[Warning: L-O-N-G post ahead. Read at your own risk.]
[Note to Mom: Almost all of this was already written... I've been doing it a little bit at a time... I just waited to post it until I had the pictures... I didn't spend that much time in the middle of finals writing a blog :)]
The last week has been quite happy.
Last Saturday I slept in until 9:30 or so and then we went up to Stake Conference. After Conference we headed to Macey's to grab some groceries. It was a G-O-R-G-E-O-U-S [putting dashes between your letters clearly emphasizes your word] day! We had the windows open and the music blasting. We drove past Provo High and to our giggly delight they were having a Bridal Show right then! We pulled in and spent a few hours surrounded by white happy thoughts. I wish that being a wedding planner was a realistic option for my future. It is right up my alley. And I would be happy always. You can't be around a bride-to-be for more than 5 seconds without smiling.
After that I drove up to Orem with Patrick to go to his sister Abby's senior voice recital. It made for such a lovely afternoon. We helped carry in plants and flowers and then wandered around (it was in a piano gallery). There was a magical piano that played tracks from a ipod all by itself. The recital was absolutely remarkable. Abby gave an absolutely stunning performance. There were several pieces that I really loved but by far my favorite was her closing piece, My Kindness Shall Not Depart From Thee. After that we went to a dinner and hung out with Patrick's family. Two things I loved about that: first, Patrick has adorable nieces. Second, his brother Spencer and a cousin (?), Hannah spent a lot time talking about social work kinds of things and it was exactly the kinds of things that I am interested in doing with my future. I was so happy to sit there and soak up their experiences and knowledge.
On Sunday I slept in until Stake Conference. We all went up together. Then after that we went to David's to dinner. It was absolutely fantastic. David is a wonderful cook and an even better host. We had a wonderful time. David is one of the kindest, most sincere people. After dinner I honestly can't remember what exactly I did. I'm sure it wasn't very productive but was happy.
Monday. Last day of Monday classes. Then home to start on some cleaning and homework. At some point I went over to Patrick's. We watched 24 and then I wrote my paper for Work and Relationships. I had done an outline with Lyss the night before but other than that I hadn't started it. It was a little bit longer than 4 pages and I finished it in 3 hours. I have never written a paper that fast before. And it was really a pretty good paper. I seriously can't believe how fast and focused I can work with the boys. I was pretty happy that I was in bed just after midnight on the night before a big paper was due!
Tuesday was my last day of classes for the semester. I was actually kinda sad about that. I really enjoyed all of my classes this semester. I am well into my major and minor now and the classes I had were classes that I had chosen and was excited to take. I had fantastic professors. They all really loved what they were teaching and were very caring of me as a student. I loved them all. There are exciting things to come but this was one semester when I wasn't anxiously counting down to the last day. For my adolescent development class we had a final assignment to write about whether or not we felt we were adults. I said yes and no. Functionally I am completely an adult. Finacially I am mostly an adult - my parents still help me but in the form of one check per month and it is up to me to budget that money and spend it appropriately. But emotionally I feel less like an adult because I am still very dependent on my parents when I am making important decisions. Not that I won't do that when I am an "adult" but I still feel like right now my relationship is more child-like. Then the discussion we had was then what things and at what point do we become adults? There is a term in research called emerging adulthood. I love that idea because that is definitely where I am at now. But as far as when I will be an "adult"? I really don't know.
After classes were out Lyss and I went to the mall. I found a fantastic new little boutique called The Accessory Shop. It is going to be my splurge from now on. Then we spent a couple hours at Victoria's Secret. ;). And we had so much fun together. Then we went up to campus for a law dinner for Eva and Lyss. We had Costa Vida and listened to stand up comedy. It was SO funny because they were BYU students catering to a BYU audience. Like for example, "By the mouth of two or three roommates shall every text message be sent." That one had us just rolling on the floor dying laughing because how many times we really have done that!
Wednesday I worked and then came home and started to clean my room. Lyss and were looking at photographers when Eva started begging Lyss to go on a bike ride. Lyss didn't really want to go without Dan but Eva would not stop nagging. She went to go pump up the bike tires and "needed help" and made me come out. She told me that Dan was proposing and that Lyss needed to go on a bike ride so that he would be able to. Oh. Got it. Someone probably should have told me like 2 hours earlier so I could've been helpful. A grumpy Lyss left. She rode to the river with Eva and then as soon as they were there she turned around and said she wasn't going to go any farther. She was about 10 seconds away from Dan's first chalk note! Eva got her turned around and chalk notes and roses later she found Dan in the middle of a beautiful yard. There were statues and fountains and a bench. Dan got down on one knee, asked the question and magic.
