How To Survive

I had a pretty exciting morning this morning. The best part was when I went back to high school. I'm kind of a nerd and I like to go visit my old high school teachers. My favorite to visit is my AP English teacher from last year. She is super smart, and makes her students work super hard, which is good because she really helps prepare students for college. She is a great person to go to if you need help planning out your day. For example: Over Christmas break, Jeff and I went to visit her. She planned our lunch for us. She told us to go to Jeff's house and have tuna fish sandwhiches. These plans never actually worked, because Jeff and I both had other things we had to do. But today, I think I got the best advice I have ever received in my life. This is what this English teacher told me to do today: "What else are you doing today? I think you should squeeze in a little nap. Have yourself a little lunch, and take a little nap. Oh, and have just a little cupcake." How random this was, but I love it! I did have a little lunch, and a little nap, but I didn't have a little cupcake, so that was kind of upsetting.

My AP English teacher done learned me English real good.

What Not To Say On A Date:

I discovered this pretty useful information from a pretty useful link today, and I thought since I have so many dates lined up each week, (notice the sarcasm in my voice) it would be pretty useful to know this stuff. Here's to all my single friends out there:

Say This: What do you do for fun?
Not That: What's your job like?

Say This: You look fantastic, (or handsome if you're a girl with dating a guy.)
Not That: Good to see you.

Say This: Got any cool summer trips lined up?
Not That: What do you want to do with your life?

Say this: How's next Thursday?
Not That: Up to anything interesting this weekend? Want to meet up again soon?

Say this: Where you headed for vacation? What's on your iPod? Read any good blogs lately?
Not That: Can you believe Sanjaya made it that far?

Baby Blessings And Testimony Meetings

Today, my cool cousin Annie and her husband Ross blessed their baby, Elliott. It was a very nice blessing. But it was the most interesting testimony meeting I have ever beheld. On girl got up, and started talking about her brother and all the bad stuff he was doing on weedends. She said that when she saw what she was doing, she was very upset. The question is: what was her brother doing? Then this other girl got up and started asking questions like: Have you ever made someone smile? Have you ever made someone's day? She then told a story of some girl in her math class. The two of them have had a really bad relationship. But one day, the testimony girl decided to compliment the other girl. She told the mean girl: "I like your shirt. It's really bright." The mean girl then smiled at the testimony girl, and testimony girl felt that they were beginning to create a strong relationship. We counted about four people who all said in their testimonies that they just moved into the ward. One of the funniest ones was this lady. She was sharing her testimony when all of a sudden she said, "my husband got me an i-pod with "To the music of my life" engraved on the back. Random! Oh man, I could probably go on forever. However, my cousin Annie and her mom both got up and bore their testimonies. Their testimonies were awesome, and I feel really greatful that I got to hear testimonies from people that I really look up to. After church, there was a luncheon at Annie and Ross's house. It was wicked awesome! I don't think I've ever enjoyed a luncheon so much before! Hope everybody has a great week, and just remember, I like all your shirts. They are very birght!

Who Dat Say'in Dem Cougars Ain't Bad?

We are the champions! Today was the state championship water polo game: Skyline vs. Kearns. The final score was 4 to 3. Kearns beat the crap out of skyline by one whopping point! It was so awesome! I was in charge of taking photos for Natalie. I am so happy that Kearns won the state championship. It was so exciting! Congratulations Cougars!
This is the Kearns girls team just before the game. Isn't it cute how they formed that little circle?

Watching the team win again this year, made me think back to my senior year last year, when we won state in water polo for our first time. Though I have never really been a huge fan of playing water polo, that championship game I played in really means alot to me, even though I bench-warmed most of the game. This is a picture for me and 2 friends at last year's game. I am in the middle with the darker blue cap.

Of all the pictures we took at the game today, this one is my favorite. Natalie Edge in the middle, Natalie my sister on the right, and me on the left. Natalie Edge is a senior this year, and she played amazing in the game. She is going to the U next year, and will be swimming with the Utes. I am so happy for her! And so excited that she will be at my school again!

I Like Big Butts And I Cannot Lie.......

This is what happens to the body during finals week. A student usually gains some ultra weight. You see, during finals week, you have to pretty much study your butt off, even though that does not appear to be the case in the above photo. Studying is a physically and mentally draining activity. In order to keep your body up with your brain, you must eat lots of snacks. Chips-Ahoy cookies are a given when studying for any test. I also found that Diet Coke, with caffine, became a part of my daily diet this week. But then, the body pays for the consequences, which I don't think I need to elaborate on. But, FINALS ARE OVER!!!!!!!!!!!!! Oh it is such a good feeling! I am FREE until fall semester starts. Man, I need to go work-out. Do you know how difficult it is to sleep with this butt?

Don't worry, I went on a thirty second diet. See for yourself.

Old Movies

I was trying to find a certain clip from the movie "Bye Bye Birdie." If you have seen it, I was looking for the clip when Kim and Hugo sing "One boy, one special boy," but I couldn't find it. I did find some other good stuff however. I found some sweet clips from "Bye Bye Birdie," "Beach Blanket Bingo," and "Grease." These are all cool, older movies. Don't you just wish highschool really was just a big musical like these movies convey it to be? That would be sweet! I remember being introduced to these movies by my cousins, Annie and Haley, when I was really young. I remember Haley would come over to babysit us, and she would bring "Beach Blanket Bingo" movies. We always LOVED that. I rediscovered my love for these musicals today. I guess you could call these movies "The Original High School Musical."

Bye Bye Birdie - Got A Lot of Livin`


Grease - Summer Loving


Beach Blanket Bingo - These Are The Good Times



Beach Blanket Bingo - New Love
I've always loved this song, ever since I was like 7 years old. I don't know why, it is just really good.

Good Morning!

