Oh, There's No Place Like Home For The Holidays!

Dear Readers,

As the title of this post can probably tell you, I'm back home in lovely Heber for the Christmas break after my first semester of university up at BYU-Idaho! I have absolutely loved it up there, and I can't wait to go back. Quite honestly, I miss it already! I am very glad to have a break from school and everything, but I miss my friends that I've made there, and I miss the general atmosphere that "Ricks" has brought to my life.

I know it's been a while since I have blogged, but my life has been kind of hectic these past few weeks. Seriously though, I have thought about blogging, but any single spare minute I was lucky enough to encounter was usually met by a collapse on my bed, or more usually, the couch in our living room, where I was privileged to have a 30 minute nap, instead of me catching up on my life on here. There is something about university that is seriously tiring--I have never felt so tired in my life, but I have never been happier in my life. Finals week, the week that students dread--and love, came a lot sooner than I had expected, but it seemed to go pretty well. Scheduling my life around the testing availability dates was a bit tricky, especially seeing as how I had planned to come home early and surprise my parents, but I had to do a super deep clean ("white-glove" clean checks) the day that I had three of my finals. Wednesday was a stressful day because of this, but I got everything done that I needed to and was able to come home early and surprise my parents!

It's a little weird thinking that I have finished an entire semester at university! I have one tucked under my belt now! Now, the only thing I have to remember for next semester is that before registering for classes, check the website ratemyprofessor.com. I won't take classes from not good professors anymore! I have also found that it is not the class that is generally what makes it good, and it's not even mostly your effort to make it positive (as weird as that is to say), but it really is how good of a teacher you have.

I had several teachers this semester in classes that I thought sounded interesting, and the teachers were horrible. Especially my American Foundations one. I never have slept in class before, and this was the first class that it happened in. Then, there were the classes, like Geography Teaching, that didn't sound very fun, but because of my teacher, I fell in LOVE with the subject and with wanting to be a teacher. For me, it's the teacher that makes it or breaks it for me. And BYU-Idaho is full of them--you just have to know where to look. :)

One of my friends also happened to get engaged over the past few weeks, and I am so happy for her! I have talked to her, just one-on-one, and really got to see how she has changed as a person, and how much better she feels about herself just by making simple changes. We walked around Walmart together late one night, discussing how she fell in love and eventually agreed to marry this boy, and she said it came by a process of things. You aren't ready for marriage right out of high school. I think very few people really are. But her words of wisdom really hit me hard--I think it was kind of what I needed to hear, since this topic is usually brought on me a lot up in Rexburg at school, and I don't feel ready for it. I can't wait for the day that I'll be married, but I feel like there is so much that needs to happen, just for me being ready for it, and I didn't know what it was. But my friend spelled it all out for me, and this general feeling of warmth and goodness came over us, and I knew that what she was saying was what I needed to do to be prepared for marriage myself.

Her first step she made was to make herself happy. It doesn't matter if everyone around you is happy with you--you should be happy and love yourself before you can love another person for the rest of your life. Do things that you want to do. Do things that you know will make you ultimately happy. Although it sounds selfish, do things that you want to do, things that will help you experience life, but physically progress through it, and do things because you can. Not bad things of course, but things that you know will make you happy and knowledgeable about life.

The second step was to make yourself better. She did this by attending the temple once a week, really reading and studying the scriptures, earnestly saying her morning and evening prayers, and really just trying to find out who she was, and making the best of it. Although it's hard to see these steps, these steps are what I really want deeply implanted in my life--especially seeing as how the Rexburg temple is just a 20 minute walk away; I can see it from my dorm. I also, in addition to these three other things, want to be better at writing in my journal, or even just more consistent in my blog.

Overall, long story short, I just want to be a better person. I can see the change that it has made in my friends life, and I want to be just as great of a person as she is. I can't wait to start this new change--hooray for New Year's Resolutions!

Speaking of which, I am also going to try to eat and be healthier. As one of my Young Women leaders lives "plant strong", I want to try it, or at least a lesser form of it, and see what benefits will come in my life. Basically, it's eating meat sparingly, eating a lot of fruits and vegetables, whole grains, greens, beans, etc. I also hope that I'll be able to eat smoothies, sandwiches, and salads in more abundance, and try to get in some exercise throughout my week. I know walking to class and balancing homework and exercise get really tricky, but I hope my roommate and I can go play racquetball more often together and get some roomie time, as well as some exercise, in to our daily habits.

I'm looking forward to New Years! I will be making a list of resolutions soon, as well as my bucket list. They may be short, they may be lengthy, but I will be posting that soon for all to see.

I hope this Christmas season will be wonderful for all of us, that we may see the real meaning of Christmas and know that this time isn't a time to celebrate the presents, or how much we got in a stocking, but rather to focus and appreciate the Savior and the love He presents for us on a daily basis.

May you all have a wonderful Christmas season, and I hope the best for you and yours too!

With much love,

Brittany

Live. Love. Laugh. Grow.

So Very Thankful

A lot has been on my mind lately. A lot of things that make me appreciate and really value all the many blessings and wonderful opportunities that I have in my life that others only dream and hope for their entire lives. And the part to make me feel even guiltier is that I take most of it for granted.

As I walked home from one of my classes today, I realized I need to write all I'm thankful for, and what better time to do so than the week before Thanksgiving? I feel like if I don't tell what I'm grateful for, I'm being extremely selfish and ungrateful to my friends, family, and especially my Savior and all that I've been given by them.

I am grateful that I am able to attend such a wonderful university--a university that even in the church schools is seen as the most influential and prepares us to be teachers and learners of the gospel. Sure, we're not in a cool place like BYU-Hawaii, or as academically and athletically competitive as BYU-Provo, but we are definitely the school that focuses on personal and spiritual growth while still taking rigorous classes. I love it.

I am grateful that I can get an education and get an occupation at such an early start in life. There are people in my classes that are just starting to get an education, because they've worked for so hard and so long their entire lives to simply get through a few years of university. I've worked for a long time, but not for 20 years to get through four years of school and then hope that the major I pick will accept me before the age of retirement. There are lots of people trying to get a chance with education here, people that have probably been hoping to go to school, but knowing it's too hard for them, but they try as hard as they can. When I see these 35-40 or older people in my classes, I almost want to cry--I have taken so much for granted. They have desired their entire life to get an education and have finally been able to come to gain an education, and I just see it as the next step in my life and figured it would just happen. It did, and I'm glad I have had the goal of going to university my entire life, but now I'm going to realize what a blessing gaining such an education really is, and how much people are struggling to have the experiences I get to have every day.

I am glad I have a healthy body, an intelligent mind, and a capacity to do the things I desire/need to do. There are so many people around campus that I see in wheelchairs, on crutches, or people that have disabilities, whether they're physical or intellectually, and I take even the most simple things I've been given for granted every day. The ability to climb out of bed by myself, the ability to feed, wash, and dress myself, the ability to learn without struggle or problems, and the ability to run and play to my hearts content. I take the use and simple movement of my body for granted, and I'm grateful that I have been so blessed to have the body I have.

I'm grateful for my teachers that I've had in the past as well as the present. I love my piano teacher in Midway, I love my school teachers--from Kindergarten to my classes I have right now, I love my music teachers and directors I've had in high school, and I even love my organ teacher, even though she is extremely strict, teases incessantly, and rolls her eyes at me when I don't have a perfect performance--she is helping me develop a talent that I'll be eternally grateful for. So even if she says my favorite rain boots have Elmo on them, and they're really owls, I'm grateful for her and her help in teaching me how to play the organ.

