture, CA. I am super excited to see so much family and enjoy the relaxation, but it does stink that I leave Friday morning and Scott is finally arriving in Provo that night. TERRIBLE timing, right?! But I guess after 2 years an extra week shouldn't be toooooo bad... we'll see though :)

For now though, since all my roommates are gone and my classes are over I am happy to have work to keep me busy and give me something to do until I am done procrastinating my one final ;)

June 1st :)

2011-06-08T11:14:00.000-06:00

A week ago right now I was freaking out. A lot.

I had just found out that Scott's flight was cancelled and he would NOT be landing at 2:55 EST at the airport close to his house, but instead he was placed on a flight landing around 4 in Baltimore instead. In retrospect, this really isn't that big of a change, but at the time it was HUGE!

But then his flight kept getting delayed and we were worried it was also going to be cancelled! Shannon and I were texting and venting to each other for a while. I'm very grateful for that :) So to pass my newfound time I did some laundry... incessantly checked the flight status... and watched Tangled with my good friend/my roommate's fiance Mark. I love that movie and it was just what I needed right then :)

Then Scott finally landed!! I was flustered and anxious and all over the place. And then Shannon sent me a picture message with Scott and "Cardboard Holly" as I like to call her. It was the sweetest thing ever - Shannon blew up a picture of me and brought me to the airport on a stick to welcome home Scott with their family! Isn't that the best idea ever? I loved it! I stared at that picture of "us" for a good five minutes at least :)

But the airport was crazy and Scott's luggage was lost, then I guess they were in traffic on their drive back home so it was a while before I got to talk to Scott on the phone. He called me outside the restaurant they stopped at and it was such an awesome 20 minute phone conversation! It seemed unreal!

Then that night after making it back home and getting released from the Stake President, Scott and I got to Skype! After 2 (very long) years I got to (sort of) talk to him face-to-face! I had the biggest smile on my face! I was so excited and so happy! Before we knew it, it had almost been 3 hours.

And since then we have Skyped every day. I'm still getting used to being able to talk to him whenever I want! :) It is so great to have him back!!

We made it!! :D

Life is so happy!

2011-06-03T10:14:00.000-06:00

So, the wait is (finally) over and Scott is home!!! I am so grateful for Skype so that we can talk and be sort of face-to-face. He's the best and I am so happy to be able to talk to him everyday!

Scott showed this song to me yesterday and right now I feel like it describes my life perfectly. I love making connections between songs and my life and this one does it perfectly!

Because I can't sleep...

2011-06-01T00:46:00.000-06:00

My eyes are tired but my stomach is twisted in anticipation and my mind is whirling. 12 hours from now it will be so much worse because 12 hours from now Scott's plane will be about to land.

TWELVE HOURS!!

This is just starting to really hit me and I know that it is only going to get stronger.

I have waited for over 2 years for Scott to come home from his mission. And its happening today.

Wow.

Tomorrow is going to be epic. :)

Best Distraction Ever

2011-05-30T23:23:00.000-06:00

So this past week I had TONS of assignments and projects (with a few more this week too...) which kept me pretty busy and helped to keep me on my toes. It was much better to be on my toes than jumping up and down staring at the countdown until Scott comes home.

Then Friday night came and I was left with little to do (aka no more motivation). The down time got me pretty down. My roommate Ashley got engaged that night [Hooray!!] but I was a Debby Downer for sure. And I hate being a Debby Downer. As I was sitting in my room I heard someone knock on the front door. Intrigued, I turned down my music, but didn't hear anyone. Then they knocked on my bedroom door and I was super confused as to who would be coming to talk to me at 10:30. Then in walked my mom! I guess I screamed pretty loud and I was in shock- my mama drove to Utah to surprise me for a weekend trip!!

It was the perfect timing! I loved having her here in Utah with me! I was able to show her around Provo, laugh, visit Temple Square and take fun pictures, spend time with family, enjoy the rain, and it was the best weekend. It was just what I needed right when I needed it most!

She stayed until this afternoon when she drove back to California (and she's nearing the end of her drive as I type this!) I was so happy to have my mom here for the weekend! It was the best distraction I could have asked for :)

Now I have lots to do tomorrow - my last full day before Scott comes home!!! 37 hours to go! :D

I thrive under pressure

2011-05-24T14:31:00.000-06:00

In high school I discovered my true nature of completing assignments - procrastinate and then cram. It worked for me. I got used to it. I still follow this method.

This week all of my classes decided to have their major projects and assignments due, including one midterm. So I am thriving in my element. I turned in a big paper and did a presentation for my class last night, I did 2 hours of service for a project due tomorrow (which I'll finish the other 2 hours of service in the afternoon), and now I still have 2 more lesson plans to complete for a big assignment due at 4. Then my late class tonight has a little activity with a handout that I need to complete, which I'll do in my break between classes.

Some people [like Karina :)] would be super stressed out with all this going on at once. But I am realizing that I like the pressure. I do better with a deadline :) This is my element. Here I go!

Plus having all this to do helps distract me from the fact that Scott comes home in 8 days!!!!

Just some thoughts

2011-05-21T15:49:00.000-06:00

If you may not know, I am studying to become an Elementary teacher and my minor is Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages which basically helps prepare me to be an effective teacher for students in my class whose first language is not English. Right now I am staying Spring Term to take a few classes for this minor, one of which is Family, School, and Community Partnerships. For this class I had to visit the home of a family with students who are English Language Learners and I have to write a paper and give a presentation about it. I did my visit yesterday and the father shared some great insights and thoughts with us that really struck me.

He said that he had a great lifestyle and status in Venezuela, greater than he has here now, but that he would not change it for anything. Their family lived in a nice area of the city but they still had many problems with safety and security - like being robbed and their car stolen at gun point. They came to America because they wanted to have a better life for their children. He has a great love for this country and the opportunities it has given him. They are now US Citizens and although he loves his native country of Venezuela, he loves America more.

One of the most impressive things he said to me was that when people question his love for the United States or they comment on his thick accent he says this: I may speak with broken English, but my heart is not broken. It is whole and proud to be an American.

Another thing he said was that many people have esteemed professional jobs in their native countries and they give up everything to come to the United States for their children to have greater opportunities. They leave everything behind and they do menial jobs like cook, clean, and mow lawns when they are doctors, engineers, and teachers in their native country. Just because they speak less English or with an accent does not mean they are less educated.

This man taught me a lot about not judging others and being grateful for the blessings in my life. It was a really great experience for me to spend some time in this family's home and get to know them more, because it is easier to learn a lot more in a real-life situation than in a classroom. I hope that I will remember the things this family told me and I will be able to apply the life lessons they taught.

May is the best month

2011-05-13T17:49:00.000-06:00

I have always loved the month of May. Maybe it has to do with the fact that my birthday is in May... but there is so much more!

May is just a beautiful sounding word/name.
May flowers are beautiful.
The weather is finally getting so nice!
School is over/soon over.
You get to wear flip-flops and shorts again!
Yellow and pink are big spring colors.
Mother's Day is in May, and everyone loves Mothers!
Summer is right around the corner with all the exciting plans for vacations.
I could go on and on.

Moral of the story: May rocks.

I have always thought these things, but now May is even more exciting for me. May is the last month that stands between me and Scott. He comes home on June 1st! That is less than 3 weeks from now!! Elder Whitclock reported to the MTC on May 27, 2009 and he is finally coming home June 1, 2011.

The best month of the year is the last month before we are back together - I can take that :) It just makes May that much more happy and exciting for me!

21 years old

2011-05-06T15:56:00.000-06:00

Yesterday I turned 21 years old. Wow. I was talking to my brother and I told him that it doesn't seem right that I, the baby, am now 21. Babies are not 21 years old. Its just weird. But very exciting at the same time. I predict that this will be the most exciting and adventurous year of my life :)

So this morning I woke up and I was a teeny bit miserable. I ended up sitting on the bathroom floor. I was very tired and my body hurt. Does this sound like a typical experience the morning after a person turns 21? Well let me tell you how it came to be:

I woke up around 6 am on my birthday (Cinco de Mayo) and I hiked up to the Y here in Provo with my best friend Karina. We wore sombreros for the occasion and got many stares and laughs, we loved it! We got to the top a little before 7:30 and we were able to see the sun spread across Utah Valley; it was gorgeous. For both of us, this was our 5th time hiking the Y, appropriate for 5.5.2011 no? :)

We took many pictures and laughed and loved it all! We got a few songs stuck in our heads along the way, so at the top we listened to them on my new iPhone. One of those songs was the little music video after the game Plants vs. Zombies that my sister showed me, so we looked it up and watched it. At the end of the video it said that the game was created on 5.5.2009 - so we celebrated the birthday of PvZ too! haha

Then we went home, got ready for the day and had a fun picnic at the park! HACKM [Holly, Ashley, Clarissa, Karina, Mark] enjoyed the sun and the glorious weather and took lots of super fun pictures. Then I had work, then class, an hour break, and another class til 9:30 pm. But my roommates informed me that they were going to pick me up during my break, so at home I was greeted by the delicious smell of burritos. And a gorgeous bouquet of daisies from Scott!! And I got a letter with the memory card in it too! I screamed and jumped and smiled so big. It was PERFECT.

We enjoyed our food and my roommates gave me my presents, including a package from my my mama! I then had a slice of cake and had to rush off for my next class. But it was a birthday miracle because we got out at 8:45! :D That NEVER happens! I got to talk to my brother on the phone as I walked home and then relaxed with my roommates and a few friends that happened to be over. Mark then gave me his present - Tangled on DVD! That is my favorite movie! But the friends had to go and Karina and I played some card games as Ashley and Clarissa did laundry and whatnot. But then out of nowhere I had a blindfold on and I was being directed out to the car! My roommates played really loud music and spun me around and wouldn't tell me where we were going.

I was blind, but singing and laughing and then I was guided through a strange area outside before my blindfold was removed and there was a small group of friends around a fire pit with the fixings for s'mores! It was the best! We laughed and danced and ate delicious roasted marshmallows, I loved it! Then we even got to watch Tangled, a perfect ending to the perfect day. :)

So waking up with a stuffed, and then bloody, nose isn't the worst thing to happen. And being tired and sore from so many adventures and clean fun times is NOT the worst way to spend the day after my 21st birthday. :) I definitely started off this year of my life with a bang and I am so ready for everything else that is coming! :D

Over a month later...

2011-04-18T15:55:00.000-06:00

I fully survived Practicum [with only a head cold]!
I am done with all classes for my Junior year of college!
I have 3 more finals to take before I am officially a Senior!
I was notified today that I received a scholarship from the David O. McKay School of Education!!!
I get to visit home in 4 days!
Scott comes home in less than 7 weeks!!!

Life is very exciting right now. And busy. I promise I will update fully on everything soon. But as for right now I am trying to keep up with all the things that need to be done ASAP as possible ;) And as I was just told over the phone "We love you Holly, but we know you are a procrastinator..." bahaha. Oh how my family knows me :) I'll get to work to fight the procrastination in me.

Here I go....!

Week 1 - CHECK!

2011-03-13T23:38:00.000-06:00

I can hardly believe that I have already been in the schools for a whole week already. I SURVIVED! :)

I love working in an actual classroom with second graders. I don't always love those second graders... but I love the experience I am getting and how much I am learning as I get to actually put my knowledge into practice. Practicum = Practice. And I am starting to really understand that.

I observed a lot for the first few days, taking notes of how my mentor teacher runs the class and the routine for the students each day. Then on Tuesday I had my first formal observation. I taught a little Guided Reading group about Expression as they read "Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day" and it went really well. I got a bit nervous right beforehand because its intimidating to have 2 amazing and experienced women watching my every move and listening to my every word. They were so sweet and supportive though as we discussed the lesson afterward and they gave me some awesome compliments and suggestions.

The end of the week was a bit adventurous as my teacher was out of town at a conference and I was left in the class with a substitute. I felt confident being able to take up a bit more responsibility and helping the sub understand how certain things go in the class. But then on Friday the substitute had to leave at 1:45 and I was left with the class all by myself until the end of the day at 3:15. That was insane. The class is normally very talkative and there are a few problem students who require more patience and supervision, so I was VERY grateful when the bell finally rang and the weekend arrived!!

Now this week I will be teaching more whole-class lessons and then I will have my second formal observation on Wednesday teaching a Whole-Class Direct Instruction Lesson. I am nervous to see how the students will be, but I'm excited to see how I do.

But my mentor teacher is going to be gone again Tuesday-Thursday for knee surgery... I would appreciate any prayers on my behalf that the students will cooperate and my lesson will go smoothly!

Here we go....!

Tomorrow is March

2011-02-28T22:06:00.000-07:00

Currently, I am terrified of March. March is the month I will be working in an elementary school with a mentor teacher.

I will meet my mentor teacher on Thursday. Then in the afternoon I will substitute a first, second, or third grade class all by myself. ALL. BY. MYSELF.

Then Friday will be my first day in the 2nd grade classroom where I will eventually work up to teaching a lesson a day. I will have certain observations I need to make, assessments I need to administer, types of lessons I need to give, be observed and even recorded.

I have been so excited for this for so long. But right now all I feel is terror.

what if...
what if...
but...
what if...
what do i do...
but...
how...
what if...

