Rest, Relaxation, and Other Random Thoughts

Phew. I made it, people! I survived finals! I survived another semester! And I passed all my classes! Let's celebrate. :)

To celebrate I got sick over the weekend, which is always fun. But I spent the time reading and having Monk and SNSD Hello Baby marathons. I love reading so so much! It makes me happy. Then Monk is just a given to make you feel better if you're down, as is Hello Baby. And yes, Hello Baby IS a Korean show. And I love it. Its uber cute. :) Please to view these pictures.



This is SNSD Hello Baby.



And this is SHINee Hello Baby. These shows make me so happy, I can't even tell you. If you need a pick me up, I suggest you watch them. It's so nice to be out of school for a while! Rest and Relaxation, baby! :)

I've been thinking a lot about the future lately and what I want to do with the rest of my life and I've realized something. A lot of my life is controled or decided by fear. Fear of failure, fear of ridicule, fear of being unhappy. Fear, fear, fear. But as I was thinking the other night about what to major in, what career to pursue, mission or no mission, etc. I remembered an experience I had at the end of April. My iPod was on shuffle and I was lying in bed thinking (I think a lot. haha). At the time I wasn't really happy with my life. I felt helpless and directionless. I felt like I didn't have a place. But then on came Carrie Underwoods "Ever Ever After." One phrase inparticular stood out to me:

"Unafraid, unashamed, there is joy to be claimed in this world. You even might wind up being glad to be you."

And I got to thinking. Why can't I live like that? Be unafraid and unashamed? Why should I care what others think of me? Why should I wait to start living my life. I always say things like "When I'm published" or "When I lose weight". But why should I wait?

That's what started it all. The most amazing summer of my life where I learned and grew so much. I've made the above phrase my motto that I try to live my life by. I want to claim my joy. The song also talks about how dreams and fairytales still come true and that everybody wants to believe they do. And I really believe that. People don't want to care what others think about them. They want to fulfill their goals and live life to the fullest. They want to have joy. Everyone wishes their life was a fairytale.

But most people are too paralyzed by doubt or disbelief to chase their dreams. Have you ever noticed how the greatest fairytales usually involve the main character taking action? Taking the first step. Breaking out of the ordinary. Belle goes looking for her father. Cinderella goes to the ball.

The point is that if you want things to happen, you have to make them happen. And don't let the doubters or people who can't see the fairies get you down. (P.S. That's a Fablehaven reference. Gotta love Fablehaven.)

Sometimes I just need to remind myself of things the Lord has already taught me. Like don't be afraid. You can do hard things. Pursue your dreams and goals and be happy in the process.

So, in honor of this thought, here is Carrie Underwoods "Ever Ever After" Music Video. :) Have a great week!



P.S. Elder Uchtdorf gave a great talk that goes along well with the theme today. Here's the link. :)

Your Happily Ever After

And the World Keeps Spinning

So . . . it's been a while, hasn't it? I know I promised I'd blog more often and that I'd tell you all about The Box.

I lied.

Well, I didn't really lie. More like I changed my mind. And while my intentions were good, I don't think I'll be talking about The Box today. Maybe next post. :)

So what have I been up to the past two months? School. Lots and lots of school. Can I just say that school is hard? And stressful? And fun, and wonderful, and exciting? And hard? Yeah, that's what school is. That's what life is.

Things get busy. At the moment I've just plunged into one of the busiest weekends of my life. This was the last week of classes for Weber State, which means that I, being a procrastinator, had many assignments due. Then I'm also in the Ogden Institute Christmas Show. I love it. I'm so happy and grateful that I get to be a part of it. We had one show tonight and two shows tomorrow. Then on Sunday the Chorale (the choir I sing in) is singing in my YSA Stake Conference. And next week is finals. Then I'm free.

That's what I keep telling myself. In one week I'll be able to lounge around the house sipping hot chocolate and making my way through my To-Read list. No worries, no responsibilities, no deadlines, no commitments. Just me and some good books and good people.

A lot of things have happened to me over the past few months. I feel changed. I feel blessed. I feel grateful. I feel like I've learned a lot and have become a better person through the trials I've faced. Life gets hard. It does. Life gets crazy. Sometimes things that make our lives hard are in our power to change. Sometimes they aren't. Life is about learning to not only survive the hard times, but to find happiness in them. We do the things that are in our power and if necessary make changes. And the things that aren't in our power to change we leave up to the Lord and know that He will provide.