I'm grateful for my safety and a roof to cover my head. I'm glad I have a place to come home to, to sleep safely and peacefully at night, and to protect me from the outside harsh conditions. There are many people that go each day wondering where they're going to sleep, what they're going to eat, or if they'll even make it to see the next day. I never worry about any of these things. The only things I worry about like this, is if I have enough time between classes to take a nap, whether or not I have to eat macaroni again for a meal, or if I really have to get up the next morning and take huge exams in my classes for the entire day.

I am grateful for my family. I can't even begin to describe what a support they are for me, and how much I miss them. I talk to my mom often, my little brothers and I talk occasionally and laugh at all the funny things we used to do, my dad and I talk occasionally, and I have grandparents and aunts that called me on my birthday to wish me a happy day. I love every single one of my family members--even as crazy and quirky we all are. :) They're always there for me, and I hope to always be there for them.

I am thankful for the gospel. I am thankful that if I wanted to, I can serve a mission after graduating from university. I am thankful for the testimony that I have of our Savior and the love He has for me--my testimony of that has grown exponentially while being here at this university. I am so glad for all my many blessings that I have been given by Heavenly Father and the love He expresses for me daily. I'm thankful for the Spirit and its direction I am given every day in the important decisions I have to make. I'm thankful for our prophet, Thomas S. Monson and the revelation he gives to us in our day. I'm thankful for the scriptures and the amazing truth it holds for us. I'm thankful for my Patriarchal Blessing and the things it tells me and how it can change in meaning each time I read it. I'm thankful for Joseph Smith and the amazing spirit he had in order to restore this church and the gospel in the latter days. My testimony is probably based off of Joseph Smith's experiences and strength--he was such an incredibly strong man.

I am thankful for music and the ability I have to play several instruments, as well as teach people how to play them. Music truly has a beautiful effect on people, and I'm glad I get to share my talents, and teach people so they can share that gift with people around them as well. As much as I may have not appreciated teaching music students in high school, I absolutely loved it. The times where you could see that your students practiced and they increase in their playing ability, or the times where you explain a difficult technique, and you see the lightbulb come on in their head and they're able to play better--those were the best times. I'm so thankful that I learned music at a young age and have been able to get to the point where I can play almost any song I want to learn and I can teach music as a job if I needed to when I have a family.

I am so thankful that I'm an Elementary Education major, not a music major, or a graphic design major, or a home and family major. I love everything about this major. Every. Single. Thing.

I'm so thankful for my friends--where would I be without them? They lift me up, help me realize the important things in life, and have carried me up and over the difficult things in life that come through life. I am so thankful for all of them. Each and every one of my friends mean a lot to me. And I love each of them endlessly, and I'm so eternally thankful that they have been placed in my life. I know I was supposed to be friends with each of them, and that for one reason or another, we were supposed to rub shoulders with each other in this life.

I am so thankful for all my many blessings in life. I have so much to be grateful, and this season helps me realize what I truly have in life, and what I need to be thankful for. A lot of the time, we focus our lives on material goods and wealth, and all that matters is that we have the basics of life--basically most of the things I listed I'm grateful above.

I could keep going with many other things I'm grateful for, but I want to keep this simple.

I love the world. I love my life. I love the gospel. I love the many opportunities I'm given in life. I'm thankful for the Savior and the wonderful things He has done for me. I'm thankful for those I love and for those who love me.

I'm so very thankful.

Live. Love. Laugh. Grow.

Just Another Update

Here's just another update on my life, how things are going, etc.

I now know why my mom says laundry is the never-ending chore. And I don't like it. But I still do it.

I hate washing dishes. Except for when I need a break from homework or am a little upset at something--then I could wash dishes for hours.

Keeping a clean apartment, making it to classes, doing homework, and church responsiblities is a lot to balance every week.

Getting letters from missionaries might possibly be the highlights of my week when I get them.

I got a birthday box from my family last week, and I absolutely love what I got. Especially the long toe socks and the fuzzy slipper socks. They've already helped keep my feet so much warmer when the heater doesn't really crank up here in our dorm at night.

I like using coupons, but I have to figure out what I really need vs. what I want simply because they're on a coupon.

I made several new friends this past week. We've done photoshoots around the gardens, ordered Kiwi Loco (frozen yogurt--that delivers!) at like 11:00 at night, and watched random Disney film clips.

I love the fall here! Not as much as Heber, but it's fun walking to class and have leaves swirl around you and you can hear them crunch under your feet. I love it. The smell after it rains here is also amazing! I absolutely love the rain here!

Rexburg is known for wind. I never believed it at first, but now I know why. The wind here is RIDICULOUS! It's so intense! And it's a bone-chilling cold! The temperature outside itself isn't bad, it's just the wind!

I had half a gallon of milk that decided to randomly get a hole in the carton and leak a little bit. Or a lot. So, instead of wasting a half gallon of milk, we decided to make Dulce de leche with it. It didn't quite turn out right, which was a little frustrating since we had to stir it for over 2 hours. 2 hours. Geez.

Budgeting is probably the hardest thing for me. Homework is fine to do. Cleaning is fine. But making and sticking to a budget is my downfall. I don't know why. It shouldn't be this hard. :) It is getting better though. I'm kind of figuring it out. :) Kind of.

I made the BEST chicken salad I have ever tasted in my life. I put it in a sandwich and was actually a little afraid to taste it, since I'm not a fan of chicken salad, but honestly, it was the BEST thing I have ever had. Speaking of this salad, I might go make a sandwich with it in it right after this post. :)

Last week we got 100% on our cleaning check for our apartment--it looked so good! In return we each got a candy bar. Thank heavens for Reese's. :)

A few weeks ago, my friends came up to see me, and we had a great time! We went to the Straw Maze and did it twice, although we were probably only supposed to do it once. :) We bought chocolate milk and drank half of it, watched General Conference in a hotel room, went to Shake Out (the local "Dairy Keen"), walked around campus, toured the temple grounds, and just had fun together!

"Would you like a rohl in ze hay?"

Tannen Bills

Connor Haynes

Ian Johnson - Or should I say the new Doctor Who? :)

There are some more pictures too, but I don't want to put them all up. That's what Facebook is for! :) And I'm sorry I don't have any pictures of Dallin!

But, I thought I'd update you on my classes... :)

Transitions in Art & Culture (Humanities 102)
Probably my favorite class! My teacher reminds me a lot of my Grandpa Norton--his sense of humor, his face, his voice, his mannerisms, and just overall physique. We studied Paradise Lost, by Milton, and I actually really enjoyed reading it. Yes, I enjoyed reading. It's a first. :) We are now studying art design and principles and now have to know what distinguishes artists from each other. He will show us a painting and we have to know what artist painted it and have to be able to distinguish, line, shape, value, texture, contrast, variation, etc in the piece. That's what my exam is on Monday. Then we will start reading Frankenstein (I'm so excited!) right in time for Halloween. :) Then we'll be reading Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance right before the Christmas Break.