This is going to be a bigger adventure than I bargained for.

3-Day-Weekend!

2011-02-21T16:57:00.000-07:00

This is the last holiday until the end of the semester. Kind of sad that it only happens halfway through the entire semester, but hey- I'm grateful for it!

Friday I ended up working a double shift and covering for a sick friend, so when I got home I rested my legs and enjoyed an episode of Chuck. Such a great show! :D

Saturday I felt sick when I woke up and I was pretty much a bum for a long time, but I started feeling better and was able to drive up to Salt Lake with Karina to hang out with our friend Trent! We hadn't seen him in such a long time, but his birthday was recent so we went up to have a late celebration. We laughed and caught up and enjoyed some goood food at The Pie in SLC. The food was greasy and delicious. The atmosphere was fun and relaxed. The company was hilarious. A great combination!

Then we got some super delicious cheese cake from the Cheesecake Factory and shared those before watching a few episodes of Chuck. Karina doesn't watch the show, unlike Trent and I who are HUGE fans, so we caught her up on the first 2 episodes of the series. True friends share what they love, right? :)

It ended up snowing for about a little bit while we were there and I was able to enjoy the huge flakes in my new coat for the first time! So much fun.

Seriously, the whole night was amazing!

Sunday was great with church and some friends over for dinner. Karina made delicious Best-Friend-Burritos and Ashley made home-made brownies. YUMM

Now its Monday and I finished my homework, did my laundry, and practiced curling my hair. For one of my classes I have to spend 10 hours learning something new, and I have never learned how to curl my hair, so that is what I chose. I have felt unlike a true girl for not having this skill, so my roommates are helping me :) It was a pretty frustrating process, but here is my first attempt. FYI- Karina helped me with a few critical pieces, but here is the finished product:

Now I'm going to enjoy the rest of this holiday with reading and then watching the Bachelor with my roommates [my guilty pleasure]. Have a great President's Day Everybody!

Fantastic February

2011-02-17T13:35:00.000-07:00

February is amazing, and this post is dedicated to the awesomeness of this month:

-Valentine's Day! My Math class usually gets out super early so we decided to throw ourselves a classic Elementary School Valentine's Party with candy and to pass out valentine cards to everyone. It was SO much fun! I love my major!

-The main reason I love Valentine's Day though is because its the day that Scott and I went on our first date :) I can hardly believe it was 2 whole years ago!

-Along with February marking the first date for me and Scott it marks a lot of other firsts and great memories together :)

-February is a short month and means its getting close to June- the EPIC exciting month of the summer, of the YEAR! [Scott comes home June 1st :)]

-Another 3-day weekend! I love getting an extra day to relax and have adventures with my friends. This 3-day weekend coming up will be the last holiday of the semester, so I plan on enjoying it!

-My classes are winding down and my Practicum will start in March! I'll meet my Mentor Teacher on March 3rd and then start working in the Second Grade classroom the next day!

Moral of this post: February is an exciting month! :D

Oregon/Washington Trip

2011-02-15T11:52:00.000-07:00

I had an amazing time in Oregon/Washington for my cousin's wedding! It was my third annual Winter Semester Wedding Weekend

Freshman: Heather
Sophomore: Jesi
Junior: Lauren

Who's gonna be the bride for my Senior year? ;)

It was great to spend time with my family that I hadn't seen in so long! We had delicious food that my aunt Shelley made, laughed (at each other a lot), and had tons of fun remembering old times.
I am so grateful that I was able to fly out for a quick trip and be with family!

Here is a collage of most of my pictures from the trip.

I also had a good time being a tourist and taking pictures, which made my cousins laugh at me.

The picture on the top right is of my view looking out the plane window when we finally broke through the clouds!
The bottom right is the entrance to my aunt's house- gorgeous!

I wish that I could have had more time there, but it was a perfect little trip.

When I landed in SLC it was the end of the 3rd quarter and the Packers were beating the Steelers in the SuperBowl. I got to watch a few minutes on a TV in the airport as I waited for the Karina to come get me and then won as I drove into Provo! Hoo-ray! A great weekend indeed!

2011-02-04T11:05:00.000-07:00

"I made it through the wilderness... you know I made it through-ooh-ooh. Didn't know how lost I was until I found you!"

for some reason this is the song that popped in my head when I realized I am finally DONE with this week!! But just so you know, the version stuck in my head is the one from the beginning of the Shrek mash of songs at the end of the first movie :)

I have completed ALL my tests now [the math one took me 2 hours and 35 minutes yesterday... ugh]
My papers have been turned in
My lesson went pretty well
I finished all my reading [even though it got close at the end cause I kept falling asleep...]
I attended all my classes [and even got a famous BYU Chocolate Mint Brownie for attending one of them!]

all in all, its OVER :)

Now I have printed my boarding pass and all that is left to do it pack- since I am a procrastinator and naturally I have yet to do this. But hey, I was prioritizing this week so I think its perfectly acceptable to not have that done yet. The way I look at it I still have 4 whole hours before that is a problem ;)

Have a wonderful weekend everybody! I will be sure to take lots of pictures from my trip!!

and PS- I'll be on a plane when the game is on so I'll just say it now- GO PACKERS!

update:

2011-02-01T19:04:00.000-07:00

I have completed 2 of my tests, I'll probably end up taking my math one Thursday

And I have completed my YouTube Digital Story for my Instructional Psychology and Technology Class. I adapted a storybook I drew for my Elementary Music class last semester so it is the song Old Macdonald. Here's a link to it if you care to take a look- Old Macdonald

Today I also met with my group and my teacher to prepare the lesson we are presenting on Thursday so I feel a lot better about that.

I still have a lot to do this week, but its been going really well so far! :)

3 days from now I'll be in Oregon!

busy busy busy

2011-01-31T13:24:00.000-07:00

This week consists of:

3 tests [math, piano, and phonics]
creating a Digital Story to post on YouTube
Writing a Behavior Intervention Plan
Teaching a recorded lesson in my Educational Psychology class
2 small papers due in my Friday class
Reading for 4 classes

whew.... I've got a lot to do to keep up with all my classes!

But it will all be worth it because on Friday I am flying out to Portland! My cousin is getting married on Saturday in Vancouver. I am so excited to see family members who I haven't seen in years! It will be a perfect way to relax after this hectic week :D

20 Months ago

2011-01-28T11:46:00.000-07:00

Yesterday marked 20 months since Scott entered the MTC. WOW! He has 4 months left, that is it. Just FOUR. I can very easily remember when he had only been gone for 4 months and that was so exciting to me. I had just started my Sophomore year at BYU then, but now I'm nearly done with my Junior year. Time is a funny thing that flies and stops and disappears on you.

I am so proud of Scott and the amazing work he is doing in Texas! Just this week he was transferred to Canyon, Texas so he is no longer working in the Mission Office in Lubbock. He is very excited to have the whole day to teach and help people that he comes in contact with. He has a great new companion that he is looking forward to working with and I am so excited for him!

Here is a video that I received from Scott recently. Him and his companions Elder Bradshaw and Elder Cristopherson were on a roadtrip to Roswell, NM to pick up a missionary and they sure had a good time on their way! haha enjoy!!

Oh how I love this boy!! :D He sure is turning into a Texan cowboy don't ya think? ;)

PS... this is my 100th post on my blog! :)

A Rollercoaster Day

2011-01-20T13:41:00.000-07:00

Yesterday my new nephew Callen Kenzo Morris was born! He is a BIG boy, 10lbs 12oz and 21 inches long! I am so excited to meet him and to have this new addition to my family! Here is my brother and his newest baby boy:

I can hardly believe that my brother is a father of FOUR children! I am so happy for him and Naomi! :)

After hearing this very exciting news, I heard some other more difficult news.

My sister Jesi is 7 months pregnant with her first child, Kenadie. A few days ago during an ultrasound,the doctors detected fluid on Kenadie's brain and around her heart as well as an inflamed umbilical cord. She had an appointment with a specialist yesterday where Jesi was told that Kenadie most likely has Dandy-Walker Syndrome, which is causing the malformations of her heart and brain. They are going to see another specialist about what will happen with her heart, and it is possible that she could have some sort of mental retardation.

We are all praying for Jesi and baby Kenadie and I would like to please ask for you to add your faith to ours. I know that miracles are possible and that faith is very powerful. Thank you :)

a year in pictures

2011-01-18T16:39:00.000-07:00

I made this collage about a year ago of my life in 2009 and never did anything with it. So now I am going to put it to use along with my updated version of my life in 2010. Its fun for me to look through these and see the progression of my life from the top to the bottom.

2009:

2010:

I'm excited to see what is in store this year and to see its progression through pictures :)

New Semester

2011-01-07T16:00:00.000-07:00

It has been so great to be back in my apartment with my roommates and to get back into school. I am so excited for the year 2011!!! I have so many happy exciting thoughts in my mind for this year. :)

I just finished my first week of the semester and I am SO excited for my classes! This is my first cohort and all my classes are with the other girls [and 1 boy! gasp!] who are all going to be working in the Nebo School District for the next 2 semesters with me. I have some great teachers who are very passionate about what they do and are going to be great supporters for us all.

My schedule is a lot different than what I'm used to. I have morning classes and then breaks that range from 3-5 hours before my afternoon classes start. Its strange to have such a huge gap in the middle of the day, but I'm sure it will come in handy when I have more assignments and work to keep up on. But Fridays I only have a morning class from 8-11 so I'll be done by noon every Friday- yay! :D

I am still pretty nervous for my practicum where I will be working in a school with a mentor teacher for all of March, but we talked a lot about that in my Planning and Management class today and I feel a lot better about it already. This is going to be a busy semester and I am going to learn a lot.

Bring it 2011- I am SO ready for you!

Its a Christmas Miracle!

2010-12-27T22:51:00.000-07:00

Because finals week was kind of a joke for me and I had so much free time, I decided that I would use that time to bake. I love baking. I'm not super good and I can't do anything fancy, but I get some GREAT recipes from Kim's Blog and I like to try them here and there when I have time.

I ended up getting ingredients to make 4 different cookies to bake. A little ambitious, I know. But one of them was a cake-mix cookie, so thats easy. Karina and I combined all the ingredients and got the doughs ready Monday night while watching A Muppet Christmas Carol with some friends and I let the dough refrigerate overnight. The next day I baked 3 of the cookies. Well, I tried to bake all 3 of the doughs. Sadly the S'more Cookie dough would NOT turn out fluffy cookies. Against all my efforts, all I got were thin pancake looking things that I had to scrape off. So in the end I only had 3 cookies:

1. Chocolate Chip Pretzel Cookies
2. Trifecta Cookies
3. Snickers Cake Mix Cookies

My plan was to bake a ton so that I could send off a package to Scott with lots of goodies and then also have some leftover for my friends, roommates, and I to enjoy. So by Wednesday all the cookies were baked and I wrote a letter to stick in the box. Then I had to make a mad dash to the post office to get it out on time to reach Scott on his P-day. I got to the post office at 5:31. One minute too late. Rushing, I ended up putting it in a drop box, even though the last pick-up time had passed. And then as I walked to the car I realized I didn't pay any postage for the box. Epic fail. It was a flat-rate box that I was re-using and I didn't think. :(

So I had 1.5 days left in Provo and I was just hoping it would work out. The package never showed up at my apartment, but when I told my mom the story I had lost all hope he would get it. I could picture the box sitting on my cold doorstep waiting for me to return to Provo.

But today I got a letter from Scott and he told me how grateful he was for the package of goodies and how he has been enjoying the cookies and Wheat Thins! [He is addicted to Wheat Thins and I pretty much always include a box in any package I send him :) ] I was so happy! I didn't fail epicly! The good ol' USPS came through for me and it was a Christmas Miracle! :D

No Place Like Home for the Holidays

2010-12-24T13:03:00.000-07:00

I am currently sitting in my cozy bed at home and I love being here! Finals week went well [I took my only 2 finals on the same day] and I worked several shifts. The drive home was much more uneventful than my last drive between California and Utah, so I was very grateful for that!

It rained pretty much non-stop for 5 days. What a great way to welcome me home to the desert. But now the sun is shining and its nearly 60 degrees- thank you Southern California! :D

I can still hardly believe that Christmas is TOMORROW. This semester went faster than any ever has for me and before I know it 2011 will already be here. That is a very exciting thought!! :)

But for now I have family to spend time with, books to read, and food to eat. Merry Christmas everyone!!

Idle hands?

2010-12-14T23:03:00.000-07:00

I have spent the past 2 weeks constantly working on some huge project or another. First it was the Medicine Wheel, then it was the Children's book for my Music class AS WELL AS the Writing Program for my English class. Then the day after those were both turned in I had a big lesson to present in my drama class. Free time was a figment of my imagination. But now that is all I have.