Natalie and I both have our own bedrooms in the basement. We are basement kids. Our rooms are right next to each other, and some nights I can hear Natalie talk in her sleep, which can be very entertaining, yet very creepy. Anyways, this morning, I did not have to wake up early for school, since this week is finals week. But Natalie had to get up. When her alarm went off, it woke me up. But you won't beleive this: she got up, left her room, and also left her alarm clock chirping away. I don't know how you could leave your bedroom with your alarm clock still buzzing, and I don't know why you would do this. But whatever the reason, Natalie did just that. So her alarm clock is buzzing, and I can hear it. I don't want to get up and go to her room to turn it off, because I am comfy in my bed. I try to fall back asleep, hoping it will shut itself off. Well, I fall back asleep, and I start having dreams about the alarm clock. I had a dream the alarm clock was broken, and no matter what we did to it, it would not shut off. I wake back up. The alarm clock in the other room is still buzzing. "That's it, I've had enough," I tell myself. "I don't have to wake up early, so I want to sleep peacefully." I get out of my bed, put my slippers on, creep to Natalie's room, shut the dang alarm clock off, stumble back to my room, fall back into my bed, and fall back into a nice, relaxing sleep, with a sigh of relief.

Water Beetles

Eww! They are nasty, creepy little creatures. It is water beetle mania down at the pool. Water beetles like to hide in the lane lines of the outdoor pools. They always come out in the spring and fall. Today, as I was coaching, some boys on the swim team found a pretty big water beetle. They put it in a cup of water to keep it. What I hate about these creatures is the fun that all the swimmer boys have torturing the girls. They seem to have some strange amusement of sticking the beetle in a girls' face and listening to her scream. That's just what the discovery boys did. The threw the water beetle at me! Eww, it was so gross. But I don't scream. I have found that if you don't scream, the dumb boys' won't bother you anymore. But who wants a huge water beetle thrown at them? Oh, it about made me want to puke! It is 20 times more nauseating (I don't know how to spell that word) than the bathwater in "Encino Man." Ok, I'm getting sick just thinking about it. I can't believe I uploaded a picture of a nasty beetle onto my blog!

Birthday Couple.....awwww!

"Du-na-na-na-na-na-na, you say it's your birthday!" Today is Maddie's birthday. She is now 21. She is now legal to buy alcohol, and gamble. Man, what a good age to be. I'm pretty jealous. Ben's birthday is next week, May 6th. They are coming down to visit today, and we are going to celebrate both their birthdays at once. Sweet, eh? Ben is turning 23. They are pretty cool, and I'm pretty excited to see them.

Last night was a great Friday night. I actually had an awesome friend to hang out with! We watched a super funny movie called "Encino Man." Sean Astin is in it and it is hilarious. It is a total 80's movie. I would highly recommend it.

Love Fest!

That is the name I have come up with for the "spring crushes" that are happening on the swim team that I help coach. I coach mostly 6th graders and under. They all have crushes on each other, and it is starting to get a little out of hand. They all tell ME their curshes, and they tell me who is going out with who. First of all, I don't care who likes who. Second of all, what the heck does "going out" mean? I have pondered this question forever, and when I ask my swim kids what it means, they can never even come up with an answer to suffice me. But this love fest really needs to calm down. There are way too many crushes that are getting to be more than crushes. And these intensified crushes are beginning to create jealousies in a group of boys who all like the same girl. But the scariest part of all is when 12 year old kids on the team make fun of me and think it's weird that I am 18 and I am still V.L. What is this world coming to? The youngsters of our generation are corrupting! No, I think they are just confused.

I got my visiting teaching done today! Score! And I got it done just in time for those visiting teaching interviews. Double score!

I Love.......

Lately, I've been feeling a little bit down with the blues, as a result of a buttload of stupid stuff. So I am trying to climb my way back up the mountain of happiness. I got this idea from my cousin, Annie's, blog and thought it might be a good idea to do today. So, here it goes:

I Love.....

Brownies

Full House

American Idol

Missionaries

Friends that are always there

People that listen

My job

My nursery class

My backyard

Reading Other People's Blogs

Swimming

Riding my Bike

Rascal Flatts

Napoleon Dynamite's Sweet Skills

Blue, sunny skies

Peanut Butter and Grape Jam Sandwiches

Hiking and Camping

Writing Missionaries

Getting Letters From Missionaries

The Gospel

The Scriptures

Walking to Church

To Be Happy!


I've learned some great lessons lately. Every stuggle given to us, is given by Heavenly Father for our own good. He wants us to become stronger people, but the only way to do that is to experience weakness. We have to learn that life always goes on, and we just have to let some things slip away. Keep marching, never give up hope. I've also learned that we are never alone. Not only are there always people on this earth who will listen to us, but Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ will listen to us. They are constantly watching over us, and that is something that I need remember myself. Storms hit everybody. Some are like hurricanes, and some are just a little rainshower. But the good thing about storms is that there are always blue skies that follow the storm. We all just have to learn to keep our head up and keep a strong look-out for those blue skies!

The Fourth, and Hopefully Final, Episode of Constanse:

Constanse was not true to her word. She chickened out when it came time to try to talk to Darla. But the good news is, Constanse has decided she is done with Darla, even though Constanse still hurts inside. She has decided it is not easy to just let a best friend go away, but Contanse is tired of being hurt and sad by Darla, so it might be something that needs to be done. If thier friendship truly was a best-friendship, then maybe Darla will come to her senses and realize that Constanse is a person with feelings. Constanse just needs to stop being a wimp, and break away from the things that hurt. She has realized that she has better mentors, such as the "Double W" who never fails at anything, especially when it comes to being Constans's side-kick through stormy seasons.

The End

*Special Thanks to the Wedgie Woman and the Llama Lady for helping this story to have a happy ending.*

Episode 3: Constanse In Suspense

We continue our story of the broken down Constanse, waiting in suspense. Darla has not yet returned Constanse's attempt to contact Darla. Should Constanse just give up on Darla? Maybe this is more effort than it's worth. But Constanse feels horrible. She truly doesn't want Darla to hate her. Good news: Constanse has been seeking therapy from the Intelligent Llama Lady and Constanse seems to be climbing out of the pits of despair. She feels like she may be gaining her strength back. Her goal is to try to gain speaking contact with Darla tomorrow. We shall wait and see if Constanse is true to her word........

Constanse: Episode 2

Today, Constanse was looking at her special photo album. She saw many pictures of her and Darla. It looked like her and Darla were having a ton of fun in these pictures. Constanse realized that her and Darla have had WAY to much fun these past years to be sad at each other. Constanse has been getting wise wisdom and therapy these past couple of days from the Wedgie Woman. After listening to the advice from Wedgie Woman, and looking at that photo album, constanse decided to confront Darla. Darla is not around today to talk to Constanse, so Constanse sent Darla an e-mail explaining everything. She also sent an attachment of some of the pictures that made Constanse realize that doesn't want to feel sad or lonely anymore. Hopefully Darla will contact Constanse back soon, and hopefully this story will have a happy ending. To be continued...