They took pictures, picked up ice cream and then came home. I was pretty sad to not have been there since Tom and Eva were both there. [apparently I "can't keep a secret" - which is not true but whatever]. I'm SO happy for Dan and Alyssa. They will be getting married in July and will then have eternity together.
That evening I went to a bridal shower for Kennedy. We've known each other since we were probably 7. We used to babysit together and would clean. One time we used almost a whole cup of ammonia on the kitchen floor. [Maybe that's why I'm so weird. :).] It was so much fun to be with her. She is such a radiant person. The girls throwing the shower went to a lot of work and it showed. We had some fun with toliet paper wedding dresses (my group totally won) and a game with answers given by her fiance. It was a fun night.
After the shower I called home and had a mini-breakdown. There were some things really stressing me out and they were making me feel very out of control of my life. Honestly mostly it was probably stress from finals coming out in that way but I just couldn't deal with it. Really my life (long-term) is better than I could have asked for there are just some things (short-term) that are frustrating me. And the reality was that they were things from other people that were stressing me out. I can't change the way other people think or act. All I can do is be the best me. That's it. After talking and crying with Mom I really didn't want to go home and I really just wanted to laugh so I went to Patrick's. I called on the way but even if he hadn't answered I figured someone would be home and would just let me crash in their apartment. I'm so happy I went. Carly and Jordan were there [note: I really like Carly - her comment was that if she wasn't getting married she would want to be my roommate and I completly agree], Austin and Victoria were there for part of the time and Isaac got home from work later. And we all just laughed together. Austin showed us crazy cool things about snakes and their mouths. Patrick showed me magic with a circle thing [the name actually starts with an m but i can't remember what it is called] and then we just talked and laughed. I needed that. It made all the difference for my night.
Thursday I worked and then had lunch at the Pizza Factory with the department for the students who are graduating. I went home and Eva and I spent the afternoon getting ready for Lyssa's bridal shower. We had extra time and so I played some guitar too. The shower turned out to be really nice. We had some girls from freshman year, girls from our Liberty Square ward, a girl from her dance team.
We played bridal charades to start with wedding words, their favorite things and stories. When there were key words, after we guessed the word, Lyss would tell the story (like proposal, first kiss, etc). We also played scattergories with categories based on weddings [idea courtesy of Jord]. We had yummy treats... chips and salsa and guacomole (Eva's - yum!), strawberries and pineapple, and a chocolate cake that was divine. Thank you Sam's club! After eating and mingling Lyss opened presents ;) and then we finished up with some good old girl talk. I was so happy to see girls from freshman year (Sarah is dating someone!) Heather and Eva had a loud and animated and repetitive and amusing and giddy conversation for an hour and then after I did my student ratings I went to bed.
Friday morning I woke up late and missed my shower. So my hair my was greasy at work and I felt gross all morning. So I went home right after work and went to the gym [best decision of the whole week - I love the feeling after a good run and lifting] and then took my shower. Heather Jean came over and was feeling kinda stressed out so we went to Spoon it Up. [Sorbet seriously is my favorite thing]. We studied for a few hours and then we went to her apartment and packed her up so she could stay over at our apartment for the rest of the weekend and then we went and had Zupas for dinner. We studied for a while longer and then I ran up to campus and took my first final [parenting]. I didn't do quite as well as I wanted but it should be good enough. Heather and I curled up to a good chick flick when I got home and then were asleep by 10:30 or so.
The last week has been quite happy.
Last Saturday I slept in until 9:30 or so and then we went up to Stake Conference. After Conference we headed to Macey's to grab some groceries. It was a G-O-R-G-E-O-U-S [putting dashes between your letters clearly emphasizes your word] day! We had the windows open and the music blasting. We drove past Provo High and to our giggly delight they were having a Bridal Show right then! We pulled in and spent a few hours surrounded by white happy thoughts. I wish that being a wedding planner was a realistic option for my future. It is right up my alley. And I would be happy always. You can't be around a bride-to-be for more than 5 seconds without smiling.