It is so strange to not have a huge assignment to do. I am not procrastinating anything... [well I guess thats debatable, but lets just set that aside for now :)]

I only have 2 finals this week and I feel so strange not stressing out like my roommates. I have only emailed a Cover Letter and Resume to my English teacher for our last assignment. Thats it for the week, I haven't taken a single final yet. Today was day 2 of finals week and I baked a bunch of cookies. Not too shabby, eh? :)

I LOVE my major. My classes this semester were so much fun and really opened my eyes for the possibilities of my future classroom and the way I will teach my students. I am so excited for the opportunities I have ahead of me :)

So for now I am just going to read a few books [oh how I have missed reading since the summer...] and work a few shifts. Then Thursday I will take both my finals and Friday drive home. This is the life! :)

And for those of you who do not know: only 5 1/2 months left! Yesssss! :D

The Story of My Life

2010-12-05T17:17:00.000-07:00

For my Elementary Art class we had to create a Native American Medicine Wheel on an opened brown paper bag. The circle had to be filled with symbols representing us and telling the story of our lives, past and future, in deep rich colored pencil. This project was assigned on the FIRST day of class to be turned in on the LAST day of class. I hate projects like that.

At first you feel like you have all the time in the world to do it. And then you forget about it. And then you remember it, but you are too busy with the things due very soon so it just nags at the back of your mind. And then you have one week left to do it so you spend every.spare.minute. working on the thing. Or at least thats how they go for me...

I started this project over Thanksgiving Break and then worked on it every day whenever I could the following week so that I could turn it in Friday at noon when my art class would meet for the last time. I literally carried my brown paper bag with me to every class and even over to friends' apartments so that I could color it while hanging out. I had to sharpen my colored pencils so many times that I actually broke my sorry excuse for a pencil sharpener that I had. BUT- I DID IT. I finished my project Thursday night and I am very pleased with it.

A friend asked if i had to draw it as if I were a first grader. No I did not. Please don't hurt my feelings and ask me questions like that, ok? Here is the finished product:

Infancy

Youth

Adult


Old Age

pictures

2010-12-03T15:23:00.000-07:00

Before Thanksgiving Karina, Katy, and I went to Nancy's house to play Sunday afternoon. We had too much fun to stop and take pictures with my camera, but here are some shots from the car ride there:

Isn't that mountain GORGEOUS?!

And here are a few of my favorite shots from Thanksgiving :)

Me between the bellies! :)

Thanksgiving Break

2010-12-03T15:13:00.000-07:00

I am so grateful that I found a ride home to Palmdale for Thanksgiving! There was a lot of concern about the "blizzard" coming through Utah on Tuesday evening/night, but that ended up being a big joke and the drive home Wednesday morning went really well.

I LOVED being with my family and having some time to relax as well as enjoy delicious food :)

Things I did:
-watched Ponyo [super cute!]
-beat the dumb game Plants vs. Zombies [thanks Heather... haha]
-played with my niece and nephews
-saw Harry Potter 7 again with some family members
-watched Surrogates
-played Rock Band
-SLEPT :)

And I was even a little bit productive on a few projects, so that was great!

The plan was to drive back to Provo Sunday morning, but my ride decided to wait until Monday because it was supposed to snow a lot all throughout Sunday. This was a bit of a problem for me because I would miss my math class and work in the afternoon. Not good. I was pretty frustrated, but what could I do?

This is when my super social superstar sister comes into play. 10:20 am CA time Heather called the house saying she found me a ride, but I needed to pack light and HURRY. I threw a few more things into my bag and threw on a sweatshirt before driving quickly over to a friend's house where I got a ride with her cousins who I had never met before. 10:30 am I was squeezed in the backseat but I was happy because I was headed back to Provo.

I had a little trouble on the way and ended up puking at a rest stop in Halloran Springs, but after a little rest and some very kind fellow passengers I was able to make the rest of the trip just fine! It was quite an adventure though, let me tell you. The adventure then continued as we got caught in slow icy roads around Cedar City so overall the trip took us 13 hours and we got home about midnight UT time. I made some good friends in that car with all our conversations to pass the time, it was really fun :)

It was a crazy day, but I made it back and was able to spend time with my roommates and make it to class and work. It was a Thanksgiving Miracle ;)

Now the hard part about Thanksgiving Break is the 3 weeks left until Christmas Break. Thanksgiving is just a little tease which makes focusing a bit harder for the final stretch of classes. But its ok. I can do this! Here we go...

Harry Potter 7

2010-11-22T15:29:00.000-07:00

Part 1 was AMAZING! I absolutely loved it - I laughed, I screamed, I cried. All of it. And then I was devastated that it was over so quickly. I am realllly looking forward to next July; just another amazing part of next summer! :D

I had a great time going to dinner with a big group of friends and friends of friends before we all headed to the theater to get in line around 9:30. Thankfully we were waiting inside the movies just outside our specific theater because we saw the movie in the Provo Town Center Mall. It wouldn't have been as fun standing outside... thats for sure.

I worked on my art project while we waited in line, we played a few rounds of MASH, and got super excited as we saw so many people dressed up. I think my favorite costume was this little girl who was dressed as Dobby! Adorable!

working on my art project and playing MASH

the whole group in line [minus Clarissa who took the picture]

Giant Hagrid!

Adorable Dobby!

my vest for art - Optimism is Key! :)

Katy and her fun roommates!

sitting in the theater so excited for the movie to start!

The entire night was so much fun and I am so glad that I was able to enjoy it with my cousin Katy!

I'm already looking forward to seeing it again!

epic plans

2010-11-18T12:28:00.000-07:00

Today: 2 more classes, Mary Kay Makeover, Dinner, getting in line, Harry Potter Midnight Showing!!

Tomorrow: Art class, work

Saturday: last home football game!

Sunday: I'm giving a talk in church

Monday: one class

Tuesday: one class

Wednesday: GOING HOME!

YESSS!!!

and I have been feeling much better lately, so that is helping this epic week become even greater! :)

The verdict is in:

2010-11-15T22:58:00.000-07:00

I went to the Urgent Care today and the Doctor suspects I have Bronchitis.

I was seen, diagnosed, got a prescription, and it was all about an hour - way faster than I was suspecting. Sadly the medication will make me drowsy though, so I have yet to take it.

I'm too tired to do my homework though, so I'm about to take it and knock out so hopefully tomorrow will be a start to a healthier Holly :)

Goodnight world!

Molly's Photoshoot

2010-11-15T22:48:00.000-07:00

I got the results from my photoshoot with Molly! I LOVE the pictures and I am so grateful that I had the opportunity to work with her! She is such a nice girl and she is very talented :)

[Confession: I am a little bit obsessed with these pictures, it makes me feel narcissistic.]

Here are the pictures!

It must be that time of year

2010-11-08T16:23:00.000-07:00

Just about everyone around me is sick, starting to feel sick, or is just getting over being sick. I think its crazy how it happens to nearly everyone at once.

I worked over 20 hours last week and I was absolutely exhausted by the end. Friday was a huge important banquet for the Marriott School of Management with their National Advisory Council Conference so I was working until 10:30 pm and then Saturday was a home football game against UNLV so I started work at 7 am. I got off around 12:45 and I was so ready for the long week to be over! I immediately collapsed on the couch and thats pretty much where I stayed for the rest of the day. I started feeling a cold coming on :(

Karina was hanging out at another apartment and when a friend heard that I wasn't feeling good he came over and made me some Chicken noodle soup. That soup was so good! I can't remember the last time I had eaten that. This was a much more welcome visit than the last time Josh had come over [dressed as a luchador] haha.

And so now I am coughing and fully clogged in the head with a cold. Does that happen to anyone else? Whenever I get a head cold I feel like my brain doesn't know how to properly function, I can't focus, and my head just feels completely solid. I feel so stupid. Example: today in my math class I could not focus and I ended up making little cubes out of different shaped pieces of paper. We were each supposed to make 1 or 2, but I ended up making 8. It took me a long time to do it, but I just couldn't focus on the rest of the lesson. And now as I write this it is taking me forever to get a sentence written [and I hope it is all making sense...]

The weather is definitely turning to winter here in Provo with rain and snow in the forecast so its definitely time to bundle up and buy some hot chocolate! Lets not all get sick and stupid like me [or am I the only one that gets this way?]

My masterpieces - after being a little crushed in my bag on the way home

Week 2: success!

2010-10-31T14:00:00.000-06:00

Here is my daily photo collection for this past week :)

Sunday: my new tights [and favorite scarf]

Monday: Rain Boots in Fall!

Tuesday: Our water heater was fixed! Before, and after -

aka my impression of Nathan's afro

Wednesday: Jenn's Baby Shower

Thursday: Karina made me lunch and Josh the luchador scared me

Friday: Our bathroom construction is finally done and we now have a nice tile floor with NO sinking holes! :)

Saturday: I had a photoshoot with Molly at this beautiful location near the lake for her school project and it was so much fun!

This was such a great week! An awesome end to October.

Happy Halloween!!

Halloween!

2010-10-30T11:26:00.000-06:00

My ward had our Halloween Party last Saturday with a Murder Mystery and a dance, which was way fun. My roommates and I came up with our costumes last minute and then put them together after I got home from working at the Football game. We were cave women! The costumes were really easy to put together and we had a great time! We even won the award for best group costume! :)

Homemade bone: tinfoil wrapped in masking tape and then burnt [idea from here]
Big hair and lots of bronzer

We all had a different animal print, but I thought it was cool 2 were b/w and 2 were orange, 2 were striped and 2 were dotted, 2 were dresses and 2 were shirt skirt combos :)

Us getting into character

It was super fun!

Our Family Home Evening group also carved pumpkins this week in honor of Halloween so here are the results:

Left to Right: Every-other-holiday pumpkin, spewing pumpkin, Perry the Platapus, "Boo" Bats

Girl's Night

2010-10-24T21:58:00.000-06:00

After a really busy week my roommates and I decided to have a Girl's Night together. We went out to dinner, roasted marshmallows on our campfire [aka our stove], and built a fort in our living room. It was super fun and much needed :)

Ashley took pictures at the Restaurant and then of the fort after my camera battery died, so here are the pictures I have:

I love my roommates!

The Results

2010-10-23T14:23:00.000-06:00

Taking a photo everyday is a little more difficult than I thought. I got busy and forgot... so here is what I have as a result:

SATURDAY: Girl's Night

TUESDAY: New shirt

WEDNESDAY: Pancakes by Mark

FRIDAY: Free Bagel Friday!

SATURDAY: Fall is here and Winter is coming soon

I'm going to keep working on this :)

Picture Goal

2010-10-15T17:19:00.000-06:00

So I had this idea in my mind to take a picture every day this week and this is what I have to show for it:

Sunday Dinner

FHE- yummmmy Fruit Pizza

Apparently I only like to pose with food? haha I could have sworn that I take more pictures daily in my life, but I guess not.

Goal: take a picture of some part of my day EVERY DAY [with or without food ;)] for the next week!

2010-10-09T18:01:00.000-06:00

It seems to be a well-known fact among my friends and family that I have small hands. And if you didn't know this already, well now you do.

Here's a picture of my hand against a friends during my Freshman year - notice that my hand is the same size as his hand when his fingers are bent.

Here's a picture of my hand all swollen as I hiked Mt. Timpanogos

This is what Karina said to me the day after we hiked and my hands were no longer swollen:
"Your hands are proportionate again... not to the rest of your body, but to your hand." bahaha, thanks Karina! ;)

My hands have been called things such as miniature, baby hands, and most recently- midget mittens. Everyone has their own term for them it seems.

But to all you hand-haters out there, this is what Scott wrote to me in a letter I got today:

"Hey, I think your "midget mittens" are pretty great. In fact, I can think of tons of situations where they come in handy (haha, get it? handy?) For example, swimming. Do dolphins have long fingers? I don't think so, and they're pretty much the best swimmers around. And what about if you have to diffuse a bomb - I'm pretty sure having smaller hands would be a big advantage. And best of all, your hands fit together with mine perfectly, and nobody else's would be right in mine! So I'm pretty sure that I just scientifically proved that you have perfect hands. Yep, uh huh, proven fact."

This had me laughing so hard with a ginormous smile on my face!! :D

So there- it is a scientifically proven fact that my hands are not weird!

One of the reasons I love this place

2010-10-08T17:04:00.000-06:00

I love how I am surrounded by such amazing people. We have made some awesome friends this semester :)

My roommates and I have received some random acts of kindness and they really brighten up our days!

Example 1:
Some days we wake up to a post-it on our door from a super nice guy down the hall. We have put them up on our bulletin board near our entry and they are so sweet!

The most recent one from this week says this: "Blessed is a virtuous woman, and blessed is a man who knows a virtuous woman (or 4 of them!) You're great!"

Example 2:
Another friend down the hall makes delicious cinnamon rolls and when he makes a batch he brings us a plate. They are so good!

Example 3:
We received a coupon in the mail for a free bagel every Friday, but the coupon is only good for one person. We asked other people in our FHE group if they had the coupon and didn't want it so that me and each of my roommates could go together, but they hadn't seen it. Then, this morning this was taped to our door-

Its amazing how such simple things can be so amazing to others :) It is now my goal to do more random acts of kindness for others.

This has been a whole month..? Its already October...?!