Constanse

Constanse is very sad. She thinks that Darla, one of her best friends, hates her. She feels like their four year friendship meant nothing to Darla, while for Constanse, it meant the world, espeically since Landon left for a while. Now Constanse does not know what to do. She is very upset and feels like she can't do anything right for anybody. Constanse wonders if she should call Darla, but she is very scared of how Darla might act. Constanse tried working things out with Darla through e-mail, but that only made Constanse more sad. Constanse feels like a loser.

Woot Woot!

So, my American Idol dream has come true at last. Sanjaya was voted off tonight! Hala! At last! I have been so upset that he stayed on as long as he did. Especially when Gina got voted off before him. THAT is when I got really mad. Blake is still the best. And Jordan is my favorite girl now. But my favorite part of this week was when Martina McBride performed "Do It Anyway." She is a freaking good country singer, and one of my favorite country stars. Why don't I make a little list of my favorite country stars? I don't know. I really have no excuse not to, so I guess I will.

1. Rascal Flatts
2. Martina McBride
3. Carrie Underwood
4. Tim McGraw
5. Faith Hill
6. Keith Urban
7. Emerson Drive
8. Kenny Chesney
9. Lonestar
10. LeAnn Rimes
11. Josh Gracin
12. Josh Turner (I love that "Would You Go With Me" song.)

Oh yes. "I'm a country girl, in a country world. It's fantastic. It's not plastic. You can go square dance, and wear some cowgirl pants. I like cowboys. And a yee-haw noise." (Sing that to the tune of "Barbie Girl" if you were a little lost.) Dude, I have some sweet song composing skills!

Speaking of Martina, Here is her music video for "Anyway." It is awesome!



And for a bonus item today, here is one of my favorite Gina performances on American Idol, for those of you blog readers who don't watch the show. Now you can see how good she was!

Impossible Skill

Today, I figured out that there is one skill that I have failed to succeed in attaining. I have failed at "trying to please friend skills." It seems that if I try to make one friend happy, it makes the other upset. And if I try to make the upset one happy, the other friend also becomes upset. I feel like I have ruined at least four peoples' day today, and it makes me feel like crap. But wait, this could be a new skill. Wow, I have "ruining peoples' day skills." Wow, I have achieved yet, another skill. I guess this whole day ended up turning in my favor. Awesome. Well, when life gives you dilemmas, make de-lemonade! :)

Well, here is a little picture to make me smile. Isn't this a good one of mine and Jeff's "backside?" Ha ha! Thanks to Kristen, the supplier of this picture (taken last summer). Just gotta make sure I cite my sources properly.

Mama Mia!

Nothing like a busy day to make the celery grow. I done did alot of stuff today. First I went to school. Yeah, big whoop, I know. Then I came home and had a peanut butter and jam sandwhich with my best friend. Then I had to drive some highschool kids up to Park City for their water polo game (I was Natalie's designated driver). After that I had to rush back down to the valley, and I was late for work....oops! But the best part of my busy day was on American Idol. The gross, skanky girl finally got kicked off! Oh happy day! They almost had to rate American Idol as "R" because of this yucky girl, no joke!

In other random news, I have an item on hold at the library, and I have to go pick it up. I am so excited!

These Are The Days We Will Remember

I went to young womens tonight. Yep, and I am not even in young womens anymore. I had the laurels help me with a little service project I was doing, and then I decided to stay and help them with the rest of their activity. Plus I thought it would be fun to stay and chill with all the cool people in our ward, a.k.a. Haylie Bowler, and no I am not trying to suck up to you Haylie. (Notice the sarcasm in my voice.) It was fun though. I miss young womens. I have not laughed as much as I did tonight since forever ago. So I must publically thank any young women people who may read this. I really needed an hour and a half of laughing tonight, especially cause school this week seems out of control. I'm glad I went. But, this gets me to thinking, I don't like growing up! It's crappy! Right now I am trying to uplift my friends who are sad about graduating from high school in this year, but the truth is, after high school, friends move away to different colleges, boys leave for missions, and all of the sudden, you realize that you have not been on a date for three months, which can be really depressing. Well, all I can conclude with is a couple lines from a Vitamin C song: "As we go on, we remember all the times we had together. As our lives change from whatever, we will still be friends forever."

F.Y.I.

For those of you who would like to check out Natalie the younger's blog, go to n-stapley.blogspot.com. But be aware, critics have rated it "R" for Rebell Miamaids.

Owwwwww, I have a headache right now. Bleh, bleh, bleh! I can't type anymore. Goodnight!

Skills...

This morning, I was doing some homework, and I got myself to thinking about skills. Not just any skills, but my sweet skills. I often think about Napoleon Dynamite's skills. (Isn't "dynamite" a funny word? It sure is.....long story......I won't tell it now.) Napoleon Dynamite (ha ha) has skills such as bow-staff skills, computer hacking skills, numb-chuck skills...you know, skills. From my job as a lifeguard, and now as a swim instructor, I have come up with quite the list of my skills I have obtained, which include:

First aid skills
Finding pressure point skills
Stopping a nose bleed skills
Whistle-blowing skills
Splinting a Broken Bone Skills
Applying Sunscreen skills
Jumping in a swimming pools with clothes on skills
Pulling kids out of the water skills
CPR skills
Rescue breathing skills
Concious choking skills
Unconcious choking skills
Enforcing Pool Rules skills
Obtaining a flip-flop tan like skills
Backboarding skills
Putting on rubber glove skills
Taking off rubber glove skills
Cleaning puke off the pool deck skills
Cleaning "bodily wastes" out of the pool skills
Properly disposing of hazardous materials skills
Giving evil looks to kids in the pool skills
Covering the outdoor pool skills

Wow, what an incredible list of skills I have here. This may sound like a joke, but alot of these sweet skills, I am actually really glad I know. Know what I'm sayin'?

Coincidence? I Think Not!

Maybe this has happened to you: One moment during the day, you are driving down the road, possibly thinking about something you have to do, or whatever else is going on in your life. Then you begin to feel, maybe happy, sad, or frustrated..................ok, scratch this whole imagery, pondering thinkg. I'll make this alot easier for myself. Today, when I was driving down the road, I heard a song that totally fit the moment. I decided that this song, is my song of this evening. If you are interested, I put the lyrics on this blog. I only put the part that struck me in awe.