After that I drove up to Orem with Patrick to go to his sister Abby's senior voice recital. It made for such a lovely afternoon. We helped carry in plants and flowers and then wandered around (it was in a piano gallery). There was a magical piano that played tracks from a ipod all by itself. The recital was absolutely remarkable. Abby gave an absolutely stunning performance. There were several pieces that I really loved but by far my favorite was her closing piece, My Kindness Shall Not Depart From Thee. After that we went to a dinner and hung out with Patrick's family. Two things I loved about that: first, Patrick has adorable nieces. Second, his brother Spencer and a cousin (?), Hannah spent a lot time talking about social work kinds of things and it was exactly the kinds of things that I am interested in doing with my future. I was so happy to sit there and soak up their experiences and knowledge.
On Sunday I slept in until Stake Conference. We all went up together. Then after that we went to David's to dinner. It was absolutely fantastic. David is a wonderful cook and an even better host. We had a wonderful time. David is one of the kindest, most sincere people. After dinner I honestly can't remember what exactly I did. I'm sure it wasn't very productive but was happy.
Monday. Last day of Monday classes. Then home to start on some cleaning and homework. At some point I went over to Patrick's. We watched 24 and then I wrote my paper for Work and Relationships. I had done an outline with Lyss the night before but other than that I hadn't started it. It was a little bit longer than 4 pages and I finished it in 3 hours. I have never written a paper that fast before. And it was really a pretty good paper. I seriously can't believe how fast and focused I can work with the boys. I was pretty happy that I was in bed just after midnight on the night before a big paper was due!
Tuesday was my last day of classes for the semester. I was actually kinda sad about that. I really enjoyed all of my classes this semester. I am well into my major and minor now and the classes I had were classes that I had chosen and was excited to take. I had fantastic professors. They all really loved what they were teaching and were very caring of me as a student. I loved them all. There are exciting things to come but this was one semester when I wasn't anxiously counting down to the last day. For my adolescent development class we had a final assignment to write about whether or not we felt we were adults. I said yes and no. Functionally I am completely an adult. Finacially I am mostly an adult - my parents still help me but in the form of one check per month and it is up to me to budget that money and spend it appropriately. But emotionally I feel less like an adult because I am still very dependent on my parents when I am making important decisions. Not that I won't do that when I am an "adult" but I still feel like right now my relationship is more child-like. Then the discussion we had was then what things and at what point do we become adults? There is a term in research called emerging adulthood. I love that idea because that is definitely where I am at now. But as far as when I will be an "adult"? I really don't know.
After classes were out Lyss and I went to the mall. I found a fantastic new little boutique called The Accessory Shop. It is going to be my splurge from now on. Then we spent a couple hours at Victoria's Secret. ;). And we had so much fun together. Then we went up to campus for a law dinner for Eva and Lyss. We had Costa Vida and listened to stand up comedy. It was SO funny because they were BYU students catering to a BYU audience. Like for example, "By the mouth of two or three roommates shall every text message be sent." That one had us just rolling on the floor dying laughing because how many times we really have done that!
Wednesday I worked and then came home and started to clean my room. Lyss and were looking at photographers when Eva started begging Lyss to go on a bike ride. Lyss didn't really want to go without Dan but Eva would not stop nagging. She went to go pump up the bike tires and "needed help" and made me come out. She told me that Dan was proposing and that Lyss needed to go on a bike ride so that he would be able to. Oh. Got it. Someone probably should have told me like 2 hours earlier so I could've been helpful. A grumpy Lyss left. She rode to the river with Eva and then as soon as they were there she turned around and said she wasn't going to go any farther. She was about 10 seconds away from Dan's first chalk note! Eva got her turned around and chalk notes and roses later she found Dan in the middle of a beautiful yard. There were statues and fountains and a bench. Dan got down on one knee, asked the question and magic.
They took pictures, picked up ice cream and then came home. I was pretty sad to not have been there since Tom and Eva were both there. [apparently I "can't keep a secret" - which is not true but whatever]. I'm SO happy for Dan and Alyssa. They will be getting married in July and will then have eternity together.That evening I went to a bridal shower for Kennedy. We've known each other since we were probably 7. We used to babysit together and would clean. One time we used almost a whole cup of ammonia on the kitchen floor. [Maybe that's why I'm so weird. :).] It was so much fun to be with her. She is such a radiant person. The girls throwing the shower went to a lot of work and it showed. We had some fun with toliet paper wedding dresses (my group totally won) and a game with answers given by her fiance. It was a fun night.