2010-10-02T12:14:00.001-06:00

I LOVE my major!! My classes are so great! Buuuuut.... they keep me super busy. I have been living day to day [or sometimes hour by hour] to get things done. So now that I am relaxing at home between sessions of the wonderful General Conference, I have decided to try to update my blog :) And just maybe this will be a motivation for my sister to do the same! [hint hint!!] ;)

The John Mayer/Owl City Concert
I had such a great time at this with Karina and 2 of her sisters. The concert was at the USANA Amphitheater in the Western Salt Lake Valley on a beautiful day at the end of August. We sang and danced in our blanket seating while Owl City performed, but pretty much everyone around us just kept talking and walking around. They obviously didn't care about Owl City, which was sad. I was mostly there for them and the rest of the audience was not, but it was still awesome :)

Timpanogos Hike
A group of people from my ward decided to hike Timpanogos Mountain on Labor day. My roommates Karina and Ashley were way excited for it and after a lot of convincing I joined them. We left our complex at 5:45, started the hike around 7 am, and finally got to the top around Noon. It was an amazing hike, but it was the most intense thing I have ever done! I am not in shape, I no longer have an inhaler, and we were climbing 6.8 miles to the second highest peak of the Wasatch Mountains. I was grateful that I had great friends help and encourage me all along the way or else I might have just sat on a rock and waited for them to come back down.
The view was beautiful! I felt so accomplished and proud of myself for finishing! I still look up at Timp and am amazed that I stood on top of it. I sure felt the effects of that hike for a while, but it was very worth it! :)

Haircut
Ever since I donated my hair Freshman year of High School I have been growing my hair. I have always felt like its still short and I needed to grow it longer. This mental block started coming down occasionally when I would realize just how long my hair really was... and so I finally cut it. It was crazy to stand up afterward and see so much hair all over the floor that was no longer attached to my head. I love my haircut though!

Before: notice how it goes beyond the visible picture

After!

IKEA
I love this store. It is amazing, entertaining, and full of the cutest furniture and decorations that I want in the future. For every school year I have made a trip to IKEA to get supplies and decorations, and this year it was so fun with my new roommates! We are known as the HACK Pack because our names are Holly, Ashley, Clarissa, and Karina [H.A.C.K.] and we have been told we all move in a pack, so we are the HACK Pack :) Our adventures in IKEA were very entertaining and this is where the very first picture of all 4 of us together was taken :)

Ice Blocking
I had heard other people talk about doing this many times before so I was way excited when my apartment was invited to go to Rock Canyon Park and try it out for ourselves. We purchased blocks of ice at a gas station, brought towels, wore clothes we wouldn't mind getting grass stains on, and then had many adventures learning how to slide down the hill! You fold up the towel and set it on the block, then you sit on the towel and use your feel/hands to balance yourself as you quickly slide down the grassy hill. It was a blast! I wasn't very good at going straight for very long or staying on top of my ice block, but it was hilarious. We had quite an audience as little kids at the park wanted to see us slide, so it was very fun :)

Notice how I am no longer sitting on my ice block in this picture, haha

Broken Bed
I fell asleep one night while doing my homework on my bed. This is a pretty common occurrence when I try to be productive while sitting in bed. Ok, so I fell asleep and then Karina came in a little bit later and convinced me to get up and actually get ready for bed. I had put on my PJs and was about to lay down when my roommate Ashley came in and jumped on my bed to tell us something crazy that had just happened. When she landed on my mattress, the bed collapsed underneath her. I stood there in shock for about a minute, and didn't move for about 5 more minutes. My bed had just broken. The bed I was just about to lay down on had broken. One side of the frame had become detached from the headboard and foot-board so my mattress was at a crazy angle and was resting on stuff I had stored under my bed. Crazy. I ended up sleeping on the couch and thankfully my bed was fixed by the time I got home the next day :)

Recapturing Beauty Lecture
Stephenie Nielson gave a lecture at BYU Thursday night about her experience and I was able to attend! It was an amazing opportunity to be there and to feel the Spirit and the emotion during her talk. There were SO MANY people there that the entire BYU Ballroom was crowded past the limit. Thankfully I got there early and I had a great seat. I even sat by a reporter for the Deseret News and she asked me some questions, so I was featured in her article. [I'm on page 2 :)] Stephenie posted pictures of the event on her blog and I found my face in it too! haha It was such an amazing lecture! She is an incredible woman and an amazing example.

Surprise Family Visit
I got a text Friday morning from my cousin Jacey saying that she was going to be at BYU for a campus tour later that day and she wanted to meet up! I was so excited :) After my class I met up with Jacey, Christie, Nancy, and Katy and was able to spend a few hours with them. I love having family around and getting to spend time with my cousins! They are all amazing women and I'm so glad we got a chance to meet up!

So there ya have it. I have had quite a month here at BYU so far! I am loving it all and having a blast with my roommates, my new ward, my classes, and all the random adventures that come along the way!

And so it begins!

2010-09-01T15:38:00.000-06:00

I am back up at BYU and two days into my Junior Year of college! I am so excited for this semester, which is a huge comfort to me because I was pretty nervous and worried before I started. I am now officially in the Program for Elementary Education and all of my classes are classes for my major. I have no more General Education classes, no more pointless classes, no more classes where it is meaningless to me. Everything is for ME and what I want to do with my life. I LOVE IT!

This is the "Arts Semester" of the El Ed Program, so my classes are: Dance, Music, Art, Drama, PE Teaching, Math, English. I have been to most of my classes* already and I think I am really going to enjoy them all. [*Art is only on Fridays so I'll have my first day of that later, and I missed my first Drama class for a concert which I will explain in a bit! :)]

Not only are my classes great, but I am in a great new apartment this year with some awesome roommates! Karina and I were assigned to live with random people and we lucked out big time! Clarissa and Ashley are super nice and fun and we get along so well! Karina and I feel like we have known them for much longer than 5 days. Apartment 1 has already had some fun times and I am looking forward to much much more!

Here are some pictures of my apartment:

My apartment building on the right with the Y on the mountain

View from the front door: living room

View from window: kitchen/dining area

Karina's and my study room

Our vanity/bathroom area

My half of the bedroom

Closet area

It is not super nice like my apartment last year, but it is a lot more affordable and way closer to campus which is so much better! It takes less than 10 minutes to get to campus, which is less than half of what it took last year! :D

And now the reason I missed a class already is because Owl City came to Salt Lake City and played a concert with John Mayer last night :) My drama class was 4-5:50, but we had to leave to get up for the concert and so I missed the class. But don't worry about me, I emailed my teacher and told her I wouldn't be there and she informed me on what needs to be done to be sure I'm on track. It is all taken care of. It was such a great concert!! I'll blog about that later, but for now I am going to be a good student and do my homework first ;)

My Summer Vacations

2010-08-20T17:16:00.000-06:00

Now that the summer has flown by for me and is rapidly coming to a close I am trying to remember all the time I have spent home and the fun I have had over this summer vacation.

There was my birthday

I attended a Renaissance Dance where I got to see my brother and one of his students do a sword demonstration/skit

The epic Wedding Roadtrip and all that jazz

My friend Reed and his brother came out to California for a wedding and we met up so I could be their LA tour guide

I spent a lot of fun times with my nephews Ethan and Tai and my niece Evey

Attended the Midnight Premier of Eclipse with my Mama

We made a few trips to Dry Town Water Park in Palmdale with the kids

I had an amazing 12 days on a houseboat with my extended family at Lake Powell

Karina and her family go camping at the beach every summer and they invited me to come camp with them for a few days in San Clemente

After a few days camping, Karina came back to Palmdale with me and we had fun with my family despite the fire that came up over the hill right behind my house [thankfully it was all under control and the fire didn't cause any big problems]

And that Goodreads tab on the side of my blog is a small sampling of all the books I have read this summer- 38 total, and I'm hoping for maybe 2 more before I head back up to Provo :)

Even though it seems like the summer has flown by, I now realize that I have done a lot! Its been a great summer and now I am excited to go back up to school and have a lot more adventures!

I have the best of friends!

2010-08-11T17:44:00.000-06:00

Saturday was a pretty epic day for my best friends. They are amazing people and on Saturday Karina ran a half-marathon and Sam was married in the Los Angeles LDS Temple! Super exciting!

I wasn't able to be in Utah for Karina's race, but here's a picture of her and her sister after they finished! :)

These girls are so amazing! I am definitely not a runner, so running for 13.1 miles for "fun" is amazing to me!!

I was able to be at Sam's wedding reception and here are some pictures from the beautiful evening:

One of the first things she said to me was "Its ok. I'm still Sam" And this proves it :)

She is so gorgeous!

I am so proud of both these girls and I am so grateful to have them as my best friends! :D

My number 1 Hobby

2010-08-05T00:11:00.000-06:00

Summer 2010 has been dominated by reading for me. DOMINATED. I mean I have had a great time wakeboarding, hiking, camping at the beach, watching fireworks, playing with the kids, and all that, but lets just get things straight- those are all things that happened here and there between books [or possibly just between chapters].

I have read 33 books as of tonight. THIRTY-THREE! And we are talking chapter books, not just little things.

Its been awesome! I love to read but I had lost the time/motivation to read for a while. This summer I gave myself a kick-start by making the rule that I could not re-read a book, which is what I usually tend to find myself doing (Harry Potter Series- 2-4 times depending on the book; Twilight Series- 3 times; Anne of Green Gables Series- 2-3 times... etc). No more of that for me.

I took a Children's Literature class last semester and it opened my eyes to the wonderful books that are filled with fantasy, clean fun, and adventure. I have frequented the Children/Teen section of the library this summer and have discovered some realllly good books. They aren't childish or too juvenile as some might think. I am 20 and I find them very entertaining- but maybe that just means I'm immature? Either way, I'm enjoying it and that is what counts.

I love how I get so absorbed in the characters and the stories as I am submerged in these new worlds and experiences. Sometimes I get a little too attached as I can't seem to accept when a book is over and I want more more more. Thats when I pick up another and start the whole process over again :)

Here are some of my favorites from this summer:
-Hunger Games Series
-Fablehaven Series
-Percy Jackson Series
-Uglies Series
-The Book Thief
-The Maze Runner

The Maze Runner is the one I just finished tonight. It is the first book in a trilogy, but the next book doesn't come out until October! I am realllly looking forward to that! And I am also realllly looking forward to the finale of the Hunger Games Series which comes out on the 24th of this month!! Yesss! I'm glad that I will be able to read that one before the semester starts so that I don't have to feel guilty about reading that one but not my textbooks... :)

Anywho.... I love books. You should read. You should read some of those books on my list. And feel free to provide me with any suggestions of your favorite books. There's always Thanksgiving and Christmas break to read once Summer ends ;)

Oh, and about all those other adventures of the Summer... I will post about them eventually.

My Apologies

2010-07-23T00:11:00.000-06:00

To the few of you who actually read this, I'm sorry for my slack in posting on here lately. I have really been a huge bum for the majority of this summer, yet still I have not posted. I promise (to try) to be better in the future.

I did just return from a 12 day vacation to Lake Powell though, so that is both an excuse for not posting and a topic for future posts [with lots of pictures, yay!]

So don't give up on me just yet. I am still having adventures and I WILL post about them sooner or later :)

By Popular Demand

2010-06-15T13:30:00.001-06:00

Here are the photos captured by Cody's iPhone after Evey marked me as her territory and Heather whisked her away for a diaper change

My thought process: "Oh snap... did that really just happen to me?! Yup... and Ileana is laughing behind us cause she saw the whole thing"

I attempted to cover up the giant spot with Evey's book

And here is innocent Evey the previous Sunday just after waking up in Sunday School

I love this little girl! :)

Playing Mommy

2010-06-14T11:07:00.001-06:00

The first week in June my brother and his wife left on a trip to Virginia/DC for some business and some pleasure. Along with my brother's sword (its part of the "business" he was going for, he owns a Martial Arts Studio), some books for reading, and cute new clothes, they left behind their 3 children for my sister and I to have fun with :)

Heather was the main substitute mommy for the week and I just did what I could here and there. It was a long week, but it was a super fun week as well. For the majority of the week I stayed with Heather at Derek & Naomi's house with the kids where we had fun playing house. I love my nephews and my niece and it was so great to spend all that time with them! I miss them so much when I am away at school so I was relishing all of our fun and experiences of the week.

There were several moments throughout the week where I truly felt like I was playing mommy and that I was getting a glimpse of motherhood. It was an adventurous week!

-quieting children in Sacrament Meeting with books and cheerios
-holding a sleeping Evey in Sunday School
-vacuuming while holding Evey
-waking up to Evey and/or her brothers tip-toeing around with that just-woke-up-happiness and squinty eyes
-convincing Ethan to eat all of his food at most meals
-feeding Evey her "num-nums"
-buckling car seats
-changing diaper after diaper
-getting pee all over my skirt in Sacrament Meeting when a diaper overflowed

Yes, it was a very adventurous week... and I loved it all! When I happened to go home or go to work during that week I definitely missed the kids. It was a fun experience and I am grateful for the opportunity I had to spend that time with Ethan, Tai, and Evey! It was a fun glimpse into motherhood. And now, believe me, it will be quite some time before I have three of my own! :)

Utah portion (Part 3)

2010-06-07T20:16:00.000-06:00

Karina and I drove back to Utah the Sunday after the wedding and had a great time talking, laughing, and singing the whole way. Road trips with the right people are amazing! :)

We were surprised to pass through SNOW. In MAY. The END of May. But I digress...