Book of Mormon (Religion 101)
My teacher is supposedly known as the hardest teacher here. And it's probably true. I have never done more work in my life. But it's been a great class! I have learned so much! And we had to buy a new copy of the Book of Mormon, and mine is now starting to get color-coded! :D I love it! It really helps too! Speaking of this class, I have a Book Report and my midterm project due on Wednesday next week, but I have to have it done by Tuesday night. That means I should probably start my book. :) Haha, just kidding. I already started it. But I won't tell you how far I am into it. :) My teacher actually knows that I want to serve a mission, and she gave me some papers that will REALLY help when it comes to teaching or marking my scriptures. She gave me so much stuff, and is totally here to help me! She even came up to me and asked if we could go to lunch and talk about it and give me some tips and hints for when I go on a mission. I love her.  She is such a great teacher! She wanted to email and talk to Brad Wilcox about me and the notes that I have about his talk. Wow. :)

Science Foundations (Science 101)
Probably the easiest class I have. Shocker! Science has always been my hardest subject! That or math. Anyways, my teacher reminds me of my Grandpa as well, but as a younger version, like 40 years old. He actually reminds me a lot of John Bytheway. His personality, his sense of humor, his voice, etc. We played with termites and did a project on them--sort of--and found out they go off of smell more than any other sense. Pretty interesting right? Well then we have done thumb wrestling during class to figure out what traits in a person usually make for a winning streak. :) We are now looking at dinosaurs and why they went extinct. But we aren't looking at actual dinosaurs. They're all gone. :)

Geography for Elementary Education (Geography 110)
I love this class! I get to color maps, label countries, rivers, mountains, etc. It is a little bit of a hard class, but so far I've been getting 100% on everything, or pretty close to 100%. I love it! I have learned about North America, South America, and now we're learning about Europe. We have also been learning about things like Atmospheric Pressure, Soil, Weather, Tornadoes, Cyclones, etc. It's a really really interesting class!

American Foundations (AMF 10-something)
My most boring class. It is about American History, but we deal with random things and questions that aren't relevant to right now in time. For example, one question on our Exam was, "Would Ezra Taft Benson support the idea of healthcare?" So, that's kind of an opinion based question, since he's NOT ALIVE! How the cheese am I supposed to know if he would or not? I missed that question obviously, and since they're all short answer/essay questions and there's only 5 of them, I got an 80% on that test. Great. But that is the one class I have that is a lecture class with about 100 students in it and I fall asleep sometimes in. I can't help it! The seats are so comfy, I'm usually wearing a warm comfy jacket, and my teacher just talks in the front about random things. It's not like anything he says isn't on the powerpoint slides online or will be on the test either. :)

Group Organ Instruction (Music 106)
This is actually one of my hardest classes. :) I love playing the organ, but there is so much technical work that goes into it! I had no idea! It is SO much harder than piano. Piano is fun, but is not NEARLY as hard as the organ. Watching basically 5 parts is hard by itself, let alone having to play it on three keyboards (Swell, Great, and with your feet!) It's hard. However, I did pass my three songs this week with flying colors! Yes! I do have to have at least 4 hours of practice a week for an A, and although four hours doesn't seem like much, it's a lot to fit in in a busy schedule. And my practice times are kind of inconvenient. 8:30 pm on Tuesdays, 9:30 pm on Wednesdays, 7:00 pm on Fridays, and 4:30 pm on Saturdays. But I love that class anyways. :)

Education Technology (Education 206)
This is actually just a 1 credit class and it is only a half semester long--it starts next Thursday! A week from today! It is a class teaching you how to work the technology in the classroom, make assignments/homeworks, make calendars, newsletters, and is basically a glorified Desktop Publishing class. But I am so excited for it! This is where the first part of becoming a teacher comes! Besides my Geography class of course. :) But all we do is look at maps and parts of the world.

Well, that's been my life basically so far. :) I hope you enjoy this post. :) It's been fun remembering everything I've been doing. :)

Live. Love. Laugh. Grow.

I Want To Be a Missionary Now

I want to be a missionary now.
I don’t want to wait until I’m grown.
I want to share the gospel while I’m young,
For I have a testimony of my own.

I want to tell my friends about our church
And the happiness it brings to me.
I’ll tell them how the gospel was restored,
Tell them how the Book of Mormon came to be.

Then I can be a missionary now.
I don’t have to wait until I’m grown.
I’ll live each day the best that I know how,
And they’ll see I have a testimony of my own,
A testimony of my very own.

Primary Songbook,  I Want To Be a Missionary Now

As the lines of this song suggest, 

I want to be a missionary now. 

Over conference weekend, President Monson lowered the ages for women to serve a mission to 19. 

When am I 19? That's right. In 3 weeks. 

I knew, right when President Monson said that, that I would be serving a mission.

I want more than anything right now, to be on a mission, to have my papers in, and to start teaching the gospel to the world. I want to see the change that the gospel can make in other people's lives, what the Spirit can teach those who are willing to listen, and how going on a mission will change my life. 

I think the lyrics to this Primary song really capture how I'm feeling right now. I'm so excited and just want to share the gospel with everyone around me--even though it's a little hard to at BYU-Idaho. :)

I'm so thankful for the support my family has given me with making this decision, and for my friends who are excited for me to go when the time comes. I am so thankful for the Spirit and for the direction and counsel it has given me. I am thankful for the temple, and the chance I have to go every single week. I am thankful for my Heavenly Father who is opening and closing doors in my life to move me in the right direction. I am so thankful for the gospel, and for the chance I'll have to spread it and serve others with it. I am thankful for the Book of Mormon and I know that it is the truest book that there ever will be on this earth and that it contains the words we need to hear in this day and age. I know that President Monson and the apostles are the living seers and revelators and that President Monson is the appointed and true prophet of our church. I am so very thankful for Joseph Smith and all that he did for us--for this dispensation of the fulness of times. I know without a doubt that our Savior loves me and loves each and every one of us, and that if we use the Atonement and come closer to Him, He will bless us with abundance and we can see His hand in everything we do.

This is my testimony of the church, and I'm proud to say it for all to hear. 

I say this humbly in the name of Jesus Christ, amen. 

Everything

This song by Michael Buble has always been one of my favorites. For some reason, I really like it right now. :) Enjoy!

You're a falling star, you're the get away car.
You're the line in the sand when I go too far.
You're the swimming pool, on an August day.
And you're the perfect thing to say.

And you play it coy but it's kinda cute.
Ah, when you smile at me you know exactly what you do.
Baby don't pretend that you don't know it's true.
'cause you can see it when I look at you.

[Chorus:]
And in this crazy life, and through these crazy times
It's you, it's you, you make me sing.
You're every line, you're every word, you're everything.

You're a carousel, you're a wishing well,
And you light me up, when you ring my bell.
You're a mystery, you're from outer space,
You're every minute of my everyday.

And I can't believe, uh that I'm your man,
And I get to kiss you baby just because I can.
Whatever comes our way, ah we'll see it through,
And you know that's what our love can do.

[Chorus]

So, la, la, la, la, la, la, la
So, la, la, la, la, la, la, la

[Chorus:]
And in this crazy life, and through these crazy times
It's you, it's you, you make me sing.
You're every line, you're every word, you're everything.
You're every song, and I sing along.
'Cause you're my everything.
Yeah, yeah

So, la, la, la, la, la, la, la
So, la, la, la, la, la, la, la

As Time Goes By

I thought this was a fitting blog title for today.

As Time Goes By.

For one reason, it reminds me of the British TV series my mom and I watched together about two people who fell in love when they were in their 20's, then they were split up after the war, and never saw each other. They wrote each other, but their letters both got lost in the mail. They finally reunite and blah blah blah. But remember the losing letters part. That's important for this blog's purpose.

It's been almost 3 weeks since I was dropped off and I've started life on my own! And I'm doing great! I love it here in Rexburg! A lot! Except the guys never date--unless you're drop dead gorgeous. Which, right now, I honestly don't mind! I don't want to even be considering marriage for at least a year or two! So, thank heavens that freshman boys are freshman boys. :)

Being at college has made me think a lot about how quickly life has gone by, how fast it is going, and how quickly it will be over. I want to be the best possible person I can, and I am trying pretty hard to live a better life. One thing that I really like about BYU-Idaho is that it is preparing us to become leaders, spouses, parents and simply great people in the world. I can already tell it's making a difference in my life! I love it!

I also went to the Rexburg temple for the first time this past week! It was BEAUTIFUL! I love the inside (and the outside) so much! You can see ALL of Rexburg from the temple grounds, and honestly, looking out at this little town, I kind of like it. :) It's a cute little town full of big, old bushy green trees, mountains and sand dunes in the distance, and right off the temple grounds is the Lord's university. How much better can that get? Not much.