After the shower I called home and had a mini-breakdown. There were some things really stressing me out and they were making me feel very out of control of my life. Honestly mostly it was probably stress from finals coming out in that way but I just couldn't deal with it. Really my life (long-term) is better than I could have asked for there are just some things (short-term) that are frustrating me. And the reality was that they were things from other people that were stressing me out. I can't change the way other people think or act. All I can do is be the best me. That's it. After talking and crying with Mom I really didn't want to go home and I really just wanted to laugh so I went to Patrick's. I called on the way but even if he hadn't answered I figured someone would be home and would just let me crash in their apartment. I'm so happy I went. Carly and Jordan were there [note: I really like Carly - her comment was that if she wasn't getting married she would want to be my roommate and I completly agree], Austin and Victoria were there for part of the time and Isaac got home from work later. And we all just laughed together. Austin showed us crazy cool things about snakes and their mouths. Patrick showed me magic with a circle thing [the name actually starts with an m but i can't remember what it is called] and then we just talked and laughed. I needed that. It made all the difference for my night.
Thursday I worked and then had lunch at the Pizza Factory with the department for the students who are graduating. I went home and Eva and I spent the afternoon getting ready for Lyssa's bridal shower. We had extra time and so I played some guitar too. The shower turned out to be really nice. We had some girls from freshman year, girls from our Liberty Square ward, a girl from her dance team.
We played bridal charades to start with wedding words, their favorite things and stories. When there were key words, after we guessed the word, Lyss would tell the story (like proposal, first kiss, etc). We also played scattergories with categories based on weddings [idea courtesy of Jord]. We had yummy treats... chips and salsa and guacomole (Eva's - yum!), strawberries and pineapple, and a chocolate cake that was divine. Thank you Sam's club! After eating and mingling Lyss opened presents ;) and then we finished up with some good old girl talk. I was so happy to see girls from freshman year (Sarah is dating someone!) Heather and Eva had a loud and animated and repetitive and amusing and giddy conversation for an hour and then after I did my student ratings I went to bed.
Friday morning I woke up late and missed my shower. So my hair my was greasy at work and I felt gross all morning. So I went home right after work and went to the gym [best decision of the whole week - I love the feeling after a good run and lifting] and then took my shower. Heather Jean came over and was feeling kinda stressed out so we went to Spoon it Up. [Sorbet seriously is my favorite thing]. We studied for a few hours and then we went to her apartment and packed her up so she could stay over at our apartment for the rest of the weekend and then we went and had Zupas for dinner. We studied for a while longer and then I ran up to campus and took my first final [parenting]. I didn't do quite as well as I wanted but it should be good enough. Heather and I curled up to a good chick flick when I got home and then were asleep by 10:30 or so.
I woke up about 8:00 today and spent the morning studying and doing laundry. I came up to campus just after lunch and took final number two [work and relationships]. I got a 98%. [Congratulations! - Oh how I love it when the TV screens at the testing center tell me that I am awesome]. So now I'm half way done! Right now (or at least as soon as I post this) I'm studying for nutrition which I'll hopefully take tonight and then adolescent development Monday! Life is good!
Hey, I didn't know that you played the guitar. That is so awesome :D
ReplyDeleteI love guitar! Is that Kennedy from here that I would know of? So that means she is getting married? Cool.
ReplyDeleteI loved this post; I just figured out on my long day of Jim's 50th birthday post that I could write a little here and there and post it when I thought it was complete! I had to that day or I would forget all the details along the way. I wondered how you had that kind of time for long posts, or remembered so many detail things about your days... now I know! Cool. I am so doing that. Maybe I will be better at blogging. I am trying I miss my non-eventful day posts I used to have for my journaling. Those are life too, even if there is no birthday or proposal or funny dog event... just dinner at home and being happy with the fam. Note to self: do more of those!
Thanks Rach, you inspire me to keep being better and happy (I have been a real grump around here lately, I think I am starting to have hotflashes, EEEEKKKK) !!