Karina's family is so awesome and we had a great time hanging around with them! I am grateful for their hospitality and generosity during my stay with them :)

One of my favorite pieces of their hospitality was the giant marshmallows that Karina's mom bought. We made the best s'mores ever! I LOVE s'mores and these giant beauties put me in S'more Heaven! See for yourself:

cooking them to perfection, although Karina is much more patient than I am and my marshmallows always caught on fire :)

mine is the one with the burns, haha

yummmmm!

Holly in S'more Heaven

While in Utah we decided to go down to Provo and visit some friends that stayed at BYU for the Spring Term. We had a great time with them and ate a delicious meal at Cafe Rio! Sadly I left my camera in my bag the entire day and have no pictures, but it was super fun to be back and have fun with Weston, Julie, Trent, and James! It felt weird to drive away that night though rather than just back to our apartment.

The next morning Karina surprised me by making an excellent breakfast and even served it to me in bed! Well... she served it on a table that she placed next to the couch I slept on :) It was so sweet!

Karina even used our bridesmaid bouquets as a centerpiece!

We enjoyed our breakfast as we watched the first episode of The Bachelorette. We love that show :) Then we got ready and visited the Bountiful Temple where we did some baptisms and then took so many pictures of the beautiful Temple grounds.

[click to enlarge]

After returning to Karina's house and getting changed, she gave me a tour of Kaysville. We went to her high school and I concluded that Highland is very ghetto... haha. My high school could not even compare to Davis High School! But the rest of Kaysville was pretty small compared to good old Palmdale. It was fun to see her hometown :)

Part of the tour included one of Karina's favorite spots in Kaysville, this cute little park in a neighborhood near her own. We had a blast playing on the swings before I had to get dropped off at the airport and return home to California. Here are some of our fun swinging pictures:

[click to enlarge]

It was a great last day of my trip! I had such an amazing time!! I am looking forward to another road trip sometime and definitely some more trips to see my family in Idaho!

Family Fun! (Part 2)

2010-06-03T22:28:00.000-06:00

My trip to Idaho was filled with family visits and tons of fun! I am so grateful for Susan and Randy opening their home to Karina and I and for their amazing daughters who made us laugh and giggle and smile the whole time :)

We even had the chance to meet up with Leiann and Christie with their families [minus Colby and Troy who will just remain little boys in my memory forever it seems ;)]. I loved getting the opportunity to see their beautiful homes and play with their amazing children!

Idaho is a beautiful state and it is now filled with awesome memories for me! Here are some great pictures from the trip!

The drive up to Idaho!

a few of Christie's chicks + our lovely new button jewelry
[my chick kept trying to escape, but I kept it safe and sound :)]

Sarah snoozin on the drive back to Kuna from Melba

Talitha and Rachel had a hard time keeping their eyes open with the bright flash, haha

haha, you can see Lydia asleep in the corner

This was our favorite street sign-
Karina and I would always yell "VICTORY!" as we passed it

Susan gave us a tour of Kuna before the reception,
here we are by the famous "Kuna River" [named by Susan]
where I got to wear my new rain boots for the first time!

Sarah and I getting warm by the fire

It was such an amazing trip! I wish I would have taken more pictures of everything and everyone, but I was having too much fun to remember my camera most of the time :)

Dani's Wedding

2010-06-01T13:22:00.000-06:00

I had such a great time on my trip to Utah/Idaho!! To cover it all will most likely require a few posts, but I figured I needed to start right away to share pictures of the actual wedding day.

Danielle and David were married in the Boise temple on May 22, 2010! It was a very cold and rainy day, but Dani was gorgeous and everything turned out so great!

Karina and I in the car outside the temple

The newly married husband and wife!

check out her sweet shoes!

After taking group pictures outside the temple [huddled together and with giant umbrellas] we warmed up in the car and headed to the wedding luncheon put on by the groom's family for the relatives and close friends before the reception.

Between the luncheon and the reception we had a bit of down time and headed back to Susan's house, but I'll post on that later.

The reception was held at a church building near Dani's house and it was so beautiful!

The reception still being set up

Love is the 'Sweetest' Thing- candy bar!

Dani and David dancing surrounded by family and friends

Karina and I had fun decorating the car!

Partners in crime!

Off they go!

It was a very long and great day! I am so happy for Dani and David!! I am grateful that I was able to be there and be a part of their special day :D

Cause Preston Barely Counts

2010-05-19T23:09:00.000-06:00

I am back in Utah for a short period of time! I flew in this afternoon so that Karina and I can drive up together for Dani's wedding this weekend in Boise, Idaho.

I am excited for this trip for many reasons! [here are just a few]

1. My great friend is getting MARRIED!
2. I missed hanging out with Karina
3. We have some super fun plans for this whole trip :) he he he
4. I have never reallllly been to Idaho

As you can tell from the title, Preston barely counts. The extent of my knowledge of Idaho is the homeland of Napoleon Dynamite: Preston, ID. I have visited this lovely little town several times for family reunions, but I am looking forward to getting a true glimpse of this mysterious potato state.

Karina and I will leave in the morning and we will be staying with my cousin Susan. I am way excited that Susan was so willing and anxious to have us come stay with her family. Its gonna be a great trip!

365 days ago

2010-05-16T13:15:00.000-06:00

I was sitting by the Potomac River at exactly this time. It was my last day in Virginia and my last day with Scott before his mission.

We decided to enjoy our last little bit of time before my flight by taking this beautiful little trail through the gorgeous greenery of VA to an overlook of the river.

It was a very difficult day as we had to say our final "see ya later" [Scott and I decided that we were not going to say "goodbye"].

Its crazy that it has been one whole year since that day already. I miss him like crazy, but I know that he is where he is meant to be, serving the Lord and helping bless the lives of the people of West Texas. He is loving the work and all that he is experiencing so I am doing my best to enjoy this time and support him as much as I can.

My trip to Virginia last summer was absolutely amazing and I am so grateful that the Whitlocks invited me into their home! Here are a few of my favorite pictures from that trip a year ago :)

Birthday pictures

2010-05-11T20:17:00.000-06:00

My sombrero and Pinata [filled with Peanut Butter candy!] from Scott :)

the cutest little bandita during our water fight

My cake was brought to me while Nathan was draped over me sleeping as we watched Transformers

I still have a hard time comprehending that I am twenty years old!!

Worst Music Video EVER

2010-05-07T16:30:00.000-06:00

One of my last days in Provo Karina and I went out to dinner with Dani since it was our last chance to really hang out before she will be married later this month. We enjoyed delicious Cafe Rio and laughed while we made and ate cookie dough [that's right, not cookies, just the dough :)]

We were listening to music and looking at old pictures of us from Freshman year when we decided that we were going to finally do something that we had talked about doing for about 2 years now. We recreated the music video known on YouTube as "The Worst Music Video EVER." It is a classic translated song that doesn't make much sense, but it for sure makes you laugh! our friend Reed happened to be over and saw us getting ready so we told him what we were doing and he joined in on the project. We were up til 3:30 in the morning and it was the best reason to only get 2 hours of sleep [I had to be at work at 6 am the next day, oh well!].

Karina edited all our clips and put it all together in a masterpiece. I hope you enjoy it! But to fully appreciate it, you should watch the original first!

And then here is our version:

for some reason the video isn't working, but its been posted on facebook so check it out here!

Here's a few behind the scene pictures the 3 of us took after :)

It was such a fun night and a great time with Dani before she becomes a Mrs!!

No longer a Teen

2010-05-06T22:50:00.000-06:00

I turned Twenty years old yesterday. That is still prettty weird for me.

My birthday was great! I had so many texts and calls and well-wishes from family and friends, I felt so loved :) It was nice to be able to sleep in and relax; I am loving this whole catch-up-on-sleep thing now that I am home from school.

I was up pretty late the night before, so I opened my birthday package from Scott just after midnight and inside I found a sombrero and a pinata! He told me to make my birthday a fiesta, which it always is, especially since its Cinco de Mayo :) I wore the sombrero for a good portion of the day, and my niece and nephews even got a few turns.

In the afternoon I called up Heather and asked her to go to the Poppy Reserve with me [she had never been! crazy...] so despite the INSANE wind we had a great time wandering around the trails and taking pictures of the pretty orange flowers. We didn't stay long, but it was long enough to tangle our hair so bad that she cried and I took 15 minutes to brush out all the tangles. Ouch.

These are some of the best pictures that turned out with the wind gusts:

I then enjoyed a delicious dinner at BJ's restaurant with my Dad and Jill before playing with my adorable niece and nephews at my Mom's house. Those kids are so full of adventure and energy, it was fun trying to keep up with them. We enjoyed a water-gun fight in the backyard, watched most of Transformers and part of Lion King [complete with thousands of "Why..." questions courtesy of the 4-year-old], and a very chocolatey cake. My mom took the pictures of us having all that fun at her house, so I'll have to steal those from her camera before I can post the pictures.

My birthday was a super fun day and I am so grateful for all of my family and friends that made it that way :)

Birthday parts 1 & 2

2010-05-06T22:30:00.000-06:00

Part 1:
Karina and I both celebrate our birthdays just a bit after the semester ends, but we decided to do a combined celebration a little early this year so that we could be together with our friends at school. We ended up going out to dinner at Olive Garden with a huge groups of our friends and it was so much fun!

I feel bad that we needed 2 waiters for all of us and they still got a bit confused, but it was great to spend that time with a good portion of our friends just before finals kicked in. Several of our friends were even fighting over who was going to pay for Karina and I, it was very sweet. I was so blessed to be surrounded by amazing people this year at BYU!

Part 2:
After the last ward prayer of the semester Karina and I walked into our apartment to find a huge group from our ward gathered together for a surprise birthday party. Our roommate Kelsey wasn't able to go to Olive Garden with us, so she planned this surprise for us! She is generally bad at keeping secrets so we were so proud of her for putting this whole thing together without us knowing! It was so nice!

As soon as I walked in and the people screamed I was so confused and wondered who the party was for... haha, I was sure surprised! I kind of felt like the part in the movie Big Daddy where they "ruin the good surprise" when Adam Sandler walks in instead of the guy who the party is really for, haha. But it was for us! We had a great time and enjoyed the friends and the cake :)

Here is a collage of the many pictures that were taken that night:

End of the year

2010-04-28T18:29:00.001-06:00

So much happened in between studying for finals, finishing classes, completing huge projects, and ending the semester. Here is a collage of hanging out with Karina and Julie, Trent's scavenger hunt for Karina and I, getting frozen yogurt together, and finally getting our gifts from Trent. Enjoy :)

[Click to enlarge!]

Karina and I

2010-04-28T18:11:00.000-06:00

I got so lucky to have this amazing girl as one of my roommates Freshman year and we have had tons of fun together over the past 2 years. Here is just a little evidence of the fact that we act ridiculous and have too much fun with each other :)

[Click to enlarge!]

ps- Today is her birthday :) HAPPY BIRTHDAY KARINA!

Home sweet home

2010-04-27T16:29:00.000-06:00

Well, my car made it all the way back to California without any problems! I am home free for the entire summer and I am way excited! So far I've just been spending time with my family and running little errands; its awesome.

I have quite a few plans this week including baby showers, an Eagle Court of Honor, and a fireside. I also need to do some job hunting and applying. If anyone knows of a job please let me know! ;)

Soon I'll post a bunch of pictures and make an update of my last month of my sophomore year of college. whoa- I don't feel old enough for that yet.

Oh, and by the way- today Scott has been out for 11 whole months! :D yay!

Owl City!!

2010-04-15T16:30:00.001-06:00

Way back in December Karina and I purchased tickets to an Owl City concert when we found out there was going to be a concert in Salt Lake. It was a long wait [but I know that some things are worth waiting for ;)] and we were so exciting counting down to it. And then the night finally came and we went to the AMAZING concert on Monday!

It was up in the middle of nowhere in a big building right next to the Great Salt Lake (literally). It was raining pretty steadily as we drove up and we had to wait in the long Will Call line out in the rain, but it was so worth it. We were pumped!

We finally got inside with the first opening act was playing, Paper Route. They were really good. We pushed our way towards the middle searching for some friends that we had seen earlier, but gave up and just enjoyed the music. While the next band, Lights, was getting all set up we were pushed and shoved and somehow ended up front and center! All without trying! We were in an excellent position for the remainder of the concert, so when Owl City finally came on we were so close!

It got pretty crazy there for a little bit as we were shoved in every direction at once, but it settled down once the show began. We had made a list of the top songs we really wanted to hear at the concert, and all were played except one. It was an absolutely AMAZING night! Karina and I were on cloud nine forever afterwards. I still can't get over it... it was one of the best nights ever! :D

waiting in the Will-Call line out in the rain

He had all sorts of funny dance moves :)

After the concert, waiting in line to buy these t-shirts...

The Bird and the Worm

Vanilla Twilight

General Conference/Easter

2010-04-14T16:13:00.000-06:00

For the weekend of LDS General Conference and Easter my roommate Karina and I drove up to Kaysville and had a great time with her family.