That's two things I'm very grateful for: the power to change and my Savior. The Savior is the one who gives me the power to change. To become better than I am. To rise above my own personal limitations with His help and guidance. I'm human. I fall. I fail. I make mistakes. But I know that I can change. I don't have to make the same mistakes today that I made yesterday and those mistakes don't have to haunt me or damn me.

I'm just living my life as best I can. When I sang in the Elder Bednar fireside in October something he said really stuck out to me. He was answering the question of "How do I know when it's the Holy Ghost telling me something or if it's just me telling myself what I want to hear?" And Elder Bednar said it doesn't matter. Just be a good girl. Walk knowing you will be led. So, I'm trying to be a good girl. And I know I'll be led down the path the Lord wants me on. That I'm on it.

So, yeah. I love life. I really, really love life, even if it is kind of hard sometimes. :)

"In three words I can sum up everything I've learned about life. It goes on." Robert Frost

The Book of Mormon and General Conference

Hi everyone! I just wanted to quickly update on a couple of things since I had some free time.

First, my goal to read The Book of Mormon in September. Well, despite my best efforts I only made it to the middle of 3rd Nephi. But I still think that's pretty good! Even though I didn't finish it, I learned so much as I read. There were a few days towards the end of September when I literally read The Book of Mormon every chance I got. I read it for hours on end. And after reading it I can truly say The Book of Mormon is the word of God. It's uncanny how much the Nephites and Lamanites remind me of our day and age. People are the same hundreds of years ago as they are today. Just as stubborn and quick to do evil and slow to call upon their God, but repentance and conversion are just as real today as they were back then. The Book of Mormon has strengthened my faith that Heavenly Father is still watching over us. He's watching over me, helping me in my life. He still performs miracles today. He still speaks to us through Prophets and Apostles, which brings me to my next topic.

General Conference. Did you all watch? I hope you did because it was truly amazing! One of my favorite talks was by President Dieter F. Uchtdorf where he told us to slow down. Get back to the basics. Read your scriptures daily, pray to Heavenly Father, attend church, keep the commandments. He told us that the Savior's message is simple: "Come follow me." This is something I've been able to feel in my own life. This last summer has been amazing for me. I've learned and grown so much in my testimony of the Gospel and of my Savior. When you keep the commandments of God everything falls into place. When you pray and read the scriptures you recieve answers and help and guidance. Things just naturally begin to be weeded out of your life and I know that the simple things really are what make you happy. It's not having a fancy house or the newest cell phone. It's feeling that you can stand before your God say "I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith." (2 Timothy 4:7).

Anyway, I hope I don't sound too preachy, but what can I say? It's the truth. I know it's the truth and it's something people need to realize. I truly believe that everyone, no matter who they are or what they profess to believe, knows there is a God. But like the Lamanites and later the Nephites people just let their hearts be hardened. They don't let the truth into their hearts, but that doesn't change the fact that it is the truth.

Alright, now I really am getting preachy. Haha. But my goal for October is to be more outgoing, and this is pretty outgoing for me. I'm doing pretty well at this goal. I've met some new people in Institute Choral (which, btw, is singing when Elder Bednar comes to the Ogden Institute to speak! I'm so excited!) and also some people in my classes. This will be one of my hardest goals, I think. Initiating conversations, speaking up in class, and possibly dancing to Rokkugo on the shuttle. Haha. That would be fun, right? But I will continue to work hard to push myself to stay outside the box.

So, that's about it. I hope you are all doing well. Til we meet again! :)

Next Post: The Box.

So much to say, so little time . . .

Well hello people of the blogosphere! How have you all been these past two (almost three) months I haven't blogged? Did you miss me?

So . . . I haven't blogged for a while . . . A really, really long while. Sorry. Not that anyone reads this anyway, but it's nice for myself.

Where to even begin? I've now started my second year at Weber State University and will be all done with my generals at the end of this semester. This means I will officially have to declare a major within the next three months. Aaack. Scary. But, I have decided to become an English Education Major. It will be hard and yucky sometimes, but overall I think this is the career that I'm supposed to follow. :)

I'm doing well in my classes. Two are online classes that are kinda kicking my butt a little bit, and two are on campus. I'm taking Geology (when I told my friend this he said "Geology? Who takes that?" and I said "I do."), English- Intro to Fiction Writing (duh), Nutrition, and Communication- Dynamics of Mass Communication. You should all be extremely proud of me when I tell you that I have not missed class once thus far this semester! And one of my classes is as 9 in the morning. Yeah, I know it's impressive. ;)

Also, did you know that I'm beginning to learn Korean? It's true. I already know how to say all the most important things like 'Hello!' and 'I don't want a blood transfusion!' Seriously though, next time you see me ask me to speak some. I have all this knowledge of Korea but no one ever asks. *sigh* So start asking! Haha.