Okay, so now back to the importance of the letters getting lost in the mail.

That happened to me with one of my very best friends. Bryson. Remember him? Elder Mahoney? Yeah, he's in Africa right now. Two and a half (almost three) weeks ago, my parents got a letter from him in the mail for me. They forwarded it to me, thinking it would be there within a few days--a week at the most.

Great planning, right?

Wrong.

Three weeks later, I finally got the letter. I was so happy when I got it that I ran in my dorm, waved my letter around while dancing a little bit, and screamed that I got my missionary letter. No--he is not "my" missionary, and no--we are not in love, but it's still exciting to get letters from people. Especially after they've gotten lost in the mail.

Bryson is doing great--he actually had his first baptism already! I'm so proud of him! He gets to ride his bike, and he is in the town of...Grahamsville? He has seen giraffes, rhinos, ostriches and monkeys on the side of the road--like cats back home! :) He's doing really well!

I also am being referred to by my Book of Mormon teacher for other students to contact since I'm an "excellent student in [her] class". Pretty cool, huh? She sent some people some emails who just joined the class, and told them to contact me if they had any questions about the class since she'll be out of town. I felt pretty good. :) 120% in the class is also pretty exciting. :)

Other than that, college is kind of in the full swing of things now--not quite as much fun, but still enjoyable. No sleep except in your history classes, tons of homework each night, and playing Slender with your roomies when things get boring. :) I have 100% (or over) in 3 or 4 of my classes, 92% in another, and about an 85% in another. :) I'm pretty proud of myself!

I love this place still though! Just cross your fingers my dorm (if it's chosen as one of the random six apartments) passes the cleaning check tomorrow. :) Hahaaaa.....

Live. Love. Laugh. Grow.

Road Trip!

One of the most exciting things so far at school is about to happen. :)

Four (and possibly five) of my guy friends from Heber are making a road trip up here to see me. I can't even begin to describe how happy I am and how excited I am that they're making this trip for me. They're coming down on General Conference weekend to watch with me and my roomies, and we're going to try to do some fun things in Rexburg--whatever that may include. There's not a whole lot, but just seeing them will be awesome! They'll get to see my dorm, my campus, and the new city I'm living in! I'm so excited!

The only tricky thing?

Figuring out what four hungry teenage boys want to eat and how to keep them entertained for a few days. :)

I can't wait!

So basically...

So basically, these are my roommates.

I'm missing Emily in this picture, and I hope to get one of her soon, but as for now, we three (Kristen, Erin, and I) are the Three Amigas. We do a LOT of things together.

Play scary games together.
Get ice cream at 12:30 in the morning together.
Forget about rotting potatoes above the sink together and then wonder why it stinks so bad.
Do our makeup...not together.
Sometimes do our dishes.
Sometimes make our beds.
Always make it to class.
Always do our homework, even if it calls for a bag of chocolate chips to snack on.
Root for our roomies on a date--or to get married.
Stare at each other across the table awkwardly for 20 minutes together. Because we're that cool.
Avoided callings in Relief Society--except for Erin. :) She's a teacher.

But basically, I love them.

And I love BYU-Idaho. More than anything else in this world.

Except for my friends. Family. Nutella. Michael Buble. And ice cream.

But it's still pretty amazing. :)

I love it here!

I have now attended almost all my classes here now!

And I LOVE them!

The first class I had was my Humanities class, and it is called "Transitions in Art and Culture". The teacher is Brother Papworth, and he is a CRACK-UP. He reminds me a lot of my grandpa actually--his face, his sense of humor, his mannerisms, and his eyes especially. He is so funny. He came into the classroom and started class by saying, "Now I would like it if you could all write your names on a 3x5 card...which I forgot to bring. How about we write your names down in this book [walks over to the piano]...oh, never mind. That's a hymn book. Well, let's just have you all get a blank piece of paper out, write your name on it, and we'll do a short thing with it."

It was so funny! He cracks me up! He knows he's forgetful, and his hearing is going, but he embraces it and makes the best jokes out of it. However, even though he can be quite funny and crack me up, he also knows when to be respectful, and when to invite the Spirit in when there are more serious topics to discuss.

For example, we were looking at a statue of Michelangelo's Piety (Mary's Sorrow), and it was beautiful. It was just a picture online, but it was a statue of Mary holding Christ on her lap after he had been crucified. We each came up to the big screen and got to "stand" in front of the statue and emotionally take in what Michelangelo was trying to say with this sculpture. It was incredibly spiritual. We had an amazing discussion about Christ, artwork, Michelangelo, and the amazing detail that went in to the piece. We also learned a few tactics used by artists (mostly sculpturers) and what they may mean in a piece, or how frequently they appear in their works. I didn't want the class to end. Any class where you're able to talk about the Savior, look at amazing art pieces, start the class with a prayer, and read beautiful literature is the best class in the world. I was sad when it was actually time to leave class, but excited to get to see my other professors and learn things in my other classes. My homework for this class was to actually "stand" in front of some sculptures, pieces called "David", by Michelangelo, Donatello, and Verrocchio. They were BEAUTIFUL. And each of them, after a while of pondering and studying them, have SO many inside meanings, a beautiful background of how it came to be, and so much more. I actually love doing the homework here. It's so much fun, and I have already leaned so much!

My next class I had was my Book of Mormon class. This class was mostly filled with girls--I think I counted about 6 or 7 boys total. We sat in the classroom, and class was supposed to start at 11:30. I came in the classroom a little earlier, like 11:20, and a lot of other kids did as well. We waited, and 11:30 came. No teacher. Now usually, it seems like the teachers wander in at about the starting time, take 1 or 2 minutes to set up from their last class they had just come from, and then they'll start class, so I didn't think much about it. 11:35--no teacher. 11:45--no teacher. 11:50--no teacher. 12:00--still no teacher. At this point, class is halfway over. What's the point of sitting here without learning anything? About 1/3 of the class had drifted out over the passing minutes, and more and more kids decided to just leave. The teacher obviously wasn't showing up, and by the time she did, she wouldn't have half the class to talk to and no time to teach anything. At about 12:05, I left the classroom, along with a lot of other kids. Later that day, I got word that my teacher had cancelled class, but didn't send out an email. Her TA apparently came in a few minutes before the class would have been over and apologized for the inconvenience. Good thing I didn't stay. :) But I read through what I needed to do for the class, and printed all kinds of stuff out she wanted us to, and she sounds TOUGH. Her disclosure was 11 pages long, was super technical, and there were so many things she is expecting of us. She wants us to specifically have a composition notebook (nothing else) for tracking our scripture reading and journal entries about the scriptures; a 1 1/2" view binder (must be view or points are docked, and it can't be smaller than 1 1/2" or points will be docked) to put our final portfolio of the class together in; I had to buy a paperback copy of just the Book of Mormon, specifically to mark and use in class discussions and homework; a book report on The Continuous Atonement is due in about 6 weeks (Oct 24) and I am supposed to keep a log and journal on the book, as well as summaries about the chapters (and that's not even the report part of it); and there is so much more. So so much more. It's insane. I think I'll learn a lot from her, but she sounds like she's going to be hard. A lot of my classes this year sound like they're going to give me a run for my money--and my grades are going to really have to be worked for, unlike high school...