"It's a long trip alone over sand and stone. That lie along the road that we all must travel down. So maybe you could walk with me a while. And maybe I could rest beneath your smile. Everybody stumbles sometimes and needs a hand to hold, 'Cause it's a long trip alone."

Can It Be True?

I am convinced that American Idol is RIGGED! For those involved with idol, Gina was voted off this week. She was my favorite girl this season, and she was way better than some of the contestants who are still there, a.k.a. Hailey and Sanjaya! I can't stand those two! Sanjaya is just a horrible singer! And Hailey is not only a bad singer, but she is disgusting! The clothes she wears are terrible! They are not modest and she is conveying a terrible message to America. It kind of reminds me of an old episode of Full House, that I watched today. Uncle Jesse was talking to DJ about the peer pressures teenagers face in this world. He told her that he wished she could live in a world where he would never have to fear for her getting into danger. This is so true! (Full House has a buttload of good lessons to learn in it.) Our world is full of dangers and sin. Often they hide in places that are way to easy to find. We need to be careful and always choose the right. And America should choose the right and vote Hailey and Sanjaya off of American idol. I can't believe Gina is gone. Well, everybody better just vote for Blake now. He is da bomb! Melinda is freaking awesome too!

Ride Like The Wind

Over the weekend I got myself a new mountain bike. It is awesome! I rode it to work today. It was such a pretty day outside, so it was a great ride. Well, going to work was a little hard, because I was riding into some strong winds, but after work, the wind had stopped, and it was perfect outside. The valley was clear and the sun was shining. My butt will probably be killer sore tomorrow from riding, but I don't care. It was seriously the most fun I have had in months.

In other words, today has felt like the longest day ever, except that it seemed to go by kind of fast.......if that made any sense to anybody.

Remember the Alamo.

TGIF?

Friday nights use to be my favorite night of the week. It use to be my go party, go on a date, have fun night. Now it has become the most depressing night of the week. I never do anything fun on Fridays anymore. All that happens is that I get ditched for boys. It kind of hurts when you know you've been ditched by your best friend, especially if the ditching has happened times before. Ohhhhhh, I don't like Fridays. I sit around and feel sorry for myself, like I am now. I need a new hobby. Maybe I'll just have to go attack some houses in my neighborhood. It would be especially cool to attack houses of the people in the 13th ward. Muahaha!

Hey, Hey My Buckaroo!

Wow! It has allready been 2 months since Jeffy left for his mission. Plus, I haven't had a Jeff blogging for a while, so I thought I could use this excellent picture here. (Sorry, I don't really have any pictures of just Jeff. I am in almost every one with him. Ha ha!) Elder Larsen is doing awesome. His mom has organized this "foreign exchange" newsletter for Elder Larsen and all the other missionary friends in our group of friends. What this is, is every month the parents of my missionary friends select parts for their missionarys' letters, or even an entire letter for Mrs. Larsen to put together on a document. She then e-mails this to the girls that are friends of the boys. It is awesome! I get to read how all my friends are doing on their missions. Well, since you who read my blog, probably got bored and stopped reading this entry, I decided I would put some of the things Jeff said in the most recent "foreign exchange." Enjoy...that is if you are still crazy enough to be reading this.

"I got to share a thought last night for Cantemos, and I used the lyrics for “Joy in the Journey” that Bro. Lynch gave me. I thought it was kid of corny song when we sand it for the Day of Celebration a couple years ago, but when I read the words again yesterday, it got me thinking about how this life really is a journey, and Heavenly Father wants us to have joy as we go along."

"...I love teaching and feeling the spirit."

"I was thinking the other day about how one time last year after swim practice, I asked Lauren how she was able to keep working so hard every day, and she told me “I don’t know I just do it.” I think I’m finally starting to understand what she meant, because I’m just working hard and not worrying about it if I get tired. I know Heavenly Father is helping me so much, and I love being a missionary. Thanks for your prayers, eh."

Well, I guess that's enough for now. By the way, I put that last quote of Jeff's because he mentioned my name. It made me feel really excited. He he!

Childhood

Lately I have been going through this little "90's stage." Yes, I have been going back to my childhood entertainments. My favorite movie lately, is "Matilda," along with "Little Rascals." I remember liking these movies when I was little, and I have rediscoverd them and their hilariousness (if that is even a word). I have also discovered that the "90's" t.v. show "Full House" is played all the time on cable. When I was little, I watched this show EVERY DAY! I remember it being one of my favorite shows when I was little. I loved it! And ya know what? I still love it! But, now that I am older, I get all the jokes in the show, and they totally crack me up. This show seriously makes me laugh harder than any other show on T.V.! No joke! I had an awesome childhood! And now I am having a blast trying to re-live my childhood. But, hopefully, I don't start wearing all those bright colored shorts and pants again. That might be a little embarassing in public today. Then again, since I have no one to impress, I guess it wouldn't matter......hmmmmmmmmm.........

The Monsters Are Coming!

How would you like to find a toad this big? I don't think there are toad stools big enough for this guy to hide under. At least he has some pretty buff leg muscles. Poor, chubby toad. I am going to call him Rupert.

Cry Me A River

Today, my contact in my left eye was irritating my eye like crazy! It was burning and my eye was all watery. It must have looked like I was balling. This eye irritation made my nose start running, so I really must have looked like I was totally, completely balling! All this was occruing during a great lesson in my Institute class today. What a perfect time to look like a ball baby! Just great! How embarassing! I pretty much never cry in publc, but it probably looked that way today. All well, it is great fun to laugh at! Bwahaha!

Joy To The World!

The 3-day long swim meet is OVER! Oh happy day! Because I am an assistant swim coach, I have been spending these past 3 days coaching the State swim meet for 14 years-old kids and younger. Each day included a morning, preliminary session, followed by an evening, final session. It was held at the University of Utah's pool, which I must add is a really awesome school. But holy cow, I am so worn-out from it. My legs are so tired of standing up, cheering. Last night, I was even too tired to sing to the radio on my way home. I am glad the meet is over, but I can't say that I didn't have fun at it. I had a blast! I LOVE the little kids that I coach. It is so fun to watch my swimmers compete and improve their times. It is the best feeling in the world to see one of the swimmers that you train, improve their time, even if they drop only 1 second off their time. It feels so good, and it motivates me to keep finding the best ways to train these kids. Not only do we have some awesome swimmers on our team, but I get to hang out with freaking hilarious kids everyday! They totally crack me up! I love going from a serious school day, to work with 6th graders and younger, who have become my friends this year. They make my day everyday, even when their hyper and out of control. I could never easily leave my job, mostly because of the kids on the team. They are awesome!They all have so much potential, some of them just have not quite discovered it yet.