You remember my post from several months ago where I detailed my 12 month plan? Well, things with that are going extremely well as well! ;)

My May/June goal of being healthier went well and is continuing to progress. I'll admit I'm still not 100% on it, but I have lost weight and run on the treadmill at least once a week which for me is good. But of course I count dancing to Super Junior and SHINee as exercise, so . . . ;) (P.S. In addition to asking me to speak Korean, you should ask me to dance to Super Junior or SHINee next time you see me. It would make both of us happy, I promise.)

Then my July goal was morning and evening prayers, which is now a habit. The change I've noticed in my life and how much closer I feel to my Heavenly Father is awe inspiring. There really is power in prayer. But don't take my word for it, try it for yourself. :)

Then August was my goal of waking up early. This goal is going well. I wake up in time to get to my 9 o'clock class on Tuesdays and Thursdays, not to mention church on Sunday. But then other days I generally sleep in til 10:30. But I think it's going well. I can get up when there's a reason. :)

And finally, September: Read the entire Book of Mormon. So, this goal isn't quite finished, but it's going well. I'm already in Alma. But . . . I did kind of cheat. I started reading the Book of Mormon back in August as part of my personal scripture study. Still, I think it counts. It's not important how fast I read it, just that I read and study and ponder it.

I just feel like I have grown so much over the past few months. I don't even know how to describe it. My life is going well. And even though it's not perfect and I have my struggles and trials I'm still really, really happy. All the time. Haha. It's kind of weird. No one should be this happy all the time. And I know it's all because of my Heavenly Father and Savior and the things they've done for me in my life. It's truly amazing the way He has worked in my life, placing me in the places I need to be and inspiring me to do the things I need to do. And I really know that is the reason why I'm so happy. It's a great feeling knowing that no matter what happens and no matter what curveballs are thrown at me, I can get through it with my Savior's help. He watches over me and directs me. I've decided that the number one reason to be happy in life is this: Jesus Christ lives and He loves me. That's all I need to know and that knowledge has made a world of difference. :)

There's just so much I want to say! And so little time. I have an assignment due tomorrow, 8 page short story that I haven't quite finished. But rest assured it will be done and will be great! Well . . . it will be done at least. ;) I promise I'll do my best to blog more, but over the last few months as I've finally started to get my priorities in place blogging has fallen pretty fall on the list. But I will try to get on more than once every three months. :)

Have a great week everybody!

Dream Big

Hi everybody! It's been a while since I blogged, so I figured "What the heck, I'm not doing anything else at 2 in the morning." (I know one of my goals was Early to Bed, Early to Rise, but that goal doesn't go into effect until August thank you very much.) ;)

So, you all ask, what have I been up to? I don't think I've ever really blogged about my Korean pop culture obsession before, so here we go. I am OBSESSED with Korean pop culture.

First and foremost, is Super Junior.



Super Junior is the best thing I've discovered in the past year. I first learned about them in my World Music class, which if you will kindly remember, I was not crazy about. I'm happy that something good came of going to that class though. If you have a spare moment or two I highly recommend you look them up on youtube. Some of my favorite songs are "Bonamana", "Sorry, Sorry", "Super Girl", and "One Fine Spring Day".

I've been able to get most of my friends hooked on SuJu as well. One friend in particular, Ash, is my very bestest Asian loving music buddy. We're seriously considering going to Korea for study abroad if we can swing it our senior year. Here's hoping. :)

Anyway, there are a couple other Korean bands I like too. Girls Generation are great, as well as SHINee.





My favorite Girls Generation song is "Run Devil Run", while my favorite SHINee song is "Ring Ding Dong". Look them up and join the Asian obsession with me. :)


So, all these amazing groups (Super Junior, Girls Generation, and SHINee) are all owned by the same record label in Korea called SM Entertainment. SM is putting on a world tour featuring the aforementioned groups and some of others. And guess where they'll be coming on September 4, 2010? CALIFORNIA!!!! The Staples Center is their only scheduled stop in the U.S. on this world tour. I really, really wish I could go. So if anyone would be willing to chaperone me in L.A. for a weekend . . . :)



Anyway, moving on. Then, through a series of circumstances that would take too long to explain on this already too long, rambling blog post, I discovered the Korean drama "Boys Over Flowers".



From left to right: Song Woo Bin (played by Kim Joon), So Yi Jung (played by Kim Bum *He's my favorite*), Gu Jun Pyo (played by Lee Min Ho), Geum Jan Di (played by Koo Hye Sun), and Yoon Ji Hoo (played by Kim Hyun Joong).

