Epic Falls, Ward Reunions, and "The Best Two Years"

Weeks go by so quickly in Spring Term. Already we are halfway through. Let's see, this week I had my midterms for my folk dance classes. I had more projects for Drawing. Friday night my roommates and I watched "Aladdin" and made smores in the oven. We made them with Reese's Peanut Butter Cups. So good! Oh and Friday right before my my dance class, I had the most epic fall ever. So there is this hill right outside my apartment, and instead of going around it on the steps, I usually skip down it because it is faster. Well, Friday it was raining...So I took about two steps and all of a sudden I was on my back and I slid all the way to the bottom. It hurt pretty badly, and it was pretty embarrassing, but also super funny.

Unfortunately, my hip hurt pretty badly from the incident, like I pinched a nerve in my hip, and I was limping all the way to Dance. I wasn't able to dance, and afterwards my teacher took me to the physical therapist for the dance majors and she said that my hips were out of place and a fall like mine could have pinched a nerve. So she put my hips back in place. So weird feeling, let me tell you.

Saturday was a mini reunion with all the people still around from my previous ward. That was so nice to see them again! Two of my old roommates, Alicia and Carolina, came down and it was so great to be reunited again, to listen to the crazy. I seriously got in the car with Alicia and Carolina and felt this overwhelming feeling of "home." We all went up to some canyon and roasted marshmallows over a fire. It didn't last very long though. It seemed like we had barely been there and then a park ranger told us it was almost curfew. So we had to pack up and leave. But Alicia, Carolina, and I went back to our old apartment and we just stood outside it and looked up at our window. It was so weird, because that had been our home for a year and it felt like we were supposed to go up those stairs and all would be back to normal. It was hard to say goodbye to Alicia and Carolina again.

Well today I gave my first Gospel Doctrine lesson. I think I bored them all. I tried to make it interesting and to keep everyone interactive, but only the same couple people would participate. I could see some people asleep in the back and others doing the bobble-head. One girl told me she really enjoyed my lesson, so I'm glad at least one person seemed to get something out of it. I enjoyed learning about the lesson, I just think I bored everyone else.

After church today, my roommates and I watched "The Best Two Years." I'd never seen it before. I really liked it! And it's gotten me thinking a lot about missions. I think it would be really cool to serve a mission. Super scary, but so rewarding. I always thought, oh if I decide to go on a mission, I hope I go somewhere like temple square, because the thought of going tracting, and in a different language in a different country, would be terrifying. But watching "The Best Two Years" made me excited to share the gospel like that. I live in pretty much an All-Mormon society at the moment, living on-campus, and so I don't get the opportunity to share the gospel. Watching the missionaries go door to door and preach the gospel made me want to do it too. I wish I could go to a foreign country and learn another language and immerse myself in the Lord's work. I don't know if I ever will go on a mission, but I definitely want to at least go on a couple's mission, and I encourage all young men to go on a mission. It is seriously one of the greatest decisions you will ever make.

Well, that's all I got for tonight. Goodnight world! Hope you have sweet dreams.

Happy Mother's Day

Aren't mothers awesome? I want to be a mother some day. Some people say they never want to have children, and that makes me so sad. I love children and I especially want to have my own. To be a mother is the most noblest calling a woman could ever have. And you really don't realize how much your mother does for you until you move out either. I don't say that because I miss her doing things for me. You know how some people say that and what they really mean is "I miss my mom cooking dinner for me and folding my laundry and making my bed." But instead, having moved out, I have become very independent, rarely do I ask for help with something. So when someone does something for me, I immediately notice and feel extreme gratitude. And so with this new sense of independence, I look back and realize how much I used to be dependent on my mom. My mom did so much for me and I am so grateful to her, and I almost feel guilty. All those times she kindly made my bed, or cleaned up after me, or made me dinner, or took me shopping, when you are so dependent, you don't realize just how much of a sacrifice it is for the other person, just how thankful you ought to be. And then you move out and you have to do all of those things yourself and realize how spoiled you have been. I am eternally grateful to my mother and love her so much!

As for my week, it was busy but not too stressful. I just feel like I'm constantly doing something. Social Dance Club, Recreational Night for Folk Dance, projects for my Drawing class, studying for tests. Yesterday I took an online test for my Joseph Smith and the Restoration class. Took me like 4 hours. Bleh. I could have saved it and continued working on the test later, but I just wanted to get it done. I also went to the temple again yesterday and finally went shopping (I'd been putting that off for several days) and worked on writing a song. So this song, I started writing it a long time ago. I don't even remember the last time I worked on it. It was a long time ago. I play it every once in a while, and then I get to the end and just don't know what else. It's been a major case of writer's block for over a year. But yesterday as I was playing it, I thought it would make the perfect lullaby, and all of a sudden I knew what should come next in my song. And guess what? It's finished! I still need to finish writing the lyrics, but today I finished the piano part. Personally, I think it's really pretty too. It's titled "The Maze." I'm quite proud of myself.

Well that's really all I can think to say, so happy Mother's Day and I hope you all have a good week and remember to stay optimistic and grateful.

