Growing Up

I just realized that in a few short months, all my guy friends from high school will be home from their missions. Also, I'm graduating with a bachelor's degree in less one year. ONE. One is not a very big number. You know what this means? I'm growing up. I'm going to be a real adult soon. Yeah, I've been a "legal" adult for a few years now but it's really not the same. I've still only been working part time jobs, am on my parents' insurance plans, and just going to school with a bunch of other undergraduate students. In just one year I will have taken the GRE, have finished my bachelor's degree and be finishing up my internship. At this point I will have to decide if I'm going to get a full time job working in my chosen field or go on to graduate school right away. The skills I've learned in college will no longer be applied to random case studies with text book answers. Instead, I'll be using them to help REAL people in REAL life situations. Yes,  I will be helping change people's lives. Weird.

New year, new semester.

What am I supposed to be doing right now? Writing a paper. That doesn't sound very fun so I'm going to sit here in my room typing so that my roommates think I'm being a good student :)

Life is so great right now. I know I say that all the time, but it truly is. I couldn't be happier! I had a wonderful Christmas. I got to spend three whole weeks at home with my family and friends. I had so many fun lunch dates with old friends and got to see my returned missionary buddies. Can't believe they're all home!! Oh, and even got to have my old job back for those three weeks. SO grateful for that. Yay for making money and seeing my old work buddies again!

A new semester has started and I'm definitely struggling to get back into my studious routine. It's so much more fun to hang out with my friends, meet new people, waste time on Pinterest, etc. I am really enjoying my classes, though. I love being in upper-division classes and learning the things I actually WANT to learn. It's the best. Yes, the classes are hard and will be pretty demanding as the semester goes on, but I am so excited for it all. I recently changed my emphasis to environmental/occupational health to health promotion and I couldn't be more excited. I love that I've found something that will lead me to a career that I'm passionate about and will enjoy completely. No, I won't be making as much money as I would have been as a PA, but I know I will enjoy this much more. It's a perfect fit :)

Since it's the new year, I've set some goals for myself so I can grow and improve. I'm excited because in my pathophysiology class, we have the opportunity to make a healthy change in our life for a whole month. We're required to write about our experiences in a daily journal and at the end, write an evaluation. My goal is to exercise for at least thirty minutes five days a week. Believe it or not, I haven't been doing well with exercising since high school. It'll be good for me to get back in shape. Can't wait!

Also... I have a new room-roommate since my cute Becca is leaving on a mission in a couple of weeks. My new roommate's name is Lexi. I adore that girl. Seriously.  Nobody could ever truly replace Becca, but Lexi is super duper great. We hit it off so well, and she's quickly become one of my best friends. She's so sweet, fun, and just all-around wonderful. I just love her and am so grateful for that girl!

Obviously, my other roommates are still fantastic :) They're so patient with me and I love them! Couldn't ask for better roommates. Love you, Sarah and Whit!

While I'm listing the roommates I'm grateful for, I might as well give a shout out to our "fifth roommate," Alex. He's our FHE brother and comes over all the time. We've loved having him around to fix things, tell us stories, give advice, watch YouTube videos, and just have a good time. He's definitely taken the "big brother" role for the apartment and we're grateful for him.

Other exciting news... my family is coming down this weekend to visit and go to my cousin's mission farewell! I can't wait to see them!

Well, that's all I have for now. Sorry this post is so random (okay, all my posts are super random).

Until next time...

Love life :)

So I'm really inconsistent with this whole blogging thing, oh well. I have all sorts of exciting new to share, though!

1. Missionaries really DO come home after two years! My cousin, Josh, came home last Thursday; my friend, Sam Whitworth, came home last Saturday; and  another friend, Kendall Hatch, comes home this weekend! I never thought this day would come. I can't wait to see them in a couple of weeks!
2. I get to go home to see my family in just two weeks! TWO WEEKS! I haven't seen my cute little sisters in over three months. I'm so excited to see them along with my parents and extended family for Josh's homecoming talk.
3. My roommates are just fantastic :) Karaoke nights, drinking mass amounts of hot chocolate, group dinners, watching Friends, creeping on the mailman, and baking are regular activities at our apartment.I didn't know a single one of these girls when I moved in, but you would never guess it now! We've become so close and I really don't know what I'd do without them!
4. I'm making friends! One of my biggest fears when I first moved down here was that I would have trouble making friends and being social. Luckily, this has not been the case.
5. I love my job and the people I work with! I feel so blessed to have a job in an area where unemployment rates are fairly high, especially one that I enjoy so much! It helps that my co-workers are lots of fun, too :)
6. School is going really well. I LOVE my public health classes and am learning so much. I'm getting excited to find an internship and eventually a real job where I'll be able to use these skills and help others every day.
7. I'm starting to learn a little bit more about my Heavenly Father's plan for me and my future. It's definitely not the exact path I would have planned for myself, but I know it's going to be so much better.
8. It's finally fall. Fall is my FAVORITE season :) It was even cold enough for me to wear my yellow pea-coat last week. 