I don't even know how to begin describing how much I love this show! It was originally a Manga cartoon, and I read the entire series online in about 3 days. This sounds really corny, but the show and manga has taught me a lot about love and friendship. Check out the first episode (you can find it on youtube with english subtitles) and you will be hooked. It's amazing!

So, that about sums up my Korean pop culture obsession. I like listening to my SuJu in the car and singing along with lyrics that I have no clue what they mean. But, you guys are probably sick of hearing about this (I know my family is). So how about we talk about books? :)

I love writing. I've said it a hundred times and I'll say it a million more. I love reading. I love classic lit, YA, Fantasy, Sci Fi, Inspirational, Self-help, all of it. My own writing and stories are coming along. I will be honest with you all, sometimes it's really hard to keep going on a story. I get this nagging voice in the back of my head that tells me I'll never be published and no one will like what I wite. Let's face it, I won't be the next J.K. Rowling or Stephenie Meyer. So why do I do it?

I ask myself this all the time. It would be easy to never finish a book or an outline. It would be really easy to give up on my dream of being a full time author. But it's something that I want so much. I really believe in my soul that what I write matters and that the stories I have to tell are things people will appreciate.

Currently I have 1 novel I'm seriously working on: Light vs. Dark. I have two other outlines of stories rearing and ready to go. One is an LDS YA novel similar to "The Secret Journal of Brett Colton." The other is an urban fantasy. They are stories I love, characters I love. I dream about my books. Is that weird?

Anyway, I'm rambling. Now why, you ask, is this post called Dream Big? Because I have big dreams. My dreams, I think, are bigger than most. There are plenty of people out there who want to write a book, or who want to become actresses, or do whatever it is they dream of. But along the way they lose sight of the dream and settle for something less. I won't settle. Being a full-time author is my dream. And, although you all will think I'm crazy, I really want to go to Korea. I want to travel the world and learn new things, visit new places, and gain experience.

Those are my dreams. What are yours? Just to finish off this post I want to put some of the quotes that keep me reaching for my dreams. I hope you guys keep reaching for yours too. :)

"All our dreams can come true if we have the courage to pursue them."
-Walt Disney

"It is not the critic who counts: not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles or where the doer of deeds could have done better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood, who strives valiantly, who errs and comes up short again and again, because there is no effort without error or shortcoming, but who knows the great enthusiasms, the great devotions, who spends himself for a worthy cause; who, at the best, knows, in the end, the triumph of high achievement, and who, at the worst, if he fails, at least he fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who knew neither victory nor defeat."
-Theodore Roosevelt

Quickie

Hi all. I revamped the blog. Do you like? Please, I beg you, feed my multi-color turtles so they don't starve. :)

Not much is going on with me. I've been working a lot. I got a couple of outlines written for some stories that have been floating around in my head and I'm excited to start working on them.

Anyway, have a nice week everybody!

P.S. Told you it would be quick. ;)

The Teen Writers Conference

Hi everyone! So, it is 1:30 a.m. and I am writing a blog post. Lovely, right? It was a very long, but very fun and educational day today. I went to The Teen Writers Conference which was held at Weber State University (which is where I go to school! Whoda thunk?). There were lots of great authors there such as Lisa Mangum (The Hourglass Door, and The Golden Spiral. We love those books!) and Josi Kilpack (Lemon Tart, English Trifle, and Devil's Food Cake. All culinary mysteries. All delightful reads.) and Heather Moore (Abinadi, Alma, and Alma the Younger) and Dan Wells (I Am Not a Serial Killer. This one has been on my to read list for a while. He' been at a lot of conferences I've been too, but never has any paperback copies of his book. What's the deal, does he think I'm made of money? Haha!). So, as you can see there were a lot of great people there.

This Teen Writers Conference is just that: for teens. I just barely made the cut sinc I'm 19, so it was my first and last year. I was really happy it was held at Weber though. It made it a lot more comfortable (and I knew where there were tables outside and ate my lunch under the sun. Wasn't today just gorgeous?). I got a lot of good advice and learned a lot.

Also, I entered their first page contest along with about 70 other people. Although I didn't win first or second place, about seven other people did. There was a three way tie for first (these people scored 87 out of 90 with the judges) and a four way tie for second (these people scored 84 out of 90). But even though I didn't win the contest, I did win a nice door prize! Woohoo! I like me some free stuff. :) But they did release the judging sheets used to everyone and I was very pleased with the score I got. I ended up with 84 out of 90, which I don't think is bad at all! However, no one would tell us who the judges were and I really want to know! Maybe if I bother someone enough they will tell me.