Ya know? It's kind of funny. This school year I have spent the majority of my social life with little kids. On Sundays, I teach nursery, so I get to play with little 2 and 3 year-olds. And Mondays through Fridays, I coach 6th graders and under in swimming. I'm a nerd, so I don't talk to anyone at school. The only people I associate with that are my age are my family, other swim coaches, and like one or two highschool friends. But I really cannot complain. Being involved with the lives of such young kids is awesome! They remind me of what true happiness is, and where we can lood to find it.

Interesting Clouds

Since I am in a meteorology class, I decided to study some clouds this morning. Well, meteorology is actually not as exciting as I thought it would be, but the weather itself is. There were some interesting clouds this morning out my backyard view. I decided to take some sweet pictures, so here they are.

Look how this cloud is lumped up, and there is blue sky around it.

Some of the clouds would just sit low to the valley. Crazy!

Look how you can see the mountains through the middle of this cloud.

This is me just chillin' on spring break.

A Tip For Ya'll:

Don't ever try to swim in a dream. Its just upsetting because you can't catch any water. It's even more upsetting if you try to swim the stroke that you have the most trouble with, a.k.a. breaststroke for me. Swimming in a dream is like running in a dream. If you have ever tried to run in a dream, you know what I mean. You feel like your feet are stuck in mud. Your feel like you are running fast, but your legs are moving slower than a turtle. This concept applies to swimming in a dream. Even if your kick is strong and proper, you don't move through the water. You can see the wall, but it doesn't seem to be getting any closer. Ahhhhhh!!!!!

Wahoo! Spring Break!

Spring break is finally here for me, and it feels great! I have an entire week to take my mind off of school! The only problem is that I don't have anyone to hang out with, because most of my friends are still in high school, so they are in school this week. But I don't care, I'm just glad to get a break from school. The song I put on today's blog is pretty cool. I've decided that it is my spring break song. It rocks!

Desperado, Why Don't You Come To Your Senses

Could my cheeks get anymore red than that? Man, it looks like I've been working out, not by the enormous size of my bisceps, but by the color of my cheeks! I was actually at my cousin's wedding in this picture. She married Mr. Bingley last Friday, and it was a really fun day. Speeking of weddings, one of my friends is getting married on Friday. I have been planning on going to her reception, but now I feel as if my plans are about to be crushed. I am supposed to go caoch another swim meet on Friday and Saturday. I want so badly to ask for Friday night off, so I can attend my friend's wedding reception, but I fear that my other 2 co-workers will become furious. My co-workers will probably have something more important to need to attend to on Friday, and I will probably be stuck coaching the swim meet by myself, which has happened before by the way. I'm super desperate! I was even going to go to the reception with my best friend in the whole wide world, whom I have not hung out with forever! She even got her work off on Friday, so we could chill at the reception together! I'm looking for a miracle!

I have been having the weirdest experience all day long. People, who I don't know, have been calling my cell phone all day. I talked to one lady, I think she was from the U or something. I couldn't really understand her much. She asked me some questions about my degree. Then, I got another phone call from someone I did not know. I decided to not answer my phone. Then, another call came in, and I again did not answer. This caller left me a voicemail. She told me that she had just received information that I (Lauren) am interested in pursuing my degree online. The funny thing is, I've never had this interest in my entire life. I am also not interested in Ashford University, which I have never really heard of. This was where this voicemail lady was calling from. The first lady who called (the one I talked to) asked my if I was interested in taking courses online. I said "no." I only take courses on campus. Why do they think I want to take online courses? One more phone call came in about 20 minutes ago, which I of course ignored. But the weirdes thing of this entire situation is the following: All these people who called knew my name. They also knew my new cell phone number, which I believe I have not given to any college information yet. The only people who have my new number are family and friends. I'm really freaked out right now, and I just want to know who these people are, how they know me, and how they got my new cell phone number. This is so creepy!

It is so nice outside!

Feeling Great!

This is a clip from the movie "Matilda." Oh my heck, I love this movie! It is so hilarious! If you haven't seen it, this show is a MUST! The principal, Ms. Trunchbull totally cracks me up! She looks like a man. If you have not seen it, Ms. Trunchbull was in the olympics for the shot-put, and some other manly sports. She is huge! She beats up on the little kids at her school. This show just makes me laugh, if you have not seen it, go rent it or something! It rocks!

I feel so good right now. Mainly because I took that History mid-term this morning, and now I feel FREE! It was a hard test, and I'm not sure that I did all that well, but it is over and it feels so good. And just look outside! Doesn't that warm, sunny weather just make you excited?!?! Oh how I love it! I wish the outdoor pools were open today......I need a tan really bad. Why else do I feel so good right now? I don't know, I just do. Well, I am really excited because I don't have to go to school on Friday. My cousin is getting married, so I get to miss my classes of Friday. Sweet!

My, my, my!

It has been a while since I have posted anything. This is mostly due to the fact that I have no life and that everything has been extremely complicated lately. This week is a crazy one indeed. It is midterms week for 2 of my classes. I had one mid-term yesterday, which went ok. I have a history mid-term tomorrow, which I am overly stressed about. History has always been the subject I've struggled most with. I can't do anything about that except for study, and hopefully everything else will be ok. The next crazy thing is this weekend. There is a swim meet on Friday and Saturday that I am supposed to help coach. I can't go Friday, because it is my cousin's wedding. The other assistant coach is also unable to go because she will be in Seattle. So our head coach will be the only coach there for our team on Friday, and he probably pretty much hates me, even though I coached a swim meet all by myself 2 weeks ago and in the past month, I have been the only coach at about 4 practices, which was hard because I had to coach 6-7 different groups of kids all by myself, and this is a really run-on sentence, hmm, I wonder how much longer I can make this sentence last since it is a run-on sentence, and run-on sentences usually last forever just like this one that has not ended yet because it is a run-on sentence and it just keeps going and going just like and energizer battery.