Big Changes...

Well, I did it! I'm officially a college graduate. It's so weird to think that a whole two years has gone by already. This afternoon I'm moving out of my apartment and saying goodbye to my roommates. I sure am going to miss those girls. They are honestly some of the most incredible people I know and I am so grateful I had the opportunity to get to know them this semester. I've had so much fun getting to know them and I've learned lots! Here are just a few of the things I've learned this semester:

1. If you microwave a hard-boiled egg for too long, it explodes and makes a big mess.
2. I am capable of driving a standard. Thanks to Sariah and her patience in teaching me... I know it was probably a difficult and high-stress task :)
3. Applebee's maple pecan blondies are incredibly delicious. However, if you go to Applebee's at 11p.m. in your pajamas and order a blondie with mozzarella sticks, your waitress may think you are a little strange.
4. Never forget about your bananas. If you neglect them too long, they turn radioactive, leak juices, and bubble all over your microwave and refrigerator and it's not easy to clean up.
5. Oregano and spearmint smell great...
6. It's okay to pray to fine a lost earring/i Card
7. The Lord hears and answers prayers and is constantly guiding our lives. Sometimes he asks us to do hard things, but he always finds a way to help us get through them if we ask.

In one week I'm moving out of state. I was able to get a job and so I'm moving down earlier than expected for training. I will be living with my great uncle Daryl and aunt Mary Jo for a month until my apartment contract starts. I'm so excited to get to know them and am grateful for their generosity and kindness. I won't have any friends down there for a few weeks, which is kind of scary, but I have amazing family down there and I'm sure I'll be able to meet lots of new friends through work.

Oh yeah, and my friends are coming home from their missions! Two of them come home in less than 100 days!! It's crazy how fast two years goes by! I'm so looking forward to October, November, January, and April! I'm so proud of my friends and their willingness to serve, but I still can't wait to see them again.

These next few months will bring all sorts of exciting new experiences and I am so excited to see how things work out! Life is just so great :)

What? I have a blog?

What could I be doing right now? Lots of things... Homework, sleeping, studying... But guess what? I'm not. I'm blogging for the first time in basically forever! Lots of things have changed. I don't even know where to start. First off... I'm transferring. Yep! Who saw that one coming? Not me! I'm graduating with my associates in July and moving out of state to go to a bigger university. Honestly that was one of the hardest decisions I've ever had to make. I'm perfectly comfortable where I am. I know lots of people, I'm less than an hour away from home, I'm familiar with the campus, I just love it here. So much. I'm moving somewhere bigger that I have no idea how to find my away around and into an apartment with a bunch of people I don't know. At first I was a little anxious about the whole thing, but now I'm really excited. Don't get me wrong, I'm still nervous about a few things and I'm going to miss my other college a lot, but I know that I'm doing what I'm supposed to. I just know it's right... for whatever crazy reason. Guess I'll find out!

This semester has been a great one. My roommates are just so laid back I love it! My classes are pretty okay considering that they're general ed classes. Heck, I'm even enjoying my China class... Never thought I'd see that day. Work is going great. I am so thankful for my job! I love that I get to wear business clothes every day! I'm going to really miss this place.

I am so thankful for my love of running. Tonight I was a little stressed out looking for jobs and internships, making sure my fall schedule is the way I want it, and just trying to get through the day. I was finally fed up with it and just went for a run. It wasn't a very long run, because I was dumb enough to eat a bunch of Oreos right before I left. About a mile in I cramped up pretty bad... Never  fear, I kept going another mile and a half or so. It was so great. Just me, the sidewalk, my music, and my electric yellow running shoes (I may or may not be in love with those things. They're the best!). Ahh I can't even express how great it makes me feel. Nothing clears my mind much better than a good run.