The conference started at around 9:00 and ended around 5:30. I came home, ate some dinner, and crashed on the couch. There I slept six hours, which is pretty much a whole nights sleep for me. This puts me in an awkward situation considering I am wide awake at 1:30 in the morning. I'm planning on getting some writing done, then I'll try going to bed again.

If I were in Korea I wouldn't be having this problem. :)

My Amazing, Brilliant, Awesome Idea!

Hello everybody. Sheesh, it feels like I've blogged a lot in the last couple of weeks, doesn't it? You guys aren't really that interested in my life, are you? Or are you stalkers? Haha. Either way I don't care as long as someone ends up reading this.

So, my amazing, brilliant, awesome idea! It's probably not really that amazing or brilliant, but I think it's pretty awesome. Lately I've been feeling kind of overwhelmed. Lots of you probably know how I've been struggling trying to figure out what to major in and what to do with my life. When I lay down at night I can't help but think about all the things I should have done during the day or things I should have done differently. When I think about all my flaws and things I want to become better at or things I want to change I get pretty discouraged. For reason, I feel like I have to change all those things at once, become better at once. But I realize that's unrealistic. So, in comes my idea.

I'm calling it the 12 month challenge. Basically I'm going to pick one goal to work on every month and focus only on that one thing. This way I'm not feeling horrible for not being able to change and accomplish everything I want to at once. I heard somewhere that it takes three weeks to make something a habit. I figure that by working on one thing for a month and making it a habit, I'll have a better chance of keeping it in the long term. Then I can build and work on another thing for another month and before you know it I'll have changed the things I want!

Does that make any sense at all? It makes sense to me, which I guess is all that really matters. Haha! ;)

So here's the plan. I came up with 10 things I want to work on improving. "But," you say, "That leaves 2 empty months in your 12 month plan!" Why yes my blogging compadres, yes it does. Those 2 extra months are my spillover. There are just some things on my list that I want to spend more than a month working on to get into the habit. And some of the things I think will be hard to accomplish in one month. Hence, the extra 2 months.

That's another good thing about this plan. It could be a 6 month plan, or 3 month plan, or whatever you wanted depending on how many goals you have and how long you want to spend working on it. I'm being ambiitious and picked 10. :)

What? You say you want to know what my goals are? Well, I was getting to that part! Maybe patience should be on your goal list. ;) Haha. I'm just kidding. Here's my list and the months I plan on working on that goal.

-May/June: Being Healthier (I've already started on this one and it's going great. I'm running on the treadmill three times a week and watching what I eat. Yay!)
-July: Morning and evening prayers(I will of course be doing my best to remember my morning and evening prayers before July, but in July I will be focusing and making it a point to say my prayers every day.)
-August: Early to bed, early to rise. (I'm excited for this one because by waking up early I can do a lot of my goals in the morning before school, work, etc. It'll make it easier to do everything.)
-September: Read the whole Book of Mormon (Maybe this is a little ambitious, but I've heard stories of people reading the Book of Mormon in one night. I can do it in one month.)
-October: Being more outgoing(I'm not a social butterfly, but I want to meet more people and make more friends.)
-November: Read the Doctrine and Covenants and the latest general conference issue of the Ensign
-December: Read the whole New Testament (This might be a lot ambitious. But I can do it!)
-January: Be more helpful (My mom will like this one. ;)
-February/March: Read the whole Old Testament (I've never done this, but I really want to. There are so many great stories and examples in the Old Testament for me to learn from.)
-April: Being cleaner (My room will no longer look like a dumping ground. Haha. My mom will like this one too.)

So, that's my plan for the next year. I'm very excited because by breaking it up it makes everything so much more doable! I'll keep the blog updated on my progress. And when I'm not working on my goals I'll be going to school, working, or writing.

Speaking of writing, it's been a while since I said anything about that on here, hasn't it? I guess there was the writers conference in April, but that was like a month ago. There's another conference I'm going to in June. It's actually up at Weber State and is called "The Teen Writers Conference." I wish I would have heard about this sooner. Since I'm 19 I was just barely eligible to go. So it will be my first and last year. I'm excited to go though.

I've been working a lot on Light vs. Dark. Also, I got a new story outlined and am excited to work on it. I'm trying to force myself to do edits on The Elements. But editing is no fun and I have a lot of work to do on that story before it's ready to send out to publishers. I suppose maybe The Elements can be my next 12 month challenge. Haha! ;)

So yeah. That's about all I've got. I am making some headway on deciding what to major in. And just between you and me, I'm leaning towards the English Teaching major. But more on that at a later time. :)

St. George

Hi all! It's been kind of a crazy week (I worked every day this week at work, one day from 9-7:30), but as promised here is a post on my trip to St. George! :)

I went to St. George with my friends Ashley and Megan. We had a sleepover on Tuesday night and giggled over goats and other funny things before going to bed. Then we left Wednesday at about 9 in the morning to go to St. George.