My next class was Science Foundations, and I really like my teacher. He's a cowboy at heart--a lot like my Grandpa Norton as well. His tie had a picture of a cowboy on a horse, he had a western belt on, and glasses like cowboys in the olden days would have worn. He actually, in his personality, reminded me a lot of John Bytheway. He's super nice, and really caring--you can tell he loves teaching and he already loves each of us. That's one things that I really appreciate about the teachers here at BYU-Idaho--they all LOVE teaching, and they invite the Spirit into their lessons, and teach the subject while incorporating the gospel into it. It truly is amazing. So many more things make sense, and so many more things fit together and I am learning so much so easily! I love it! We don't have a textbook for the class, instead we have online readings and then have discussions and whatnot during class. It's going to be a great year!

Today, my first class was Geography for Elementary Education, and I think I'm really going to love it! However, it's going to be HARD. I have to know all the states and capitals (I think) by Friday, and he gives us a lot of homework each day. The class is going to move quickly, and he said we really have to try and participate in order to get an A. Most of the time, when he teaches the class, the highest percentage of students get in the B range, but I have to get above a C- in order to receive credit for Elementary Education. He said in order to do that, I'm going to need to try really hard to be there every day, to participate in the discussions, and have everything ready. And I'm totally going to do it. But, I think I'm the only freshman in the class...Most everyone around me was a girl, and almost all of them had wedding rings on and looked a little older. The boys in there looked like they had just gotten home from a mission and were continuing going to school, or they had wedding rings on and looked like they might be seniors. I felt a little young in that class. But I want to show them that I can do hard things. I can totally fight through this class and get in the A range even if I am a freshman. :)

I then had American Foundations next, and I was soooo not looking forward to it. History classes haven't been the best for me usually....but I went with a good attitude. The class has 100 people in it, and I got to sit by two really cute guys: Wyatt, and Joseph. I didn't really get to talk to them much, but they were way cute. :) Anyways, there are quizzes every time we have a class, but he doesn't have them online like most of the teachers do. He has us do them at the testing center. So every week on Tuesday or Wednesday, I have to go take a RAT (Readiness Assurance Test). However much of a bogus class I thought it was, I lit up when he said there are no midterm tests and no finals. Just RATs. :) Pretty exciting, huh? Not really, I know.

Afterwards, I came home and worked on some homework, mostly finishing the paper for tomorrow's humanity class, took a really short nap, and then went to the first Tuesday devotional of the year! It was AWESOME! President Clark and his wife spoke, and they did really well. I learned so much. I think I have three pages of notes from them, mostly from President Clark though, as he took up most of the time. After the devotional, I came back to my dorm, worked on some more homework, and then went with Erin to go do some laundry. Come to find out, coin-op is not as hard as I was making it out to be. :) And I got to meet some new people who were also waiting downstairs for their laundry to be done.

In a few minutes, I get to meet with my bishop in an interview so he can get to know us. It's at 7:40, but we have no idea where his office is. We know it's in the Clarke building, but we don't know what room. He told us there would be a big camera outside of it, so look for that. Whatever. I hope this works. :) He also said on Sunday that we would be getting called in another time to receive our callings, but I don't know when that would be.

AAAAnnnnnnyyyywaaaays. :) That has been my school week so far! :)

Have fun reading!

I'll post more when I take my organ class on Friday! :)

I'm Finally Here!

Greetings from my new stomping grounds....Rexburg, Idaho!

I am so very excited to finally be here!

Years of counting down.
Months of preparation.
Weeks of friends leaving.
Days of getting ready.

Today I finally moved in.

Finally.

My family and I left for Rexburg on Wednesday morning, and honestly, I'm surprised that everything I have here at college fit in our car all the way up. We arrived around 2:30 on Wednesday to our hotel, and were able to unpack and settle in for a few minutes. We then decided to check out the bookstore, since it would probably be pretty busy the next few days. Unfortunately, we weren't able to check out my books since they were reserved, but we decided to still walk around campus. And it was awesome! It felt like home! There was such a down-to-earth feeling, and you could TOTALLY feel the spirit super strongly. I knew I was right where I was supposed to be!

So, then we caught up with some old family friends who now live in Rexburg, since their dad now teaches at BYU-Idaho, and they told me that whenever I wanted to come for dinner because I was homesick, or even just to see them, I was more than welcome to. That also really helped.

After going and eating frozen custard (super super good!) and doing a few other fun things with my parents and Steven, we finally went back to the hotel and decided to call it a night before the big moving day.

The next morning, I woke up bright and early and got ready to go. The rest of my family took a shower and then we were able to go have breakfast in the lobby. Although there were a lot of foods that looked really good, I was so excited/nervous that I didn't really have an appetite. We left after eating, and arrived on campus at about 8:40 or so. It was slammed with students! However, it seemed quite calm and organized through all the new students checking in. I have a dorm key, a mail key, a BYU-Idaho lanyard, and several other things for moving into my dorm, including a list of dates for meetings with my housing manager. Pretty exciting huh?

After about 10 trips back and forth to the car for each of my parents and Steve and I, I finally had all my stuff in my apartment, however, I now had to move everything in. That was the long part. Hanging up clothes, setting up my desk, organizing my school supplies, getting the bathroom set up, etc. etc. It took longer than I thought it would, but with the help of my family, it wasn't too bad. After setting everything up, I picked up my textbooks, which, for 5 or 6 things, only cost me a whopping amount of about $35. Pretty insane, right? This semester, I have spent only about $80 or so on ALL of my books! I like this place! :)

Alright, so after setting stuff up, my parents and I wandered around campus, taking care of some student stuff, such as purchasing my ticket for the big I-night activity tomorrow night (dances, games, dating games, comedy, etc.) as well as a few other things, but I realized there wasn't really anything for them to do anymore. I was moved in, and now the student things were starting. I couldn't really see the point of them being there, as hard as it was for me to realize that. I think they caught on too, because shortly thereafter they said, "Well, it has been fun, but we might need to start heading back home and we don't want to be driving when we're tired and it's dark." We went down to the car, and I brought my box of Kleenex with me. It started drizzling a little bit as we walked toward the car, and my mom gave me a hug and started crying. She told me to have a great time and to be safe and to be good. At first, it wasn't too bad, I didn't cry at all, but then my dad gave me a hug and told me the same thing. I didn't cry at that either, but then I gave my mom another hug, and I lost it. Then I looked at my dad, who, doesn't cry a lot, and he was wiping tears from his eyes. THAT was hard to see. I knew then that I was really going to miss my family. And Steve? Steve just sat in the car, wondering why we were all crying. :) It's good he didn't cry either, that would have been REALLY hard. When my family drove off, I stood and waved goodbye, tears running down my face (or were they raindrops??) and this man walked by and said, "You need a picture of them before they drive off. You won't see them again for a while." I smiled and nodded, but then I started crying again after he passed, realizing he was totally right. I wasn't going to see them for a long time.

Thank heavens for Skype. And email. And cellphones. :)

My parents left, and I went back upstairs. My roomies were still unpacking, and pretty soon afterwards, their parents also said goodbye. It was kind of a big day. Physically and emotionally.

But...

I am on my own now! It's super fun! And really exciting!

And yes, mother, I went to bed before midnight yesterday. I actually went to bed at about 11 or so. Pretty good, huh? :) Tonight, I think we'll be trying to go to sleep at about 11 at the latest as well. I think we've agreed as roommates to be asleep by 11 at the latest, just so we all have the same bedtimes. It also helps that my roommate that shares my room has the same time of classes as I do every day, so we can help each other wake up and get ready for school. That will help. Or at least I think it will. :)

We woke up on time to shower and get ready to go today, which I was pretty happy for. I'm glad I have roomies who actually WANT to wake up and WANT to go to bed on time and they WANT to know where I am, but without being in my face about it. It's kind of like having parents, but not. :) It's awesome!