Elder Tree

My last buddy had his mission farewell today. Elder Jeffrey Tree goes into the MTC this Wednesday. He is serving in the Tampa, Florida, Spanish speaking mission. He is a really cool person and so much fun to hang out with. Him and Jeff Larsen are my two favorite boys to be with. Both Jeffs are way close friends, so I hope they will see each other in the MTC. (Elder Larsen is in the MTC for about 2 more weeks.) I had this picture taken today at Tree's farewell. It's so much fun to see my friends leave on missions, but now that my 2 best buddies are gone, I am kind of a loner. Well, at least I still have the little boys in my nursery class! :)

Yum, Yum, Yummy!

I got to do the COOLEST thing in my health class today! This is a class all about community health. It is a way interesting class, and I love it! Today we learned about food-borne illnesses, and sanitation for food. My professor had this lotion that we all put on our hands. Then we had to go wash our hands. After that, we stuck our hands under this black light. With this, we were able to see places on our hands where germs would still be able to hide, even after washing your hands. It was way crazy!

My professor for this health class use to work for the Department of Health. If someone became sick from eating at a restaurant, or just had a complaint about a restaurant, she would go and test the food and sanitation of the culprit kitchen. She showed us a bunch of pictures she took at different restaurants, showing poor sanitation, or how some places were improperly storing food. It was actually rather disgusting, and I'm not sure I want to eat out for a while after this lecture. :)

American Idol

Blake Lewis is my favorite contestent on American Idol this season. Hopefully he can make it through to the top twelve! :)

P.S. I hope this video works.

Vacation

Here are my grandparents at the 50th anniversary party. Behind them are all their kids, including my dad. Ha ha ha!

Natalie and I at the anniversary luncheon, drinking the "Hard Stuff."

I'm in Cedar City! It was soooooooo warm in Southern Utah on Saturday. Natalie and I even tried to do some tanning in my grandparent's front yard.

This is why it is a bad idea to fall asleep in the car on a rode trip: If you have siblings, they like to take pictures of you sleeping so that when you wake up, they can make fun of you.

My family actually went on a little vacation this weekend. Last week was my Grandma and Grandpa Stapley's 50th wedding anniversary, so there was a huge party for them this weekend. The live down in southern Utah, in a little town called "Summit." It is in between Parawon and Cedar City.

We had a TON of fun! My cousin, Sarah, took me four-wheeling in the little mountains right next to my grandparent's house. It was WAY fun! On Saturday night, my dad took us to spotlight deer. It was awesome! There were huge herds of deer everywhere! We ran into herds of about 40 deer! We also spotlighted some rabbits, and laughed as they ran around in confusion from the bright light. Yesterday, we went to a little place called the "Gap," where you can see real petroglyphs of Indian writing. All in all, it was a really fun little get-away.

Friends

I love my friends! They are all amazing! I don't really have much to say this week, except that my friends rock! I don't even know why they would let me, of all people, be their friend, but I am so glad that they do!

My First Missionary Update! Yay!

I just received my first update of Elder Larsen in the MTC. His sister provided me with this information, and it just made my day! Ok, here it is:

" First, When Jeff got to his room the zone leaders had placed a scripture on his door to welcome them - 3 Nephi 3:7 (look it up). He says he is having an amazing experience. He sings, yells "Buenos Noches" every night and quotes "The Emperors New Groove" with the other elders in his district. He has made Spanish flash-cards and has lead his district to practice with them while waiting for meals, meetings, and everything in between. He said that "it's fun to walk around looking like a nerd." They have named thier district "Los Torros Locos," (the crazy bulls) and have a cool handshake, and he taught the restoration on Wednesday."

I also got his address for the MTC, and I can't wait to go write my first letter to him! I am so excited right now!

Exciting News!

I found out the coolest thing yesterday! I am way excited about it too! For my whole life, my mom, for some reason, thought that I had "O positive" blood. This fact is now false. Last week, I donated blood for ARUP. When you donate, they test your blood to make sure it is safe and what not. They also send you a little card in the mail that you take with you whenever you donate again. It shows your blood type, and the dates that you have donated. When I got my card in the mail yesterday, I looked at that blood type, and I have "B positive" blood! I have a rare blood, and I think it is SO cool!

ARUP is a Utah blood service. That means that when you donate blood with ARUP, your blood will be donated to someone in Utah. But, ARUP needs approximately 75 people to donate each day, in order to stay up with the need for blood in hospitals. Isn't that crazy? You can learn more at www.utahblood.org

Ch-Ch-Changes!

Look how chubby Jeff used to be! Oh man, I get a kick out of this picture every time I see it! It's funny how much people change over the years. Most of the time, it makes me laugh to see freinds' elementary pictures. Anyways, I just loaded these pictures on for my entertainment!

Kindergarten! Oh my! Let's see what this little rascal will turn into 12 years later......

..... my senior picture. Funnest year of highschool!

Cool Song Lyrics

"Shut-up, just shut-up, shut-up!"

"You are, my fire. The one, desire. Believe, when I say, I want it that way."

"Life is a highway. I want to ride it all night long. If your going my way, I want to drive it all night long."

"Whenever you remember times gone by, remember how we held our hands so high. When all this world was there for us, we believe that we could touch the sky."

"A thousand days, a thousand nights are not enough! Cause I can't hold back the way I feel about my love!"

"We're breaking free! We're soaring! We're flying! There's not a star in heaven that we can't reach. If we're trying, yeah we're breaking free!"

"Let's dance in style, let's dance for a while. Heaven can wait, we're only watching the skies. Hoping for the best but expecting the worst. Are you gonna drop the bomb or not?.......Forever young, I want to be forever young."

"There must be something that we can do. I'll tell you one thing. Let's have a barbeque!"

"You are my sunshine! My only sunshine! You make me happy, when skies are grey. You'll never know dear, how much I love you. Please don't take my sunshine away."

My Song of the Week:

The Best Two Years

Elder Larsen is now in the Missionary Training Center. He went in today at 12:00. Last night, I had the opportunity to go see him be set apart as a missionary. It was a really neat experience to see one of my best friends reach this amazing accomplishment of being able to serve an LDS mission. It was sad to have to say goodbye to him, but I don't think that I could be more excited for him right now. After he was set apart, his stake president asked him to bear his testimony to us, as his first testimony being a missionary. It was amazing! I know he will be sucessful! I can't believe he is finally on his mission. Time goes by so fast.