Megan was very brave and drove.



Ashley and I were very brave and were passengers.


(P.S. I'm just kidding. Megan is a great driver.)

So, after about 5 hours on the road and a quick stop in Beaver to say hello to Ashley's grandma Gater (who was nice and took us out to lunch) we arrived at our hotel.

We were exhausted.



The next day we went to lunch with my Mom and Sister who were down in St. George with my Dad for a treasurer's conference. After that we headed for the outlet stores. :)



We found the chocolate store. I was very excited. Haha! ;)



We also found this cool store called Del Sol. Everything they sell changes colors in the sun. I got a necklace and a headband.



After shopping we went and took a tour of the St. George Tabernacle. Where we posed out front, pretended to speak at the pulpit, and where I pretended to play the organ! (P.S. I really can play the organ and Allison says if I'd asked they would have let me play it for realsies.)







After our tour we walked across the street to this cute little store called Judd's where they sell all kinds of old fashioned candy and pop.



Megan and I used our bottles of Fanta to harmonize. :)



So, refreshed from our yummy drinks we went and took a tour of Brigham Young's winter home.



The grounds were in bloom and we found this cute arch, so of course we had to take a picture. :)



After Brigham Young's house we were all pretty tired from our exciting day. So we went back to the hotel and watched family feud and NCIS and other awesome shows!

The next day we went to the St. George temple to do baptisms for the dead. It's been a long time since I've gotten to do baptisms and go to the temple, so it was so nice to be able to go with my friends. It was so peaceful and calming. I love the temple. :)





After baptisms we spent most of the day in the hotel. But we did leave long enough to grab some In-N-Out burger. Megan was excited because she was the only one who'd ever eaten there before. I was excited because there were cute boys working in the kitchen. Haha. We'd been on the lookout for boys and hadn't seen any until In-N-Out. :D



That night we swam in the pool, which we later realized was very, very chlorinated and killed our hair. But we got some fun pics.



The next day we left for home, but of course we had to stop by Judd's for one last soda.



After I took that picture I accidentaly deleted all of the pictures off of my camera. Yeah. It was not so fun. I felt like crying because ALL the pictures of St. George and my writer's conference were gone. But when we got home (thanks to google and a program called Art Plus Digital Photo Recovery 3.1)I was able to recover all of the pictures. Phew!

So, that is my trip to St. George in a nutshell. Did anybody actually end up making it this far in reading? Haha.

But stay tuned because in my next post I reveal my amazing, fantastic idea! :D

Amazing Tea Party Birthday Surprise

Hi everyone! I know I promised this post a few weeks ago, and now I'm really behind on telling you all about my exciting (ahem) life!. ;)

So, birthday party. Since I was out of town on my real birthday, my friends threw me a special party the weekend after.

First they blindfolded me.



While blindfolded I attempted to take pictures. . .



Then, after getting some help out of the car and up some stairs I walked into this:



It was a Princess-themed Tea Party! My friends are great. :D



Everything was miniaturized.



Then I opened presents. My friends spoil me so much. Here are just a few of the amazing presents I got.







My friends said I was really easy to shop for since I just like toys and sparkly things. I'm really a 7 year old trapped in a 19 year olds body.

Then I insisted on some group photos, since I don't think there are enough of the four of us together.



And since it was a princess party (and we are, of course, princesses) we had to swoon.



After our swooning and pretty picture taking was done we watched a movie. I chose Beauty and the Beast, since that's one of my favorite Disney movies of all time. Overall it was a really great birthday party with really great friends. :)

In my next post: St. George!

In my next to next post: My amazing, brilliant, awesome idea!

Stay tuned! :)

Great Birthday and Great Conference

Hello! Sheesh, long time no blog, right? Sorry about that, but what with finals, then LDS Storymakers and other things I've just been too darn tired to write this long blog post. But here it goes.

Well, finals went well. I got all A's in my classes! Woot woot! So I am officially done with my first year of college! And I'm still trying to come up with my schedule for next fall, so if any of ya'll have suggestions on classes I could take let me know!