Friday afternoon we drove up and after settling in and eating dinner we had a bonfire and roasted marshmallows in their backyard with a group of friends. Have I ever mentioned before that I LOVE s'mores?! Cause I do! It was tasty, and fun - but it turned a bit more adventurous than we had bargained for as it started snowing. Needless to say, we didn't spend too much time out there... We moved the party indoors and had some fun playing a few games. We decided to wrap up the night by watching a movie, but Karina and I were pretty wiped out from a long week so we fell asleep. In the morning we woke up to find pretty colors drawn on our faces courtesy of Brynn and Jaden. Thankfully they washed off fairly easily :)

The group through the smoke and the snow

Karina and I with our spoils :)

Saturday we enjoyed the morning session of Conference and then quickly got ready to head to Salt Lake and attend the afternoon session. Our friends Tyler and Trent are part of the Orem Institute Choir which sang in the afternoon session and they each gave us a ticket to attend the session. Score! Our seats were on the bottom section and right when we got there the ushers told us that there were 4 seats left in the front, so they led us to the closest possible row. We were directly behind the reserved seating for the General Authorities' families and less than 100 ft from the First Presidency! Double score!

we were SO close!

Karina and I after the session

The session was amazing and we were so grateful to our friends for making that possible for us. We got to see Trent and Tyler for a little bit after the session ended and then we returned to Kaysville for some dinner and some shopping. Later that night we dyed some Easter Eggs and I eventually fell asleep to another movie [thankfully no markers were involved on this night].

Sunday we watched the remaining sessions of General Conference and then enjoyed a delicious Easter dinner. It was so great to be able to spend time with Karina's family! Her family was so nice and welcoming to me, her parents even gave me my own Easter Basket :) It was so great! It was such an awesome weekend and it made me very eager to return to MY home and be with MY family! I'm super excited for that! :D

What's the name of this game anyway? - "I win!"

2010-04-11T12:32:00.000-06:00

*** POST EDIT: I have noticed a large amount of people get to my blog by searching the title of this post. If you happen to be one of those people who googled "What's the name of this game anyway - I win!" This is a quote from the movie Big Daddy and something that I like to say often. :) ***

For Heather's Birthday Party this year in January, my family had a very fun day at Mulligan's Family Fun Center [I guess they lived up to their name...]

For this day-o-fun, we siblings received wrist bands that gave us access to all the really fun stuff for the entire day like Go-Karts, mini-golf, a rock wall, etc. It was amazing. We had a great time!

A little more background though - Nathan and I tend to keep our little wristbands on from random events like concerts, parties, dances, or roller skating :) We keep them on for as long as we can. My dad makes fun of us, until he did the same thing himself to spite us.

Ok, back to the real story: When we got our day-pass-wrist-bands, Nathan and I immediately noticed the high quality of the band and that it was a very sturdy one. We decided that we should try to keep them on as long as possible, and since the band had the date on it [January 1, 2010] we thought it would be awesome to try to keep it on for the whole year! For some reason, Nathan and I were the only ones that thought this was a good idea... lame-o's! :)

So Nathan and I have have both kept our wristbands on since then... until now! Nathan informed me the other day that his has gone missing somehow. He's not exactly sure how or where, but his is gone. And that makes me
THE STRONGEST MORRIS ALIVE! :D hahaha

occular apparel

2010-03-25T14:48:00.000-06:00

I was one of those strange children that really wanted glasses and braces. Now I finally have some glasses. Granted they are just a pair of 3D glasses from the theater with the lenses popped out, but hey- I'm having fun and that is what matters right?
:)

ps - I'm listening to OK Go's new CD "Of the Blue Colour of the Sky" in this picture, I LOVE it :)

Mawwiage

2010-03-22T01:07:00.000-06:00

... is what brings us here together today :) [haha, gotta love the Princess Bride!]

My RA from my freshman year living in the Dorms of Heritage Halls was married this weekend in the Draper, UT temple! Karina and I attended her reception on Saturday up in Sandy and it was so great to see her so happy with her new husband Bryan. She looked beautiful and it was fun to see her on her happy day!

Their first dance
Me, Ricci, and Karina

mi familia

2010-03-21T13:14:00.001-06:00

I have had the chance to spend some time with a lot of my extended family lately and it has been awesome! My cousin Jeremy came up to Utah a few weekends ago and we had some more fun with the Evans family in American Fork! I love spending time with my cousins and just enjoying a break from school and work to be with my family :) We played Apples to Apples again and then some intense rounds of Twister before heading back to Provo. Good times!

Then this past week the Mordues picked me up to take me to Park City to meet up with the Murdocks and go out to dinner together. Tons of aunts and uncles and cousins! I had a blast playing in the car with Gracie and then a great time surrounded by family at Cafe Rio! [Sadly I didn't take any pictures, but I'm counting on Wade to post some on Gracie's Blog :)] It made me so happy to be with so many of my amazing relatives.

"There is something so fulfilling and comforting about being around those who love us."

Naomi said it perfectly :) I love my family!

quirk

2010-03-19T13:34:00.000-06:00

I can't quite explain why, but I LOVE to look at the clock and see that it is 12:34. Whenever I see it I always yell to my roommates or friends or whoever is near me "ONE TWO THREE FOUR!"

oh the simple joys in life :)

Happy 101

2010-03-13T18:17:00.000-07:00

I have been awarded the Happy 101 award from my good friend Jenn and I am very excited :)
I am the ever-optimist and I love looking for the good, the happy, the fun in all situations, so I appreciate this opportunity!

Here are the rules and conditions that come along with this award:
1. the recipient must name 10 things that make them happy
2. they must pass along the award to 10 other fabulous bloggers.

simple enough, right? Here we go...

Ten Things That Make Me Happy:
1. Letters from Scott
2. Video Chatting with my family
3. Feeling the warm sunshine on my skin
4. Being comfortable enough to laugh really loud
5. The color yellow
6. Peanut Butter
7. Dressing Up [costumes, cute, or fancy :)]
8. Going to the temple and then eating waffles Thursday mornings with Karina
9. Looking through all my pictures
10. Singing with my friends no matter how silly we are

There are so many things that make me happy, but these are some of the major ones that stood out to me. what makes YOU happy?

I will pass the Happy 101 Award on to:
1. Karina
2. Jill
3. Naomi
4. Gracie [Wade]
5. Stephanie
6. Jena
7. Kelly
8. Katie
9. Kathryn
10. Courtney

so amazing!

2010-03-08T17:20:00.000-07:00

It is amazing how "busy" you can get with so much "free" time. Here's an amazing video that I have become obsessed with as of late :) I love Ok Go! If you haven't seen the video for their song "Here It Goes Again" watch this first!

Then watch this super-awesome creation!

These guys are so creative and fun! All of their music videos are really unique and entertaining :)

Crazy Week, but...

2010-02-27T09:45:00.000-07:00

I got a letter yesterday [from BYU not Scott ;)] which made me so excited!

I got accepted into the Elementary Education Program at BYU!! :D I will officially begin taking classes for this major in the Fall! I am so excited! I have heard many different people at BYU who did not get accepted to the major of their choice, so I am very grateful that I was able to :)

Karina got her acceptance to the Early Childhood Education Program yesterday too, so tonight we will celebrate! But first I have to finish studying for this final and take it this afternoon. Bleh. Once I am officially done with my history class [the class I am taking a final in today] I will have TONS more free time, so I will finally blog about some of the fun stuff that has been going on :)

Oh- and by the way, today Scott has been on his mission for 9 months. That is such a long time that a human being could have been completely created in that time. And today he has a baptism! Happy day indeed! :D

Family time

2010-02-15T14:13:00.000-07:00

Last weekend my cousin Scott was in town from Yale and I was able to meet up with him and have a great time with family! Sunday afternoon Katy and I drove to Nancy's house in American Fork and had a blast playing with her kids and eating a delicious meal. It was so awesome to spend that time with all my cousins :)

Nancy made us a delicious dinner and then we played some intense rounds of Apples to Apples and Zingo. After the board games went away the kids performed a few charades for us. My personal favorite was Hannah being my brother Nathan with a big blue afro wig and a fake beard/mustache combo, haha!

Then we had some fun with my camera and the kids were fascinated with Scott's mastery of Mario on Ryan's DS. It was so much fun and I am so grateful to have family out here to spend time with! Katy and I definitely need to visit American Fork more often!! :)

Katy, Ryan, and I

Ryan, Cohen, and I

Cohen mastering the games on Scott's iTouch

Morgan, Cohen, Hannah, and Ryan all crowded around Scott

This is a video Ryan recorded introducing everyone there :)

Valentine's Day

2010-02-14T21:30:00.000-07:00

Today was really fun for me to look back on the past year and some memories of Valentine's day last year - some not so pleasant, and others absolutely amazing.

Last year: Karina and I were caught up in drama and ridiculousness, which I am still so very sorry about. It is amazing the amount you can grow up in a year, because I feel so much more mature now. The week leading up to Valentine's day Karina and I didn't really talk to each other. It was so awkward and tense, and looking back, absolutely ridiculous. Oh man... crazy times. Anywho - we were having some difficulties, which I now call the dark ages.

Then on Friday night, the night before Valentine's day I got a text from Scott asking if I knew anything fun going on that night. He and a few of his roommates ended up coming over to my apartment to watch a movie with us and that was the first time we really hung out. The next day we talked a bit and then about an hour and a half [maybe] before the big Invitational Dance started Scott and his roommate came over and asked me and my roommate Madeline to go with them. We happily agreed and at this point Karina and I were starting to thaw out.

Madeline and I were not sure which guy was asking which girl, but we were excited to go with them nonetheless. We finally figured out who was whose date when we got to the coat check of the dance and Scott offered to hold my ticket for me :) The dance was so much fun! We had a great time together, we even accidentally matched perfectly. Good times! :D

Scott and I on the dance floor

That night was amazing, but I had no idea how much this guy was going to change my life!

This year: Karina and I are best friends, without a repeat of anything near the dark ages :) In fact, she is even out of the state visiting California with her family and we have talked more so than last year, haha. This Valentine's day Scott is serving a mission in Texas and my day was pretty normal- I went to church, enjoyed the talks and the lessons, and tonight attended a fireside. The speaker was Brother Jack Christiansen and I really enjoyed his talk! He was really funny but he also had such a spiritual message that was not much of what he had prepared beforehand, but it was what we needed to hear.

One thing that he shared that really struck me was counsel that Pres. Eyring had given him. He was asked what was his plan for the future and after he responded Pres. Eyring said this: "The right answer is you don't know - you don't know what the Lord has in store for you." This is so true, especially looking back on last year, I had no idea what was ahead of me. And now I'm sure that I don't know what is ahead of me still. I love this quote I heard somewhere before, "If you want to make God laugh, plan your future." We do not know what we are in store for, we can just do our best and keep moving forward, and that is what I am doing :)

Happy Valentine's day!

This is my delicious cookie I got at the Fireside tonight :)

Mama's "inspiration"

2010-02-13T00:00:00.000-07:00

As I was talking to my mom on the phone earlier tonight I mentioned that I should really update my blog more often and she responded by informing me that I was long overdue a remodel because I had "the same background since Summer", and I was apparently so behind on the times, haha.

I told her that I was too lazy and didn't have time... but then all I was doing tonight was watching the Opening Ceremonies of the Olympics, so I decided to check through my digital scrapbooking collection - and viola! I have a new blog that my mom can [hopefully] appreciate! :)

...but don't expect another new one any time soon. I figure I've got at least another 7 months before I'm due again ;)

ps. I loved the coverage of the Olympics! It surprisingly made me cry as well. What did you think?

PB&?

2010-02-09T17:51:00.000-07:00

When we had a three-day weekend because of MLK Day, Karina and I decided to have a waffle breakfast and invite a group of friends over. We provided the waffles and assigned other parts to our friends like fruit, syrup, whipped cream, and juice. It turned out great and we had a ton of fun eating and chatting. My new personal favorite way to eat a waffle is to spread peanut butter over it and then drizzle on the syrup - Ah-mazing! :D

I am a huge peanut butter fan. Huge. I buy what I call the "industrial size" peanut butter jar at Walmart because I know that I will use it all. Here are some of my favorite peanut-butter-included snacks:

-toasted PB&J sandwiches [or not toasted if I am lazy]
-peanut butter and shredded wheat. I thought this sounded crazy at first when Karina tried it, but it is SO GOOD. You take a mini shredded wheat (the cereal) and spread a little dollop of peanut butter, then make it a mini sandwich by adding another shredded wheat piece. yum.
-Muddy-Buddies [aka Puppy Chow]. You just can't go wrong with peanut butter AND chocolate
-"Stroke of Genius" a yummy snack I came up with about a month ago. You toast some bread, spread some peanut butter all over it, and then sprinkle chocolate chips across it. [mini marshmallows also work well when you run out of chocolate chips]
-apple and peanut butter, simple and semi-healthy :)

Do you have any yummy peanut butter snacks? Or other yummy snacks you'd like to share?

a night of epic adventures

2010-01-23T12:03:00.000-07:00

My ward had an awesome activity on Thursday night where we went to Soldier's Hollow in Midway, UT for some tubing. The resort has a tow cable that pulls you up the hill on your tube, which was amazing and relaxing. Climbing the hill is the worst part of tubing. The line was way long at one point for the towing so a few of us actually walked up... I do not recommend it! We were so tired when we finally reached the top, plus they kindly asked us to wait for the tow rope next time, oops.