Well this was a pretty random, pointless blog but I promise I'll be better at keeping up and making things interesting. Roommate adventure weekend is coming up soon. Oh, and my birthday! Woohoo!

Until next time...

Here we go again!

Well, at least I blog once a month, right? Haha! Today is move-in day at my university. Has it really been a whole year?? I can't even believe how fast it's flown by. It's weird to think that within the last year, I've sent out 15 of my best friends on missions. It has been so incredible to watch them all grow.

It was this time last year when I met one of my very best friends, Liz, and started a closer friendship with Beth Ann, the prettiest little red-head at our whole university! We've been through SO much together!! Liz's knee surgery, our chemistry classes (yeah for ice cream to get us through!), boys, my random teary-eyed break downs, Beth Ann's many dates, oh the list could go on! I could never thank these girls enough for putting up with me through all of this.

Also within the last year, I discovered who my best friends really were all along... My family. In high school I never would have thought they'd be my best friends. Nobody really knows me like they do. Nobody but my mom would be able to handle me the way she does :) I love them so much, I really do. I've loved being home for a little while to see my sisters growing up. I helped teach Hailee how to count and recognize colors. She is just my most favorite little munchkin ever! I hope I have a little girl like her one day :) I've loved finally being able to get closer to my cousin, Courtney. She'll be up at school with me this fall and I am so excited to have one of my XC workout buddies back!!!

It's crazy to me how much I've learned and changed in the last year (and how random this blog post is... sorry!) There are so many things that have shaped me into somebody better, and I know there are so many more growing experiences to come. Growing up makes me excited and freaks me out all at the same time! It's just nice to know that I have a Heavenly Father who's watching out for me, giving me experiences I need, and guiding me the whole way through. He has blessed me SO MUCH  this last year... I've had at least two jobs at a time, pulled the grades I need for PA school (except chemistry... maybe if I study this time I'll get a better grade), and so much more! Can't wait to see what the new semester brings!! Sophomore year, here I come!! :)

Jesus wants me for a sunbeam...

Wow! I know I say this all the time, but my life is just so crazy! It seems like ever since graduation I've been running a million miles a minute. I've been sleep deprived, worn down, and pushed to my limits... So lately I've tried to take a second and look around. I realized the other day that I've been living and working for tomorrow, next year, 5 years from now, and for anything but today. Once again, I've gotten caught up in the future instead of looking at the beautiful things today. So... I decided to look at some primary kids with simple lives and learn from them.

I've been so blessed to have so many little kids in my life. They are the best examples to me! Little kids have so many Christlike attributes and for some crazy reason, as we grow up we lose them and have to work to regain them. Probably one of the most Christlike people I know is my sister, Emily. She's 10 years old, and a master at patience. You can poke her, tease her, follow her around begging to play with her friends, break promises to her, (this list could go on forever...) and she still forgives. She loves everyone the same no matter what they do to her. She doesn't really yell or complain, just does as she's asked. I hope one day I can be like Emily. In fact, she has impressed me so much that I have decided I will name my first little girl Emma, after my sister, Emily, and Emma Smith, wife of Joseph Smith, Jr.

Another Christlike individual is my neighbor, Davis. He is honestly one of my favorite little boys ever. He's probably 4 or 5 and I just love him. The other day I was watching him have a nerf gun war with his friends. The two older boys had huge nerf guns that could hold 55 "bullets" and you could just go crazy shooting them. They also had little lasers that helped aim so you could shoot more accurately. Davis had this tiny little nerf gun that only held one "bullet" at a time and he had to reload it every time he shot... He didn't have anything to help him aim either. Obviously, Davis lost every time. The funny part is, he hardly even complained. He'd give his best, shoot a couple people, lose within a few seconds, and then just go sit out and wait until the next round so he could try again. I thought about how many times I complain about my circumstances when they really aren't that bad. There are people in this world that clearly have an unfair advantage and don't complain at all- they just fight with all they have and wait for the next time to try again. I have been blessed with so much, why am I always complaining? (Side note... I also love Davis because he thinks I'm smarter than his brother, Mark, and "really REALLY pretty")

Anyway, enough of my story time. I'm going to get off this computer and go enjoy the simple things in life like eating raspberries and peas out of the "ground" (garden) with my baby sister and this week try harder to really find the joyful things in my journey :)