So, the day of my final final was also my birthday and also the day we went down to Provo to check into our hotel. Needless to say it was a busy day. But it was also very fun. We headed off to Provo when my parents got home from work. And guess who the first two people I saw were when we pulled into the hotel parking garage? J. Scott Savage and James Dashner! My two favorite Utah authors! It was a great way to start out the adventure. :)



My parents bought a birthday cake and brought it to the hotel. They sang to me and everything! I love my family!



The next morning I went to the opening ceremonies. There were over 450 people signed up for this years LDS Storymakers Conference.





After going to the first session (How to Avoid Common Mistakes of a Novice Writer By H.B. Moore), I was waiting around for the next session to start. This wonderful gentleman, Robert Johnson Almond, took my picture and told me about his book "Emery's Secret". So I got his picture. Check out his book and find out what Emery's secret is! :)

Then I went to "Sprinting to the Last Page or Savoring the Writing: Pacing Your Story Properly," taught by Candace Salima. It was great and I learned a lot about pacing. Then I went to "Vilainous: Creating Characters We Love to Hate," taught by my very favorite J. Scott Savage! That was awesome too. I had a front row seat and got some great tips on creating villains. And then the last session of the day I went to was "Weaving Chills and Thrills: Techniques for Mystery/Suspense Writers," by Stephanie Black. Now, I'm not technically a mystery or suspense writer, but every novel has elements of that in it, so I figured it would be good to go to.



And then after our keynote speaker (David Farland/Wolverton: He's a big time fantasy writer who has taught a lot of big time fantasy writers, such as Stephenie Meyer, Brandon Sanderson, and Brandon Mull) we went to dinner. This is me and my daddy at dinner.

So the next day I went to "Dialogue is More Than Just Talking," by Rachel Ann Nunes, who has written about a gagillion books.



Then, it was off to Aprilynne Pikes "Faeries & Vampires & Werewolves, Oh My! Writing and Selling Fantasy for the Young Adult Market." She was nice enough to let me get a picture. But, you guys, she seriously reminded me of my friend Ash. It was uncanny. I think the two are long lost sisters.

So, then I went to "World Building: Can There Be Pink Trees?" by Jessica Day George. Her books are amazing, I highly recommend you all check them out. After that it was off to Nephele Tempest's "Writing a Synopsis." Nephele is an actual literary agent, which was very exciting. And then, the last class of the conference I attended was "The Dangerous Workshop for Writers: What Every Writer Should Know," taught by none other than J. Scott Savage and James Dashner! I just had to go to that one, obviously.



And after I got my picture with both of them! They're such great guys and such inspirations. It was a great way to end.

Then it was off to the National Agent/Editor Panel where I met this guy:



His name is Donald B. Anderson. He was really nice. His book "Hanging By the Thread" is coming out in May. Check out the book trailer on www.hangingbythethread.com. :)



And with that, it was back home. I didn't want to leave. But alas, I had to.

The LDS Storymakers Conference was amazing. One of the best times I've had for a long time. I met lots of great people and got lots of great advice on writing. Seriously, I feel just so inspired and rejuvinated after that conference. Writing is what I want to do with my life. That's hard for some people to comprehend and it was nice being surrounded by people who understood what I was going through. I can do this. I will do this.

Anyway, that's my adventures in Provo. Next post: Amazing Princess Tea Party surprise Birthday Spectacular! Have a great weekend everybody! :)

Update Before Finals

How is it already April 14th? How is it that finals are next week? How is it that I'm almost done with my first year of college? And how is that I have still not chosen a major?

Oh boy, so many things happening. So I figured I'd stop in and update you all before my finals and before my mind completely turns to mush.

Last week I gave my two presentations. For my English class I ultimately decided to do the Power Rangers. My friend Ash did Pokemon, so we got together and made sugar cookies to take to class.





Don't those just look so delicious? It took us like two hours to decorate them. But it was kind of therapeutic. Maybe if you're nice to me I will make you Power Ranger cookies sometime. :)

Then I gave my speech which went well. And guess what? Yesterday I gave my last speech of the semester!!!! Yay!!!! Jump up and down with me, it's fun! But, alas, I still have to take the final. Then there is my final for Sociology. I think that's all the finals I have. But I do have big long papers and other things due in my other two classes. *Sigh* I'm very ready for summer.

So, I've been trying to decide on my schedule for next fall. I've officially signed up for two classes. Both are just gen ed requirements, science requirements to be specific. But other than that I'm really not sure what to take. My problem? I don't officially have a major. Since I'm basically done with my gen ed requirements, what classes does that leave me to take without a major?