So, after my parents left, we went to the first BYU-Idaho devotional for new students! And we met in the huge auditorium in the new BYU-I Center, where it honestly looks like the General Conference auditorium, just without the big organ pipes in the back. Instead, there are some pillars or blocks on the wall or something, I don't know. But to sit there with all these people who are here for the same reason, it was amazing! President Clark spoke to us and welcomed us to BYU-Idaho, and he is AWESOME! Simply awesome! He was funny, he is a great speaker, and he--aaahh!!--he is just great! He kept me entertained for an hour--which is hard to do. :) I love hearing him speak, and I can't wait for devotionals. I was truly overcome by the spirit, and I knew instantly that I was in the right place. I am doing what the Lord needs me to do--whatever it needs to be. :) President Clark also said that if we are living the way we are supposed to, we will find our eternal companion here at BYU-Idaho. Is that scary enough? Welcome to college! :)

I LOVE BYU-IDAHO!

Although I haven't made a ton of friends yet (yes, it's been a whopping two days), I absolutely LOVE my roommates! They are so great! They are so kind, and caring, and loving to everyone, and we share a lot of things--except maybe food. We do share a little bit, but most of what we have is for ourselves. :) Erin was such a sweetheart today though! She gave me like half of her cold medicine just so that I would get better. How nice is she? Pretty awesome! :) So either I was sounding really bad, or she's just really nice. Or both. :)

But I am now unpacked completely, and I absolutely love it! I love the girls in our surrounding apartments, even though I don't know most of them, and I totally love campus. I walked around today to find my classes and I found all of them, even though most of them require some sneaking around to back doors or going through weird stairwells and hallways. It's kind of an adventure though! I love it! And I also saw Brother Gardner, a man in my home ward who moved to Rexburg to teach Religion. I stopped and talked to him for a few minutes as well. That also helped. And the gardens today? OH MAN. So pretty! I found another entrance by the Benson building and there is a waterfall and gorgeous gorgeous gorgeous bushes, trees and flowers! I wish I could show you! Oh, wait. I totally could. I'll have to take my camera with me one of these days. :)

I'm sorry this post is so long...I keep wanting to finish it, and then some activity or something happens, and I'm dragged away yet again. So, this post will be covering my full two days as a BYU-Idaho student. :)

After finding my classes, I came back to my dorm, sweaty and just worn out. Colds do that to you. I felt fine, but my throat really burned from walking out in the heat for most of the afternoon, my nose hurt with using the same tissue for over a couple of hours, and my head was starting to pound. I found my way back to my dorm, and met my roommates. We lingered around for a few minutes, waiting for 5:30 to roll around so we could go to our housing meeting. They both ate dinner, but I wasn't quite hungry yet. Another thing that's really weird is that you don't really have the same meal times. Like, at home, you have meals together, or at least with one other person. Here, I have eaten breakfast, (lunch has been covered so far), and dinner by myself. It's a little weird. I don't mind it, since I get to kind of think about my day in quiet, but it's much different than I'm used to. Anyways, 5:30 came, and we went down to the housing lounge with the rest of our hall, and had a meeting. It wasn't the most exhilarating thing ever, but the meeting had some good stuff to know (maintenance requests, when mail comes, etc.). We had cookies afterward, so that made it all okay. :) After the housing meeting, we went back up to our dorm and I had some dinner. It was about 7:00 at the time and we had to meet our I-team at 7:30, so I had the oriental chicken salad I had as leftovers from dinner with my family on Wednesday night. It was super good.

At 7:30, we met up with our I-team underneath the sky bridge, and headed to the gardens. Each person in our group said their name, where they came from, and why they were going to BYU-Idaho. It turned into kind of a testimony meeting, but not really. I know that doesn't make sense, but the majority of the kids in our group said they came to BYU-Idaho because they knew that was where they needed to be right now. I even said that. And as we sat there, by a pond and surrounded by gorgeous trees, the spirit was so strong. I love that here! There is such a different feeling on this campus than any other in the world! Even the apostles talk about how much they love BYU-Idaho, even to Provo and Hawaii. There's more of a "down-to-earth" and "cheerfulness" about the kids who come here. We're not here to academically prove ourselves--BYU-Idaho is a disciple preparation center--a place where we come to learn and grow spiritually and mentally. I love that. Love it, love it, love it. :) But the funny thing is, we were trying to seclude ourselves from the rest of campus by retreating to the gardens, and this guy came along in the gazebo next to us (I don't know if he knew we were right there--we were kind of tucked into a corner) and started blaring these bagpipes. :) It actually made it even better, for me. He played "Praise to the Man", which, if played on the bagpipes, always get me. I love it. He played a lot of spiritual songs, as well as a few other that are well known on the bagpipes. As annoying as people thought it was, I actually enjoyed the random bagpipe man. :)

After concluding our meeting with our I-team, we headed down to the Hart Auditorium where the New Student Talent Show was being put on, and let me say, it was HILARIOUS!  Usually, talent shows are pretty boring, or kids try out when they really aren't talented or what they think is a talent usually isn't. There was a lot of guitar playing/singing by girls, and most of them actually wrote their own song. One girl, honestly, it was amazing. She wrote such a cute song called "Maybe Me", that when she finished, and even all through when she was singing, boys were shouting, "Maybe it is me!" or, "I love you!" or other random things like that. It was today that I realized that I need to branch out and just totally be me. So when people were doing the wave, I joined in, shouted and cheered, and even talked to the kid I didn't know sitting next to me. It was awesome! I clapped, cheered, shouted, and stood up and danced with the kids around me. I felt totally independent for the first time in a long time. Anyways, back to the talent show. Some kid played All of Me by Jon Schmidt, and he did really well, there was a clogger, a flag twirler, and this AMAZING kid that did beatboxing. Usually I don't find it that interesting, but he was SUPER good. He gave us a beatboxing 101, and even with that, most of us couldn't do it. He was amazing. Really, that's the only word I can use to describe him. :) He even acted like he was tuning a radio, and sang snippets of songs or sounded like the radio announcers, and even did the weird tuning static sound. I don't know how he did it, but it was really awesome. :)

After the talent show, we walked back to our dorm and talked for a few minutes together, but then got kind of bored. Erin left to go hang out with her many guy friends she's already made ;), and Kristen and I talked and got to know each other a little better. We found out we both like old movies and we also really enjoy action movies, like the Bourne series, or The Italian Job. But we also both really like the movie, My Big Fat Greek Wedding. So that's what we watched tonight. We each popped a bag of popcorn (Mom: the kettle corn was actually really good...), and watched it on Kristen's laptop. It was so much fun! We finished the movie around midnight, and Erin came in and said, "The neighbors next door are having a popcorn party, do you guys want to come join? There are some guys there...." Needless to say, Kristen and I went to the party. I think we both felt a little left out, since we didn't really know their names and we kind of joined the party near the end. I don't know--it was a little awkward, but I think we'll have more parties with them in the near future--they were really fun! I think there was actually one RM there...he was pretty cute, but I don't know his name or anything. The other boys were definitely freshmen, and I think they were roommates. There were about 12 girls there and 5 boys or so. It was pretty fun! We sat and went around the room telling one pet peeve we all have, awkward stories, stories about dates, and a lot more. There were some pretty funny stories, let me tell ya. :)

Curfew was at 1 tonight, and so we made it back in our dorm by about 12:50 or so. Technically, girls in Perkins are allowed to be inside the Perkins gates by 1, but we don't have to be in our apartments. We could stay over all night if we really wanted to, but then it just gets complicated. I think we're all just trying to be in our apartments by curfew.

I don't think we really did anything after the party, but just change into our pajamas. I decided to catch up on blogging and so here I am. 1:40 in the morning and I think I've just about summed up my college experience so far. I will post pictures either at the end of this post if I'm feeling up to it since I actually haven't uploaded my pictures on my computer yet, or if I'll do that on another post with simply just pictures on it. I don't know. I'll get around to it.