I've decided I like Spring Semester

Well I've decided that I am officially very glad that I staid for Spring. I still miss my old dorm and roommates and ward like crazy, but I am really liking my new roommates and FHE brothers. For FHE tonight, we played sardines in the HFAC. My roommates have told me before that you can get lost in the HFAC. I learned tonight how very true that was. The HFAC is huge!! For those who don't know, that is the performing arts building on campus, and there are five floors, and the two bottom floors are like a maze. I felt like I was in the phantom of the opera, because it just kept going on and on. We paired up, thankfully, for the game that way we wouldn't get completely lost. The first round, my partner and I never did find the group. They eventually called us and told us where to find them. That meant the second round it was our turn to go hide. It was so funny, because we just started running down hallways and climbing up and down stairs and going through doors getting ourselves completely lost until we figured we were far enough into the maze of the HFAC and we could let them come find us. It was by far the best FHE activity I have ever had.

Last week wasn't too stressful, just busy because I have afternoon and evening classes. But Saturday night was way too much fun! There was a dance, and although it was combined with all on-campus housing, it was still the smallest dance I have ever been to. There was barely anybody there. But it was still a blast because I got to see quite a few people from my old ward. That was exciting. And on the way home, my roommate and I randomly decided to run up a hill singing "the hills are alive with the sound of music!" It was really nice to do something crazy and spontaneous. Previously, I had been feeling like I was going to go crazy inside, but the dance combined with randomly running up the hill screaming the sound of music was a nice way to let out some of the craziness. :) Oh and then we bought graham canyon ice cream. Yummy! I don't like graham crackers usually, but I love graham canyon ice cream! So basically it was really great night.

It's just really weird to be here during Spring because there is barely anybody here. My ward's really small. All of my classes are really small. I walk into the WILK and there is no one there, unlike during Fall and Winter when that building is usually packed. Old Heritage is like a ghost town. New Heritage feels like a hotel and it is not nearly as sociable as Old Heritage. But my roommates and I still find ways to have fun. We have movie nights. We creep out our window. We make people food. And I continue to go to the temple every week. I love that place. :)

Well that's all I have to say really for an update. And I can't really think of anything inspirational to say this time other than "be patient with yourself" but I took that from President Uchtdorf. I've just been thinking about that a lot lately. We know we should be patient with others, but we should also be patient with ourselves. Sometimes we mess up, sometimes we do something stupid, sometimes we embarrass ourselves and want to crawl into a hole. We need to remember to be patient with ourselves. That has been on my mind a lot lately, so I guess that is my thought for the day. Have a good week!

Goal Reached

I reached my goal :) I am feeling back to normal again. It's still slightly weird to be in this dorm, but I am much more used to it now, and I love my roommates. I still miss everyone a lot, but I am feeling happy and bubbly and back to my old self again. Just so many great things have happened this week that I feel so bubbly now. I planted seeds in my little flower pot next to my window and they are starting to sprout! I have so many little shoots of green now! I'm afraid though that I might have drowned them this morning because I think added way too much water. I hope they survive the flood.

I also saw President Uchtdorf in the BYU bookstore the other day! It was so cool! I have never been that close to an apostle before, and President Uchtdorf is my favorite! I didn't get to talk to him, but I walked right past him on my way out the store, and he smiled and nodded at me! I was practically skipping the whole way home.

I am also loving my classes. They cancelled my country dance class (not enough people enrolled) but I am in World Dance I and II and it is so much fun! I am learning about folk dances from all over world. I'm learning dances from Armenia, Norway, England, and Croatia. And I got into a religious class about Joseph Smith and the early years of the church. It is so fascinating! I am learning so many cool things I never new about Joseph Smith and I am loving it!

Well I don't really know what else to say, so I will end here. Have a good Sunday!

All moved in

Well Winter Semester is officially over. My roommates are gone, my friends are gone, my ward is gone, I'm all moved out of my old dorm, and all moved in to my new dorm. Last Friday was one of the longest and hardest days I have ever experienced. I won't go into much detail, but just know that I had to say goodbye to a lot of awesome people. I now live in New Heritage and it is huge! We have two closets, the kitchen has SO many cupboards, we actually have a living room for once, there are two bathrooms, and over all there is just a lot more space. There are some drawbacks though. Where are we supposed to put our bathroom stuff? There are no cupboards or cabinets in the bathroom. And we don't really have closets in our room so very little place to store things in our room and there are no mirrors in our room. So there are pros and cons to living here. I think I am going to eventually like it and my roommates are super nice so I'm sure I will have fun. But right now it just feels so weird to be here. Everything is unpacked and my walls are decorated, but it doesn't feel like home the way my old dorm did.

Last year, I felt the same way about my old dorm. I felt uncomfortable there and lonely and like I didn't belong, but eventually I came to love the place and it literally became my home. Lexi and I stopped saying "okay I'm heading back to the dorm" and started saying "okay I'm heading home." It feels so weird to be here and to know that I can't ever go back, that it isn't my home anymore, that next year different girls will be living there. It is a really really strange and sad feeling. I know that I will probably feel the same about this dorm at the end of the semester, but right now, I've just barely moved in and I don't feel like I belong yet.