We had a great time forming groups to ride down together and trying to go as fast as possible. We had some great runs and had an awesome time overall. It even started snowing while we were there, which was so pretty!

Afterward, I drove with Karina to this place my friend Steven showed me a few weeks ago that was really close by. Some friends followed us in their car to see it too and so we caravan-ed to the resort where the ice castles are. They are so amazing!

These are the ice castles when I went with Steven

They were gorgeous covered in snow too!

We took some fun pictures and wandered around before starting to head home to Provo. By this time it was still snowing pretty steadily and I was following behind Tyler's car. We were driving through the Provo Canyon when the night truly hit epic proportions. I was a little behind Tyler and all of a sudden I notice he is going towards the side of the road like he is going to pull over, but then I saw his car bounce off the side of the road where the snow/ice has piled up around the guard rail.
By the time I fully realized what was going on I had hit the ice too and was heading right for the wall myself. The brakes did nothing and steering made no difference. It was like everything was in slow motion and I had no control. I braced myself to either get stuck in the snow or to hear a crunch. After the right front part of my car hit the ice/snow my car bounced back and I ended up sideways across a few lanes in the canyon.

I was frozen there for a minute as my roommate suggested we go out to look at my car. I then composed myself to move my car to the side of the road in case a car came from behind me. Karina was closer to the part that hit so she saw it before me and as I crossed the front of my car this is what I heard her say, "Holls, your car is totalled." I freaked out before I realized that what she really said was, "Holls, your car is totally fine." BIG difference. And a horrible choice of words if I do say so myself.

I was SO BLESSED!!
1. There is not a single scratch or dent on my car.
2. We were far enough behind Tyler's car that we did not come close to hitting his car as well.
3. Following Tyler kept me at a good speed so that the impact wasn't much worse than it could have been.
4. No car came up behind me and side-swiped me.
5. We hit the side of the road that had a wall of snow/ice instead of an exposed rail or worse yet an open drop.
6. We were not on the part of the road that was a 2-lane highway.
7. Karina was there to comfort me as shock settled in.
and the list can go on....

Karina told me that she had the thought that maybe we could get in an accident so she said a silent prayer literally seconds before we hit the ice. I am so grateful for that. And for the tender mercies of the Lord who protected us all that night.

I was in shock for a few hours after that. It was such a scary experience! The only things wrong with our cars is a tiny scratch above Tyler's tire and my alignment got a little bit tweaked; but I can accept that!

It was definitely an epic night.

Fun collage

2009-12-31T12:46:00.000-07:00

I just realized that I never posted this. It is from when Karina and I hiked the Y

The FINALS experience

2009-12-31T00:46:00.000-07:00

This semester I had 6 classes, which I really enjoyed overall. It wasn't a terribly difficult semester, except for those realllly late nights that I did to myself by procrastinating - but I also blame my professors for conspiring to make the due dates for big projects on the same day. They seem to do that a lot.

Thanksgiving was so great to go home and see my family and play with my niece and nephews :) I loved being warm in California and with my family! But Thanksgiving is also such a tease. Students get to go home and relax, but when they come back they have so much that is due and a lot of pressure as finals are edging dangerously close. I didn't realize just how much there was for me to do until I was back in Provo for a few days. And then it hit.

I spent a lot of time in the library and started to put a lit-tle bit more focus into my classes. My finals were mostly scheduled this semester, which was a new experience for me. This was the layout that I had for finals week:

Monday: Linguistics @ 11 am [then study study study]
Tuesday: Genealogy @ 11 am [then study work study]
Wednesday: Humanities @ 10 am [then work study study study]
Thursday: New Testament @ 7am [study] History @ 11 am

I had one final which I was able to take any time I wanted in the Testing Center, and I ended up taking it Thursday night just to get it over with and give myself Friday to do NOTHING :)

It was a pretty intense week and I ended up spending some late nights at the library. The BYU Library stays open until 2 am for finals and let me tell you, I took advantage of that more than once.

I felt pretty good about my tests once they were over, which was nice. I was so burnt out by Thursday; I was so ready for the semester to be over and to go home soon! Kelsey flew home Thursday morning, but neither Karina nor I were leaving until Saturday the 19th so we decided to celebrate the end of finals together in the best way. We built a huge fort that took over our entire living room :D We slept in it both Thursday and Friday night and enjoyed chatting and playing MASH. It was so fun to be silly and relax. It was very much needed.

Here is our handiwork:

It was so much fun and we will be sure to make another one, or two, or more next year :)

- - Now that it has been 2 weeks since the end of finals, the grades have been submitted and I am very happy with the results of my semester. It is a relief to have those classes behind me and that I can be happy with the outcome :) But soon the process starts all over again...

Dress Up

2009-12-30T23:55:00.000-07:00

This Fall Semester I feel like I dressed up a lot and I loved it :) It was fun to get together costumes and to be silly with friends

First up: Halloween

My roommate Karina thought for a long time of what our costumes should be. We decided that we wanted to do something together, so we tried to think of some ideas of corresponding costumes. We ultimately decided to be a Cowgirl and an Indian. :)

I was so excited to be a cowgirl! I kept telling Scott how he is going to become a cowboy as he serves his mission in Texas, so I felt like it was appropriate for me to be a cowgirl :) Just call me "Howdy Holly" haha

We hunted through DI and took a trip to Walmart and ended up with some sweet deals, like my boots in the kids section of Walmart [I was so surprised they fit!] Karina actually just bought fabric and a little decorative ribbon to sew her costume herself - and I think it turned out amazing!

My other roommate Kelsey got really creative and put together a costume to be a superhero with her super power being world peace. She is from Oregon and is quite the tree hugger ;) You can't see it very well in the pictures, but she made a purple peace sign that had the world behind it - very crafty!

We went to some fun parties dressed up and had a good time with friends. Pictured below is our good friend Jud that accompanied us as the purple Tellatubby Tinky-Winky, haha!!

The next week was round 2: White Trash Party

I wasn't planning on attending this party, but Jud invited my apartment and we decided to tag along at the last minute. It was pretty difficult to throw together an outfit with what we had in our apartment, mostly because we weren't exactly sure what it meant to be white trash. We tried though, and we had a lot of fun!

It was also fun to get dressed up with my roommates just for fun sometimes. A few time we would all get together and take turns rummaging through each others' closets to pick out outfits to wear the next day for church or a date or whatever the occasion was. My roommates have way more knowledge of fashion than I do so its very fun and educational for me.

Kelsey is really good with make-up and hair, and Karina has really cute clothes, so they like to play with me as their life-size barbie doll and I have no objection :) I guess some little girls never do grow out of their desire to play dress up.

Life has been crazy

2009-12-15T23:33:00.001-07:00

Finals week. That says it all...

I have been crazy busy lately studying, working, and taking my finals. As of right now I have 2 done. One more tomorrow at 10, 2 scheduled for Thursday at 7 am and 11 am, then another at anytime on Friday. Then I'll be home free!!

I have had some fun adventures lately, but the time to share those will come later. I simply cannot take the time now, which is sad. But what I can do is share this story. I have heard about her before and have been told bits and pieces, but tonight I read the full story about Stephanie Nielson - and I cried my eyes out.

I am so glad that I finally read this story and I really recommend you read it too. It makes me appreciate my life and all that I am blessed with. I will not take my life for granted and I will look forward to the future with happiness and gratitude.

Read the full story HERE.

Tales of Hoffman Opera

2009-11-11T18:27:00.000-07:00

For my Humanities 101 class this semester I was required to attend 3 specific performances and to write up mini reviews about my experience. That class is really interesting and it is cool to be exposed to new forms of art and music that I probably would not have chosen to attend otherwise.

The first was World of Dance, which I also attended last year to fulfill an assignment for my Social Dance Beginning Ballroom class. I enjoyed going to that performance again and seeing many different dances in different styles.

The second one was an Opera put on by BYU called the Tales of Hoffman. This is a French Opera that has English supertitles along the sides of the stage so that the audience can understand what is going on without being fluent. This was a really great performance! Karina came with me and we made a fancy night out of the occasion :)

*Side Note* I donated blood this day! I donated twice in high school and passed out both times... so I was a lit-tle bit scared to try again, but also really excited to see if I could handle it and do my little part to serve. My roommate Kelsey came with me to be my nurse and ride home just in case anything happened, but thankfully that was unnecessary. I did fine and did not pass out this time! VICTORY! I guess the third time is the charm :)

Ok, back to our Opera Fancy Night-
We got dressed up nicely and enjoyed a delicious meal at one of our favorite restaurants Zupas. Then we enjoyed the play and had some fun taking silly pictures afterwards as is our custom.

yummmmy food

waiting for the show to start

all dressed up

its so fun to wear heels sometimes :)

some of many silly faces

Good times :)

Hike the Y

2009-11-11T16:58:00.000-07:00

Utah weather reminds me a little bit of Palmdale occasionally. The weather can't really seem to make up its mind and likes to alternate between hot and cold for a while. Knowing this, my roommate Karina and I decided to take advantage of a warm saturday [not knowing if it would be out last or not] and to hike up Y Mountain.

We had excellent timing as we got to the Y just a little before sunset and were able to cool down as we watched the shadow cross the valley and the sun disappear. It is such an incredible view from up there! It was my third time hiking up there and I love it every time!

Before this hike, the last time I had gone up there was with Scott in the end of February. We hiked up and had a picnic as we watched the sunset, which was an AMAZING day! So it was fun to be up there again about the same time and to remember those good times :)

Here are some of the pictures we took of our excursion:

The Y viewed from our living room

Heading up the trail

Karina and I before getting red-faced

Huge rock on the side of the trail about halfway up

start of the sunset

We made it!

Our "epic" photo :)

Fun with Wheat Thins!

Look at that sky and that view!

A great way to spend a Saturday afternoon!

Advice

2009-10-24T03:09:00.000-06:00

I got a letter from Scott today and in it he told me about this video they watched during the 3rd hour of church and how much he loved it. He told me to look it up on youtube and that I "NEED" to watch it.

I searched it easily and really enjoyed it, so I want to share it with all of you :)

You may not feel that you NEED to watch it, but you will not regret it - it is so inspiring and beautiful. I hope you enjoy it :)

Advice from Elder Busche

A Plethora

2009-10-16T16:07:00.000-06:00

A little bit ago I was surprised that it was already October, and now we are already half way through the month! CRAZY! Time sure flies... I've been pretty busy lately with classes, midterms, papers, and working.

Catering is going great. I don't get too many hours, but that has been kind of nice actually because it allows me to focus on all my school work and then still have a social life of sorts. My groundskeeper job for my apartment complex is going well too. Cleaning the BBQs isn't the most entertaining of jobs and isn't good when it is raining, but its working out well. As a college student, I'll take money however I can :)

Here are some random adventures/fun times that I have enjoyed in the past several weeks:

-True Blue-
Every year BYU has a "True Blue Football" event where there are games and slides of blue foam. Lots and lots of blue foam :) I didn't go last year but I saw many people covered in blue dye, so it looked way fun. This year I went with Kelsey and we met up with a bunch of her friends from back home in Oregon.

It was such a strange sensation to be walking around in blue foam that reached up to my knees! We had a great time and turned pretttty blue, so it was interesting to get back home and showered without leaving a blue trail behind us the whole way. The dye was nothing a little rinse and repeat couldn't handle, so luckily we were not permanent smurfs :)

Me, Kelsey, and Vanessa before

Our whole smurf group

as you can see, I was covered... and pretty cold

-Photo Shoot-
My roommates and I had meant to do a photo shoot for a while, and then we finally decided to just go for it one night. Abbey was kind enough to be our photographer, so we took some fun pictures around our apartment complex. Here are some of the results:

-Dragon sound?-
One morning I woke up early before class so that I could cram in a little bit more studying before a history essay exam. Here is the scene: I was sitting at my desk by my window reading notes with the blinds closed. I am tired because it is early [for me at least] and as I sit there I keep hearing this weird noise at random times. For some reason this was my thought, "where is that dragon sound coming from?" haha, clearly I was tired :)

After I heard it several more times I opened up my blinds and this is what I see-

A Hot Air Balloon right outside my bedroom window! How random!! And that is why I kept hearing the "dragon sounds" haha

That woke me right up and I watched them for a little bit before going back to my reading. They started floating away shortly after that and I snapped a picture of them rising by the Y.
I love the view right outside my window - even when there is not a large balloon floating outside it :)

Here is a view one rainy/cloudy day from my window:

-Reppin' from afar-
As I was walking home after class one day I passes a garbage dumpster that had this on the side. I thought it was cool to see one of these all the way here in Provo and it made me think of my brother, so I thought I'd share :)

[My brother Nathan works at a skate shop called Pharmacy Boardshop, and this is one of their stickers. The company started in Victoville, CA]

-My own personal Sun-
I worked an event for BYU Catering last night where they had really cool hot air balloon decorations. They were huge balloons that were filled with helium and tied to little baskets using a special netting so they floated above the ground like mini Hot Air Balloons- very cute! There were 10 of the huge balloons in total and all night me and my co-workers were looking at them and wanting to take them home. So when we were cleaning up we each claimed one and got to take it home when we got off work :)

I got a yellow one [my favorite color!] and had a lot of fun taking it home. Many different people talk to you if you are carrying a 3 foot yellow balloon. One lady even asked me if she could take a picure of it, haha. I had fun talking to them and explaining why I had it [a common question I received]. I told the lady that took the picture that it felt like my own personal sun :) it was a lot of fun and I am enjoying it floating above me at this very moment as it is tied to my desk.
So not only do I get yummy food from working at catering, but also fun left-over balloons! Score! :)

tied to my desk corner :)

I LOVE this balloon! :)

So now let's see what other adventures lay ahead, and how fast the rest of the month flies by! :)

Tuesday Devotional

2009-09-30T23:17:00.001-06:00

I love attending BYU and the amazing opportunities that come with it!