I am way proud of Jeff! I want these next 2 years to be the best 2 years for him!

Photo Album Fun!

I love looking through old family photo albums. That is exactly what I did today. There are so many funny pictures of my family and me, when we were all younger. I especially love all the outrageously, bright 90's clothing we wore. I decided it would be pretty sweet to try and load some of these old pictures onto my blog. Plus, I learned how to use our scanner today. Neat, eh? The picture above was taken down in Southern Utah, where my Grandma and Grandpa Stapley live.

I just get a kick out of Maddie's mouth on this picture. This was taken when I was about 4 or 5 months old. I'm the little baby on the left, if you couldn't tell.

I've always been a hopeless romantic.

This is what happens when Lauren is stressed out. The "Hard Stuff" comes out, and the glasses come off!

This Rocks!

I think it is way sweet that I am able to download videos onto my blog! I'll probably do this alot now! Anyways, I just like this video.

I'm way super glad it's Friday! I have been so wiped out this week and I don't really know why. Usually I don't notice how tired I am until Wednesdayish or Thursday. But this week I noticed it Monday morning. I woke up dead tired, and went to school dead tired. On about Tuesday, I fell asleep while studying in the Institute building at the U, and I seriously could not wake up. It was crazy! I have, however, come to a conclusion why I had a tired week. Last Saturday, I did not get to sleep in because I had to go help coach a swim meet that was clear up a Skyline! Yuk! At least I got paid for it though. But if I have to miss my Saturday sleep in, it totally affects my energy levels of the following week. To top that off, Jeff and I had our last date before he leaves on his mission, so I was up late Saturday night. Then I went to a missionary farewell for my friend Mike, Sunday morning. So I had to rush there and then rush back to my ward to do nursery. It was a busy weekend. I should probably be in bed right now, but Emily has her crazy friends over, and they are extremely hyper! I think I get to sleep in tomorrow morning, unless for some strange reason Rodants of Unusual Size come to take over my bedroom.

Did you know that Benjamin Franklin was a way wacked-up guy?

I had an interesting dream last night. Let's see if anyone can interpret it for me:

When I was in 5th grade, my best friend was a girl named Brooke. But after 5th grade, she got into dance, and I got into swimming. So we kind of hung out with totally different crowds. We are still friends, but she goes to BYU, so I really don't ever see her. Anyways, in my dream, I was at her house. I walked down her stairs, and she was in the kitchen. All of a sudden, she gave me the biggest hug. It lasted forever. I think that was my entire dream. Then her dad made fun of himself, but I don't really remember what he said.

I'm totally lost about this dream. Usually my friend Nedgie Wedgie interprets my dreams for me, but I forgot to tell her about this one. Anyways, this is WAY random. Aren't dreams weird though? Most of the time, they don't make any sense, kind of like this one. I woke up this morning utterly confused. Wow. Weird.

Did it work?

Following the advice from my 13th ward buddy Kristen, I decided I would attempt downloading a video to my blog, and to my astonishment, it worked! I even got it to work on the first try! Yeah baby!

Wowzer!

I've been so busy lately, that I have not had time to blog in a while. Wow! I don't even know what to write about. Let's see, life is going well. Jeff leaves for his mission in 6 days. My cousin and her husband had a baby on Tuesday. His name is Elliot. I like random things. I kind of have no life. Tomorrow is Friday, yay. I have to go get ready for church ball now.

Help Me!

Bored. At school. With nothing to do. Time, move faster. I want to go home. Natalie. Megan. Answer your phone. Come pick me up. I can't last anymore. Homework for now is done. Brain ain't gonna function no more.

Check Out Those Tan Lines!

Dang! Who is that girl in the green dress with those sexy tan lines? Oh, it's me! And oh, how I want summer! This cold has been cold enough. My face goes numb everyday at school. Plus, I'm whiter than a ghost right now! Seriously, I could blind people with my skin. I was sooooooo tan in this picture. And my swim suit tan lines rock! My skin is now to the point where you can barely make out my swim suit tan lines. But look at Jeff's face in this picture. He is so sunburned, that it looked like he was blushing for a week! Bwahaha! Speaking of Jeff, he leaves for his mission in just 2 weeks from today. I don't know how I should feel. I am so excited for him to be going on a mission! I could not be more happy right now! But at the same time, I feel a little sad. I'm gonna miss the boy! Is it ok to feel a little sad? What if I am beginning to panic? Is this normal? All well, I am so excited for him. Plus, I get to write a missionary now! How sweet is that? I remember in young women's lessons, we would learn about encouraging friends to go on missions, and we would talk about writing letters to missionaries. But I always thought that was all stupid. I never though I would become such good "friends" with future missionary, and actually get to do all the letter writing and stuff. This is so exciting! I don't care how cheesy this all sounds, I am EXCITED for him!

Happy Martin Luther King Jr. Day!

Martin Luther King Jr. is one of my heros in history. I have always been interested in the African American experiences. Throughout Junior High and High school, I have don't quite a number of projects of Dr. King, and other African Americans. Last sememster, I was able to take, for a humanities credit, an African American studies class. I really got into the subject and learned so much about African Americans that I had not known before. And I am now excited to be celebrating MLK day today. I think I fit this holiday very well, because my mom told me that I have an African American butt. This is now a joke among some of my friends. When shopping for clothes, I have to remember the size of my African American butt! Happy Martin Luther King Jr. Day! Remember how different and how much better America is today because of the influence, dedication, and courage of Martin Luther King Jr.

What on earth?!?!

I met this really nice returned missionary at a trax stop on my way to school this morning. He served his mission in Montreal, Canada. How did I meet him? He thought I looked like someone that he knew, so he started talking to me. People up here at the U have mistaken me for someone they know, or for some type of athlete. Last semester, some kid came right up to my side, and thought that I was his cousin. You should have seen the look on his face when he saw my face and realized he didn't know me. It was pretty funny! I have also been asked if I am a tennis player. This is understandable, based on they way I dress. Another person asked me if I am on the track team here at the University. He told me I looked like a runner. This was cool, considering that I greatly enjoy running. But the weirdest was one day, some guy asked me if I was a cheerleader at the U. I'm still quite confused about this generalization. I look, and act nothing like a cheerleader. I'm not all cutsy, and I'm not cheerleader skinnyness. Most of these experiences happened last semester, but I think they are quite funny. Maybe whenever someone asks me if I play a certain sport at the U, I will just start telling them I am on the football team!