I'm torn between majoring in English Teaching and English with Creative Writing emphasis. Last night I even made a list of pros and cons for each. The pros list was longer for English Teaching, but then again so was the cons. Even though I love Creative Writing, there's just not much I could do with it that I enjoy. You all know I want to be an author. That's my dream job. It's what I love. But let's be realistic. What are the chances of me being published? Of being a full-time author? They're not very good and despite my wish to be optimistic I have to think about my future. With teaching I'd have a basically guaranteed career. But I don't think I have the chops to be a teacher. I love English. I love reading and writing. But disciplining kids who want nothing to do with reading or writing? I don't think I could do it.

So, I am torn. Gosh, I get so nervous just thinking about having to make this decision so soon. I only graduated high school last year and now I'm supposed to choose the field I want to go in to for the rest of my life? I can't buy alcohol, but I'm supposed to plan my whole future (not that I would buy alcohol, mind you)? Am I the only one who thinks this is ridiculous?

But on the up side school is almost over, the LDS Story Makers Conference is almost a week away as well as my birthday! I can't even begin to tell you how excited I am! This will be the perfect ending to my first year of college. And I'll have so much time to read all the books I've been buying! :D

One book I just finished is called "Lemon Tart" by Josi Kilpack. It's a culinary murder mystery and has about 7 recipes in it. Tonight I made the alfredo and brownies that were in the book. They were so good. Just the kind of comfort food I needed to help me stay happy. :)

Another thing helping me make it through this last stretch of school? My friends. Staci made a spontanious visit this weekend. Here is a picture. :)



She's so great. She lets me rant to her about how I have no idea what I'm going to do for the rest of my life. I love her lots. :)

Then there are my other buddies- Ashley, Ashley, and Megan. Today we went to a park and played on the swings. It was so fun. I'd forgotten how much stress you could release by swinging. It feels like you're flying. I highly recommend you try it sometime.

Well, that's about all I've got. My brain is nearing mush state. I'm trying to not think about the papers I still have to write and should probably start tonight. Instead I think I'll watch NCIS or read. Maybe tomorrow my brain will have solidified. *Sigh* Goodnight blogosphere. :)

"Cheer up, the worst is yet to come."

Can you believe March is almost over already? Time sure does fly by when you do the same thing day in and day out. :)

First of all, the fifth and final Fablehaven book is out!



Second of all, I haven't finished it yet so don't tell me how it ends! ;)

So next week I have two presentations to get through. One is for my English 3080 class, in which I must (and I quote) "choose any 'text' (e.g., object, image, artwork, consumer good, food/drink, style, trend, hobby, etc.) and prepare a seven-minute presentation for the class." I have to interpret my "text" like I would a novel.

I'm still in between texts at the moment. There are a couple ideas I have floating around my head. What do y'all think?


.
-Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: I could do either a racial analysis or a feminist analysis. Did you ever notice how the yellow Power Ranger was Asian, the black Power Ranger was African American, and all of the white Power Rangers had red, white, and blue costumes except for the pink Power Ranger who was a stereotyped ditsy California girl? Fishy . . .



-Chocolate: I could do a feminist analysis of this probably. Talk about Dove's new campaign geared towards women or how pretty much any chocolate commercial is geared towards women. Then I could take in free samples for the class which can help hide the fact that my presentation wasn't very good! Haha! :)





-Ties: Why do men wear neck ties? What's the history behind them? Why can't women wear neck ties? Or, do you remember that fad with them back in the early 2000's? Like Avril Lavine? I'm still not sure what I could say about this, but it would be interesting right?



So, those are the three I'm stuck between. I'm leaning towards Power Rangers, but what do you think, my lovely anonymous blog readers?

Then I have a speech for my Communications 1020 class. It's the Speech to Persuade (sounds very intimidating, doesn't it?). You want to know what my topic is that I have to persuade people on?

Executive Compensation.

Want to know the position I'm supposed to take on the matter?

For it.

Yes, I have to argue FOR Executive Compensation. After doing a bit of research today I'm a bit down-hearted. Nobody seems to like the idea of executive compensation very much. There are not any positive facts and all the people I've found for it that I could quote all do finances for the CEO's. My professor says we're supposed to think like lawyers to defend our position. I'm not feeling too optimistic for my chances of winning my "case".

BUT!!!! But the good news is that the end is in sight! By April 22nd (which happens to be my birthday, ahem) I will be completely finished with my first full year of college and off to Provo for my first official overnighter writers conference! Woohoo! And then it's off to St. George with some of my girlies to bask in the sun. Doesn't it sound glorious?



Isn't that picture pretty? I can't wait until the sunshine and warmth! It's thoughts of birthdays and friends and writing that are getting me through this final stretch of the semester.

So, cheer up! The worst is yet to come! ;)