Every Tuesday we have a Devotional or a Forum, and a few weeks ago we were privileged to have the Prophet come to speak! President Monson gave a great talk about the Prophets of the church that he had experienced during his lifetime and he gave little recaps of their examples and teachings. He provided personal experiences that he had with each of them and filled it with lots of comedy. It was such an incredible experience, and I am so grateful that I was able to attend, along with thousands of my fellow students!

the VERY crowded Marriott Center

Pres. Monson and many BYU Stake Presidents on the stand

I had a great seat, thanks to Abbey

the swarms of students leaving the Marriott Center
[I miss living right by the Bell Tower]

Girl's Night

2009-09-30T17:05:00.000-06:00

After moving into our new apartment, my roommates and I decided to have a girls night in order to show people our new home and have fun by taking advantage of the living room and tv. We invited over a bunch of friends and asked them to bring desserts to share while we watched a chick flick. We had a pretty good turnout and enjoyed lots of yummy snacks. My personal favorite was a cream cheese lemon bar magnificence. I need to remember to get that recipe from her...

Here are some pictures I snapped because I knew that my sister would be expecting the full story :)

Kelsey, me, and Karina - the hostesses

part of the crowd as we picked a movie

the other half and the table of goodies

The night was a lot of fun and it was awesome to hang out with all these girls and enjoy one of my personal favorite Chick Flicks - Never Been Kissed :)

Before all of that fun though, we had a little unexpected adventure. On our way back from Walmart we looked to the side of the road and saw this scene:

So naturally we pulled over to park and dug for the camera. Thanks to the little boy who was just walking away after giving Mario and Luigi high-fives, we got this memorable shot with the famous Italian brothers

A Friday night well spent!

An Unexpected Week

2009-09-09T20:04:00.001-06:00

Classes started last Monday and they all went really well. I have some cool teachers and interesting classes. I think its gonna be a great semester. Monday and Wednesday are my really busy days- I have class @ 9 [History], 10 [Intro to English Language (Linguistics)], 11 [Humanities], 12 [Genealogy], and 2 [Physical Science Lab]. Its not too hard to just go straight from one to the other because I am enjoying the classes and it is nice to not have to sit around killing time for a while. Last year I would just go back to my dorm between classes, but that isn't so easy when I live off campus.

Tuesday and Thursday I don't have class until 12 [New Testament], and then I have one more at 2 [Physical Science], so that is a nice break after my busy days.

Friday I have classes @ 9 [History], 10 [Linguistics], and 11 [Humanities] - and then it is the weekend :)

So besides going to my classes last week I also looked for a job and got hired by the BYU Catering as a Waitstaff! I am excited for this because it will work around my schedule and I have heard great things about people who have worked for them before. I will start working there sometime this upcoming week.

But the REAL interesting and unexpected adventures came later in the week... through talking to some old friends who happen to work in Off-Campus Housing this year, my roommates and I found out some interesting information about our apartment. It is a pretty long story, but the readers digest version goes something like this: there was illegal activity going on as some unapproved construction was being done (which we had been lied to about), our apartment was constantly at 80 degrees, there were holes in the walls which showed crumbling foundation or which were just covered with ply wood, it was in poor condition, and we were told that we needed to get out of there as soon as we could.

We knew that our apartment was ghetto, but we were trying to make it work. After we learned more information and talked to BYU employees who knew more about what we should have been receiving as tenants, we began to search for a new apartment. This was on Thursday. We ended up searching and calling around that day for a new place to live. Friday we spoke with our landlord and were released from our contracts quite easily. Basically our landlord didn't want to deal with us and our situation and told us that "it would be best to just have a clean start. You should probably just start looking for another place to live." Yeah - it was too easy to get out of our housing contract... another sign of the sketchiness of the apartment complex and the people running it.

Friday evening I ended up signing a contract at a new very nice apartment complex with my roommate Kelsey while Dani and Karina were looking into other housing options. Saturday morning I got my full refund of all that I had payed to Crown Apartments and after a little battle with the landlord and his manager/lawyer from New Zealand, whose only argument was to threaten to take back our checks and tell us we were rude [when they were the shady characters], we were told to be out of the apartment that day. Kelsey and I packed up everything and prepared to move to Alpine Village as our other roommates went to look at other complexes and houses which had available contracts.

In the end Karina decided to come to Alpine with Kelsey and I, while Dani chose to sign with another apartment complex near where we were living in Crown. We were sad to not all be together, but at the same time Kelsey, Karina, and I were SO excited because where we were moving is an extremely nice place. It is more like a hotel than a college apartment. We had tons of help thanks to Kelsey's brother being in town for the weekend and there were several cars and guys to help move all of our belongings to our new home in a matter of a few hours.

It was a CRAZY few days, but we are so grateful for all that has happened. So many things lined up perfectly for us to get out of that awful situation. We were extremely fortunate and feel very blessed to be able to live here now. The weekend was spent thanking those that helped us move, and in getting our new apartment all set up. It was not how we expected to be spending our first weekend of the semester, but it has all worked out pretty well :)

Here is where I lived before [Crown Apartments]
**these pictures make it look much nicer than it actually was**

my side of the bedroom

our bathroom and vanity that us 4 girls shared

our tiny kitchen

our living room which we tried to decorate

more of the living room

Here is where I live now [Alpine Village]

Our living room with the mounted flat screen tv that came with it

Kitchen viewed from the living room

hallway to bedrooms and our own washer & dryer

our vanity area and one of the bathrooms

my bedroom shelf/closet

my bedroom desk/bulletin board

my bed and picture collage

I LOVE my new apartment!

Back in the Bubble

2009-08-30T13:44:00.000-06:00

Last Wednesday I made the 10 hour drive in my little car [aka the white stallion] from Palmdale to my new apartment in Provo. Classes start tomorrow at BYU, so I came up a few days early to have fun with my roommates and to get our apartment all set up for the year :)

I made pretty good time on my drive and got through it alone by playing my music on my iPod and singing along really loudly. I highly recommend it - nobody is there to make you feel self-conscious and it can be very entertaining :) My last stop before arriving in Provo was in Washington City, UT where there is an In-N-Out. Sadly this is the closest In-N-Out to me while up at school... but not for long! Yesterday on my way back from Walmart I saw this sign which made my day:

Yesssss!!

Anywho... I arrived at my new apartment just before 5 pm and with the help of my roommate Dani and her boyfriend, all of my stuff was unpacked from my car. It took a bit longer for all of my belongings to be unpacked from the bags and boxes, but it is all done now and that is what matters :)

I have had a lot of fun with my roommates Dani [who I share a room with], Karina, and Kelsey! I think that this is going to be a great year! We have been working hard to make our apartment our home and to get it looking cute - the ghetto-ness is less apparent now ;) We still have a bit of work to do and once it is all done I will post some pictures.

I miss my family back in California and I love them very much, but I know that I have plenty of people near me here who I can turn to. In addition to my roommates I have friends from back home, my cousin Katy who is here for her freshman year, Scott's younger sister who is here for her freshman year as well, and Scott's grandparents who live a few miles away. I got to visit with them a few days ago when I stopped by to pick up some belongings they stored for me over the summer and that was so fun! It was nice to see them again and to catch up on our summers. They are so sweet and I am grateful to know that they are there for me :)

I am very excited for the upcoming semester... but we'll see how that changes once I purchase my books and classes start. I'm optimistic about it though. This semester I'm also going to try to find a job, so that will be a new adventure which I am looking forward to. I guess I'll just have to let it flow and see how it goes! :) [and I'll try to keep up my blogging for it all!]

Tricky Time

2009-08-24T19:22:00.001-06:00

Isn't it strange how time seems to drag on... and on... and then all of a sudden it is over before you know it? Thats pretty much how my summer has gone - I have been so anxious to get back up to BYU and now it is already here! crazy...! [I wish all things would go like that ;)]

I have had a great summer at home with my family and working at Frazier Masonry. Today was my last day at work and now I'm kind of sad that I won't be going back there for a while. My boss bought me lunch today [yummmmy Chipotle :D ] and my coworkers surprised me with a cake to celebrate my going back to college- it was very sweet! I have had the privilege to work with some really great people this summer! Plus my job kept me sane by giving me something to do when I would have just sat at home alone and gone crazy, along with giving me a paycheck which is helping to pay for my tuition - so I have been very grateful for this job! I will definitely miss being the receptionist at the office. But it is time to move on to bigger and better things! [I hope]

What it is really time for is packing. If you know me well, you know that I am a procrastinator... so you aren't surprised that I haven't really started packing yet, when I am leaving in 36 hours exactly. Silly me. And if you do not know me well, now you will learn one thing about me - I generally wait til the last minute to do everything... I don't know why, I just do. Always have, probably always will... I make it work. I think the pressure helps me. But anywho - it is time for the prep, packing, and goodbyes. Then a bit of a drive and I will be back in the bubble of Provo with my awesome roommates! Yay :)

I am definitely going to miss my family and friends in California, but I will do my best to keep up with my blog and I can Skype as well so that will be my way of making up for the distance :)

Here I goooooo!

Dodgers and Treasure

2009-08-21T17:24:00.000-06:00

On Monday my family went to a dodger game for Family Home Evening. My Dad and Jill are HUGE sports fans and have instilled some of that in us kids. It was very fun to spend the time with my family and enjoy a good ol' baseball game. I had not been to a Dodger game in quite some time, and this time we sat in the All-You-Can-Eat Pavilion out in right field, so that made it especially fun :)

Sadly the Dodgers lost, but it was great being there nonetheless. I would post some pictures, but my brother is still borrowing my camera. Heather and Nathan took some pictures, so I'll see if I can steal some from them soon - or else I'm sure that Heather will blog about it and I can post a link.

The game was over at about 9:30 and it took us a while to finally get home because of traffic. When I did finally get home I had a surprise waiting for me. My mom checked the mail and I had a letter from Scott! She thought she would be tricksy and make me hunt for the letter. She had done this before, but this time she put a LOT more effort into it! The scavenger hunt she made before had only 4 simple clues spread through the house and I got the letter quickly... but this time was much different. It was late, I was anxious, and she had placed 18 clues and hints around. EIGHTEEN!! I got a bit flustered and they were laughing at me as I hunted and scoured the house.

My mom had placed little hints in a bunch of movies located on our large dvd racks, which are no longer in alphabetical order thanks to my nephews and tumbling racks - so I had to search through all the dvds to find the ones my mom hinted about. I was ripping open dvd cases and scouring the racks to find them all. Then there were a few vague hints that took me a while to figure out. It was pretty difficult when I was so anxious to get the letter and when my family was watching me and laughing at me. It was also really fun though - I love scavenger hunts and treasure hunts like this, and it had the BEST prize ever of a letter from Scott! Good times indeed! :D Thanks mama for giving me fun memorable adventures!

Here are a few pictures that I got with Nathan's camera - - he e-mailed them to me a yesterday with a message that said "Here's your photos, cause i know you're dying to blog about it!" Haha :)

The stack of dvds and clues that I ripped open and scattered in my rush

The best prize ever! :D

a few of my obsessions

2009-08-17T01:13:00.000-06:00

I LOVE my new blog layout, and cannot thank my sister Heather enough!! check out her blog Hizzeather HERE :) She is awesome!

So- that is one of my new obsessions. I hope you like it too!

Other obsessions of mine:

Owl City. This is my new favorite band. I was introduced to them by Scott when he gave me a CD with a bunch of random music and then I asked him for more of this band. And now I can't get enough of them! I highly recommend you check them out! On the Wing and Vanilla Twilight are a few of my favorite songs from them
ALIAS on dvd. The tv show is amazing and addicting. I am already of season 4 and I am loving this show all over again. I had a major crush on Michael Vartan starting in middle school/high school because of this show :)
Bread and butter. It may sound weird, but I love to have a slice of bread with some butter spread on it. I have it with rice... pasta... almost any dinner. I guess I'm just a carb girl... yumm

Those are my main obsessions at the moment. Here are a few quotes and lyrics that I am slightly obsessed with also:

As many times as I blink I'll think of you, tonight
I don't need a telescope to see that there is hope - and that makes me feel brave
'Cause the spaces between my fingers are right where yours fit perfectly
Optimism is Key
Let it Flow
Don't knock it til you try it
Definitely, Definitely... [Canadian Border Patrol on youtube]
The entire songs Happy and Trouble by Nevershoutnever

And here is one last obsession- my adorable niece Evey! Isn't she just the cutest thing ever?! :)