And classes don't even start until Tuesday, and even then, the only class on Tuesday I have is my dance class, so the next couple of days are sure to be LONG days. I just want the semester to start so I can lose myself in homework. I'm actually really craving homework that way I can have something to keep my mind off of the fact that I've lost everything from last semester.

Well I've tried to make this post seem not too sad. I really am grateful for so many things. I'm grateful for the best year of my life, and I'm grateful for another two semesters to make more friends and have even more fun. I'm grateful that my new roommates seem so nice and I am grateful that this new building is safer than the last one. I don't feel like it is going to topple to the ground. I'm thankful for the help I received yesterday moving out and moving in. And I'm thankful for all the little things that God has placed in my life to make it more bearable. Coming to BYU really was the best decision I ever made.

Oh and if anyone is still around/nearby and wants to come visit in this upcoming week, please do! I'm going to be very bored I think.

Saying Goodbye to a Great Year

It's the last week of winter semester. It's also finals week so yes I am stressed. But I think the hardest part about this week is having to say goodbye to everyone. I have made some of the greatest friends here at college. I have learned so much from them and they have made me feel so loved and I can't stand the thought of never seeing some of them again. I thought last semester was hard when we had to say goodbye to half of our FHE brothers, but now that we've lived through another semester, there are certain people I've gotten even closer to and it breaks my heart to have to say goodbye. And it frustrates me because there is so much I want to say to people but I just can't put my feelings into words. The English language really corrupts what you are feeling. And I am really awkard at saying goodbye. After someone leaves, I usually break down and start crying, but while I am saying goodbye to them, I'm really quiet and barely say anything other than "goodbye" and it sounds so awkward.

One thing I have learned though is that the hard times in our lives are put there to make the good times seem even greater, even sweeter. Growing up I had a hard time making friends, or at least making good friends, and so now that I have these wonderful friends, it makes the experience even greater to contrast it to what my friendships used to be like. I am able to really appreciate the experiences I have had here. Another example, one of my favorite memories of last semester started off as one of the most stressful nights last semester. I was so stressed out and upset, but then someone came to my rescue and the contrast between the before and after was so great that it made the experience so much sweeter and it became one of my favorite memories of last semester. It's why we love fairy tales so much, because the "Happily Ever After" is only sweet and triumphant because the story plot was so treacherous. If everything was happy and smooth sailing, we would be bored and the ending wouldn't mean much to us. So the times when we are most upset or stressed are the times when we are battling a dragon or we are locked in a tower, and someday we will have our happily ever after. In fact we see little pieces of it every day. So I thank God for all the wonderful experiences I have had this year, and I thank him for all the bad experiences I have had as they make the good ones even greater.

My Dorm Smells Like Butter

My roommate is making Greek cookies and they require two pounds of butter. Needless to say, our dorm smells a lot like butter.

Well last week was fantastic! My mom came on Monday and she spent the whole week with me. We did a lot of shopping and eating and we visited my cousin's house and I got ballroom dance shoes for my birthday present. Then Friday the rest of my family came up and we spent the weekend together. Again we did a lot of eating, and we went bowling and I got my very first ever strike -extremely shocking- and we saw Divine Comedy and ate a five-minute Easter Dinner Saturday night and then saw the Ballroom Dance Concert- which was so amazing! Sunday morning, I got up to watch the sunrise with the girls in my ward and then I went back to bed until my family came and they made me Crepes for my birthday. They went to Sacrament Meeting with me, but they had to leave right after that. I loved having them there for my birthday.

My roommates continued to make my birthday special by singing to me pretty much every time I walked in the dorm and they made me a cake, even though I had already made cupcakes, and yesterday they made me brownies also in celebration of my birthday. We have so much junk food now. We have like four cartons of ice cream, cake, brownies, cookies, and cupcakes. And my roommates are making more cookies and two more cakes tonight. Oh dear...

But my birthday was so great. I have never had this many people tell me Happy Birthday before. For the past couple of years, people always forget it's my birthday despite the fact that I start talking about it a month in advance and keep talking about it until the day before. But this year pretty much everyone I saw wished me a happy birthday. I felt so loved! It was one of the best birthdays I've ever had. And it was on Easter!

Well today was pretty much my last day of classes. The only class I have tomorrow is Dance and we are having a party, so I'm pretty much all done. Then I just got to worry about Finals. I'm going to do what I did last time again and not eat ice cream or get on facebook while Finals are going on. I've also got to worry about getting all of my things packed up for Spring term. Everything has to be moved out of my dorm by 10am Saturday morning next week, but I can't move it into my new dorm until the afternoon. But they are letting us put our things in the central building during the time in between. Well that's just great. For those of you who don't know, the central building is kind of far to be carrying that much stuff. I'm probably going to be making a bazillion trips back and forth. And all of my roommates leave that Thursday, so I'm also going to be alone for two days until I move into my new dorm. : (

I'm excited for a new semester, for the change and all, but I am seriously going to miss my roommates and my ward. This semester has been so much fun, way more fun than last semester. I have really been blessed. Thank you to everyone who has made this year so great. Good luck with finals!