But here's to a great school year! It sounds like it's going to be a lot of fun!

Oh, and Rexburg is already getting kind of cold. In the mornings, it's freezing outside. Enough that you want a warm jacket, and you don't want to take it off until about 10 or so at the earliest. Usually, it's pretty warm during the day, but it hasn't been super hot. It's been a good temperature so far to deal with. At about 7 or so at night though, the sun starts to set and it starts getting really cold again. So, we have just a few hours before it is time for a sweater or jacket again. :)

I'll post pictures in another post, but for now, I think I need to go to bed, or join Erin in the kitchen for a midnight (or rather a 1:40 am) snack. :)

Live. Love. Laugh. Grow.

Mascara needs to be Waterproof

Why.

Why can't mascara just stay on my eyelashes? Why? Why do I even need the thick black gunk? I guess it makes you prettier--or so they say.

Until you cry. And it all comes off. And you get the red, splotchy-faced, swollen, pink-eyed me.

With no mascara.

This was me today, after church, realizing that

Yes. This was my last Sunday in my home ward.
Yes. This was my last Sunday in Young Women's.
Yes. I am going to miss my friends. A lot.
Yes. I am going to bawl my eyes out when my family leaves me.
Yes. I really am moving on Wednesday, to a town I've never really seen before.
Yes. I am starting this next chapter of my life. By myself.
Yes. Heavenly Father is going to help me through it.
Yes. I am getting an education.
No. I will not have people there that I know at first.
No. I will not have family in close proximity.
No. I will not be able to have my mom's good cooking.
No. I won't have a job.
No. I can't come home on weekends or whenever I'm feeling homesick.
No. I won't have a ton of money left over to do fun things.

Yes. This is where I need to be.
Yes. This is what I need to be doing.

You know what one of the best remedies for being sad and getting all your tears out without anyone noticing you crying is?

A hot bath.

You can cry all you want, turn on the air vent/fan/thing, and it's loud enough that if you occasionally snorted or let out an audible sob, no one can hear you. And you let out a lot of tears. By the time you're done crying, you're done with your bath, and if you're red faced and splotchy, it's okay. You'll cool down and come to terms with everything. A hot bath also is relaxing and you aren't as tight-winded.

Why am I telling you this?

Because I did this today.

I guess the reality of actually leaving and starting a new life is so exciting, so overwhelmingly exciting, but so hard at the same time. Leaving everything behind, starting everything anew, it's a blank slate.

And I'm super excited.

It's just hard to leave everything and everyone I know behind and have to go out of my way to make friends again. I've worked hard for the great friends I've got, but I guess I have to find some more again. :)

Three days and I will be in Rexburg. I move into my dorm in four days, and I start school in 8 days.

Wish me luck. :)

Live. Love. Laugh. Grow.

11 Days Left

So, as the title of this post states, I have 11 more days left in Heber City. I have loved growing up in this beautiful valley, especially with the gorgeous mountains, picturesque sunsets and sunrises and much more. I love the farming feeling Heber has, although with more major things coming to town, such as the shopping centers, that small-town rural feeling is leaving. 

But I'm going from this small-town Heber, to this small-town Rexburg. It has more farms and small-town feeling that I love there. Whenever I have gone to Rexburg, there is such a right feeling! I feel like it's home now!!

Before, I was really nervous to leave, but as I'm packing things to take to school, the excitement and anticipation level has dramatically increased and the nervousness and anxiety has gone downhill. I am still quite nervous, but I'm started to get to really excited! I hope I get everything I need before I leave! 

This is probably my last (almost) full Saturday at home. Next Saturday will definitely be my last, but I am working a double shift at my job, Dairy Keen. I will be leaving around noon and get back around 10 or 11 that night. When they post the new schedule on Monday, that will be my last work week! I am so excited! I have loved having Dairy Keen as my job, but I am really excited that I get to go get an education about something I love so much! Teaching spunky and crazy kids! 

I teach Primary one more time, hopefully. My teaching partner teaches this week, but I don't know if I will be released this Sunday or the next. Hopefully I get to teach them next week, but if I don't, maybe that's good too, I don't know. I might be a little stressed getting ready for school. 

Although most of my friends have left for school already, I do still keep in touch with the friends that I'm the closest to, and I've gotten closer to some friends that I didn't think would want to. For example, I went to dinner and the movies with a girl that I've been friends with for a while, but we've never been the "best" friend material for each other. Come to find out, after dinner yesterday, we like a lot of the same things, and we have both been feeling pretty lonely due to our friends leaving for school. We are basically the only girls left in Heber that haven't left for school yet. She will be going to UVU this fall, and I am so happy for her! We looked for cute guys at Olive Garden, had creepy guys hit on us while walking to the movie theater, and attempted to eat a bucket of popcorn at the theater together. It was a lot of fun, and I'm glad I got to spend time with just us two. Usually when I've been around her, it's been with other people there too. We also decided to have a chick flick day! When that will be, I have no idea since she starts school on Monday, but it will happen sometime! 

I am so thankful for my many friends and for all the support they have been to me! Hopefully I have been somewhat of a help for them as well through the years, because they mean a lot to me! 

So, as I'm packing up some little things like my jewelry today, I remember that if my friends have gone to college and they're doing okay, I will be okay as well. 

After all, 

I was meant to go to BYU-Idaho.

It's the right place for me.

Thanks to inspiration and guidance, I know I'm going where Heavenly Father needs me to be.

Live. Love. Laugh. Grow.

You Just Gotta Have Friends!

Due to my last post, I will now be posting about 4 friends of mine in each blog I write for the next few times. Or until I run out of friends. Whenever I get bored. :)

So, without further ado, let me introduce my good friends!

Nate Clegg

Oh Nate. Where to begin? It all started on a dark and stormy night....Just kidding! :) Nate and I met probably at Midway Elementary school, but I don't remember him from that age. I do, however, remember being in his social dance class, and him playing the trumpet very well. We knew each other from the dance class, but I think we were more of acquaintances rather than friends. We both work at Dairy Keen, and long story short, after a very short time, Nate and I "liked" each other. He was actually the very first boy I ever held hands with, and it was exciting for me. :) This picture of us was at Preference, a dance held in November at our school, but shortly thereafter, sometime during Thanksgiving break, we came to a mutual agreement that we both liked each other, but more as really great friends, not that mushy gushy like where cooties are involved. :) Although it was hard to kind of lose someone I kind of liked, I am so glad that we are just simply great friends today. Nate has a beautiful girlfriend that is so much better for him--and they're so dang cute together! Nate and I played in the orchestra pits together, we were in social dance together, we work together a lot, and we talk about a lot of things together. Nate is a boy that came into my life and changed me for good. He has strong character, has a great sense of humor, and knows exactly what I need to hear to help buoy me up or help me stand on higher ground. His opinions on almost everything mean a lot to me, and he is mature beyond his years...that is, when he's not hyper. :) I have loved being Nate's friend every day, and I'm so grateful for his knowledge, advice, genuine concern, and everything else he does for me. He leaves for Lubbock, Texas on November 7, 2012 to serve the Lord on a 2-year LDS mission, and I couldn't be happier for him! He has such a strong testimony and is so willing and excited to serve the Lord, I know great things will come his way. I hope I can make it to his farewell! :)

Austin Roylance

Austin is one guy who honestly knows how to make me laugh super hard, and he'll laugh with me. :) Austin also worked at Dairy Keen, but hasn't for about the past year. He was always fun to work with though--it made the night go by faster. Austin is an amazing pianist, and will be coming to BYU-Idaho this fall as well!! I'll get to see him more often, hopefully, than I did this past year at school, but you never know. I'm so glad that I got to know this spunky boy, because he not only is musically gifted, but he is very academically gifted, and he is also one of the sweetest guys with one of the sweetest testimonies you will ever meet. I am so glad I get to see Austin at school this next year, and I hope we continue to be friends throughout the next few years. I love listening to his music too, so hopefully I'll get to see him in concerts throughout the year as well! I really wish there was a lot more I could say about Austin, but I honestly don't know him as much as I would love to! Austin is a great guy though--I know I can say that without a doubt. He has great character, amazing musicianship, a strong testimony, and is a great golfer as well! I can't wait to see you around campus in a few weeks Austin!

Taylor Paul

Taylor! Taylor has been in my ward for forever, and we've gotten to be great friends! She has always been there for me, and she knows how to make me laugh or even feel appreciated. Being the oldest Young Woman in church isn't easy, and she's made it easier, that's for sure! We've been through girl's camps together, Youth Conferences, and so much more! I really have appreciated Taylor and all she's done for me! She even wrote a poem on the back whiteboard in the picture at girl's camp for me, saying how much the girls would miss me when I left for school. If that isn't sweet, I don't know what is. :) I love you so much Taylor! Thank you for all you've done for me! You're a great girl!

Anna Dahl

Anna and I go way back. And when I say that, I'm serious. I used to babysit her and her siblings like 7 years ago. We have been in the same ward since she moved to Heber, and I have loved being in Young Women's with her! We have been through so much together, and we still do! She is one girl that I absolutely love being around, and I can't get enough! :) She makes me laugh so hard, and she has so much potential! I have loved being her friend! Girl's Camps were unforgettable. Youth Conference with lizard tails, Sobe's and loud music, horribly disgusting toilets, setting up tents, wetting our pants, and much more. Trek with our spray bottles, "s'mores!", and sap in my hair. From walking home from church or school together, to laughing and crying in testimony meetings, Anna and I have done a lot of things together. I will miss her so much! Thank you for everything we've been through, all that you've done for me, and all that we have yet to do together!

The Days are Winding Down

It seems like everything is ending.

But at the same time, it seems like everything is beginning.

Most of my really good friends move out this next week, and I won't be able to see them at all until probably Thanksgiving or Christmas. You're probably thinking it's not a big deal, but for me, losing the greatest friends I've ever had for the past 7 years is really hard for me. I have made the greatest friendships and have had the absolute best times of my life with my friends by my side. They have been there while I've cried, I've been there for them through their hard times, they know how to make me smile, and even when they drive me nuts, some part of me loves them anyways. Those are what truly great friends are made of. Here is a little bit about each of my friends:

Robyn Kirkland

I met this fantastic girl in gifted and talented after I moved in to my new house in 5th grade. I started attending Heber Valley Elementary, and the first thing I remember about her was her long brown hair and how quiet she was. But no matter what, she was ALWAYS nice to everyone. And she was very musical too, which I loved. We got to be better friends after we started orchestra together, although I don't think we were ever stand partners that year. Through the next few years, we stayed in orchestra together, and probably saw each other more as rivals or competition rather than friends, seeing as how we are just BOTH SO AMAZING at simply EVERYTHING! :) But I think we probably really became friends in about 7th grade. We were now both 1st violins, and realized that we could help each other get better--it wasn't a competition. We played everything together, and had such a good time. Each year that we knew each other got better as it went by, and it still gets stronger every day. We have played in orchestra since 5th grade together, and I have loved spending almost every day with her doing our favorite thing--playing music and being around each other! We have played in the school theater pits for Hello, Dolly!, Wizard of Oz, White Christmas, and this last one of Beauty and the Beast. I could go on and on and on about what Robyn and I have done together, and how many things we have been in, but what I want to do is let her know how much I love and appreciate our friendship, and especially her! She has grown into such a strong and beautiful young woman! I love you so much Robyn! Laughing together in French class, making funny pictures on our orchestra music, and laughing at everything and anything without saying a word to each other is what makes the good times count for everything. I'm going to really miss you when you leave for school--not seeing you every day will be hard for me!

Camille Ward

I really don't remember when we first met, but Camille claims that we met during a spelling bee. I wished her luck before she went up to spell each time, and she told her mom about how nice this "girl" was at school. Eventually, we were friends. :) I don't know when we were officially "come-over-to-my-house-and-make-cookies-and-play-scrabble" type of friends, but it was probably sometime in about 9th or 10th grade. We were probably in a science class of some sort, where we were for the next 3 years. In Physics, we always managed to have our project take a turn for the worse, and we were the kids that actually followed the instructions. Our online projects always caught in flame, our chemistry experiments turned the wrong color and started smoking and smelling weird, and things just never worked out scientifically between us. :) Thankfully she also played music, and we were able to talk to each other across the piano in the pit orchestras, or through french notes in Mr. Reynold's French class. Camille was the one that tried to get me in trouble in hilarious ways throughout high school. Writing "Zut!" on a paper and slapping it on the window in front of my face, but to our teachers' back, all I could do was laugh and fail my oral test. Thanks. :) But it was funny. Good thing Mr. Reynold's knows I laugh a lot...... From crazy driving adventures with car horns, through multiple girls camps, to calling each other and just needing a donut run, Camille has always been there for me for every single thing, and I really appreciate it. I'm not one to go off of emotions here, but Camille has usually been behind every supportive thing there is. So thank you Camille. :)

McCall Kelson

Where to even begin? McCall and I first met in 6th grade after she moved to Midway. We were in the same homeroom class with Mr. Jensen, and were the most nerdy, unattractive girls that hadn't quite found themselves yet. And that's putting it in a nice way. :) Anyways, there were several times that year where we grew to be really good friends--even best friends if you'd put it that way. We played with each other all the time, we read together, watched movies together, and even made bookmarks and knick-knacks together. We cried together, laughed to no end together, and even learned a foreign language for two years together. We had sleepovers together where we were so scared we held hands and prayed that we would be okay. We cried on each others shoulders when we had a bad day. McCall was one of the first people to know when I had my first kiss. We crumpled each others notes in every class, McCall drew hairy men and funny people for me to laugh at every day, and we laughed in almost every math class we ever had together by drawing a fat hairy man in a tutu with a huge head and a tiny face. :) I wish I had that with me. We can quote Nacho Libre, Fantastic Mr. Fox, Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure, the Three Amigos, and Napoleon Dynamite like there was no tomorrow. Singing songs in the bathrooms together, giving each other "drugs" in the hallway when we had a headache, and so much more. I can't even begin to write down all of our adventures. We had so many, and each were so great! I love you so much McCall, and I'll miss you like crazy when you're gone at BYU! We won't be able to continue our great adventures in person!

Sarah Haderlie

Sarah Haderlie and I met in the orchestra pit for Hello, Dolly during my 8th grade year. We didn't really get to know each other a whole lot during that year, but we did the next. We were in orchestra together and were able to get to hang out with each other at least every other day. Through the last years of her being in high school, we got to be really really good friends. We hung out almost every day, she was the first person to know everything, she taught me what I needed to know for teaching music students, and we were always talking with each other, laughing about everything, and helped each other through so many things. Even though we don't see each other basically at all now, we still talk once in a while and get together occasionally. Sarah has made me who I am today, and I am so forever grateful for her and her eternally changing friendship she has given me! I love you Sarah!

Robyn and Camille move to BYU on Wednesday.
McCall moves to BYU on Monday.
Sarah is living in Orem.
All my other friends are leaving next week for school.

And I'm stuck here in Heber.

Thankfully I have a few guy friends who are left before they go on their mission. :)

I want to thank my friends for all their support and love they have given me throughout the many years. Some have been friends longer than others, but they all mean the same to me. I love each and every one of them so very much!

Because I knew you, I have been changed for good!  -Wicked

Live. Love. Laugh. Grow.