I played our first relief society basketball game last night. I struggled a little. I am use to being in the water. I am going to have to learn to adapt to this on land activity. The most frustrating part was when the ladies in my ward started telling me to go to certain positions. I had absolutely NO idea what they were talking about! Why can't basketball be set up just like water polo? I was so lost, but it was still freaking fun!

Snow! Snow! Snow!

I love snowstorms! I love watching snowstorms! Today, I had the pleasure of spending quite an amount of time walking around in a huge snowstorm! It was so cool up at the U today. It was snowing really, really hard, and it looked so pretty. But I found the funniest thing as I was walking from class to class. I carry an umberella around campus, so that I don't become a walking, human snowman. But there are alot of students who are to "cool" to take care of themselves, mainly the boys. I passed a few boys as I was walking to my classes, who were not carrying an umberella or wearing a hat. They had about an inch of snow on the tops of their heads. It was sooooooooo funny!

Wow, this is random.

That was random too.

So was that!

No More Water Polo!

Playing water polo with KYAT is the most pointless thing in the world! Literally, the kids take forever to score a dang point. When KYAT plays water polo, I feel like nothing is accomplished. The only accomplishment made is that coach Nedge and I are both ornery and ticked off! Those kids don't understand what it means to create even teams. They all want to be with their friends. And none of them listen because they think they are "so good" at water polo. Then the head coach always leaves Nedge and I to clean up the polo cages, balls, and caps. I swear he does that on purpose! And my co-coach slipped today, chasing after a polo ball for some of the kids. I feel really bad, and if your reading this, Nedge, I hope you are doing ok! Polo should be banned from KYAT practices!

First Day!

Today was my first day back to school from Christmas break. Yes, second semester has begun. So far I like my classes. I am in a math class, history class, meteorology class, and a health class. Oh yeah, and Institute. All of my class sizes seem very small. I guess that is a good thing though. I don't have much to say today. It is kind of nice to be back in school, and..........um............yeah.........................have a great day ya'll!

What I did:

Today was my last day of Christmas break. So, guess what I did? I went up to the U to buy my books! How fun! Actually, it was. While I was buying my books and walking around campus, I suddenly got a little feeling of excitment for another semester to begin. I'm still nervous for classes, but a little more excited, which is a good thing I guess.

We are finally finishing our basement! Yessssssssssssssss! My room has been finished for about 3 years now, but the rest of the basement has been unfinished and cold. We had a guy here all yesterday and today placing a beam, so we can open up a GINORMOUS family room, and framing the rest of the basement. His name is Jermey and he looks like Captain Jack Sparrow. He is pretty cool. I am soooooooo excited! I can't wait to walk downstairs and be greeted with carpet and a warm pellet stove! Just imagine all the sleepovers we can have down there, and all the movie nights! I am so excited for the bathroom to be done down there! Now, when I wake up in the middle of the night with the urge to use the bathroom, I won't have to walk clear upstairs and clear out behind the house! I just have to take about 5 steps out of my room. I can't wait!

I have had a request to change the settings on my blog so that anonymous people can comment. Well, I did it! So all you anonymous people who read my silly blog, comment away!

Poor Swimmers!

I feel bad for the highschool swim team right now. They had to travel clear to Heber City for a swim meet today. To top that off, they had to travel in the snow storm! I'm glad they were able to be safe. My sister usually gives me a daily update of how swim work-outs went, and how people are doing. I miss being on the team so much, so I constantly ask her about the team. Today I found out that one swimmer hyperventilated after swimming a race, because of lack of oxygen. Another swimmer was having asthma problems and had trouble moving. Then another swimmer, who donated blood yesterday, was dizzy after her race and needed my sister to aid her in walking to safety. Finally, my sister gave out and just collapsed on our kitchen floor tonight. Don't worry, she's allright. Though this sounds way not fun, I wish I could be miserable with the team right now. I miss the effects of tear down. It was one of my favorite parts of the year. I loved being so dead that I could barely walk to the locker room after practice. And collapsing in bed at the end of the day was amazing. I don't know why, I just loved to feel worn-out. I'm crazy! I felt good during tear down. I would often become so tired and worn-out at practice that I really couldn't feel the pain anymore. Instead I felt like I could swim my guts out forever. Plus I was usually in a way good mood during tear down. When you excercise, your body creates endorphins, which give the body a natural high. If tear down in swimming is like excercising times 50 million, just think of how many endorphins must be being created and released! You see, though swimmers are constantly tired, they are also constantly happy, or humorous because of all the endorphins created during practices! Anyways, I miss swimming a TON right now. I have been doing a butt-load of swimming during my Christmas break, but I still miss the competition. Hey, only six more weeks until the state swim meet! I can't wait to go watch my sister and all my friends who are still in highschool. I know they will all do awesome because of how hard they have been training. Then it's polo season. That will be a better time for me, because I won't miss polo like I miss swimming. I'll miss being naughty at polo practices, but I won't miss being the varsity benchwarmer! Just kidding! Water polo is a good sport. It can be very fun, but it's just not my sport, I guess you could say. Anyways good luck to all my swimmer friends!

The Break Is Coming To An End.....

Christmas break is almost over for me. I must say that I have been enjoying this holiday to the maximum. I'm sad it has to end on Monday. Yep, classes begin again for me.

Today, Jeff and I went back to highschool to visit our A.P. English teacher from last year. She is the coolest teacher I ever had, so we went to say hello. Then we decided to disturb the swim team room during lunch. This was extrememly awesome. Our final destination was the seminary building to visit out seminary teachers from last year. I miss high school.

This week is a boring week. All my friends are back in school, since there all in high school, and Jeff is busy finishing up last minute mission preparations, since he leaves in 4 weeks from today. So this week is dull! I have nothing to do except to sit here with a knot in my stomach as I get nervous for classes to begin. All well. I guess I should at least enjoy having nothing to do right now. Because once school starts, I am going to be super busy again, and I will only see my family for about 2 hours each night before going to bed. But someday, when I graduate from college, it will all be worth it.

Missionary Picture

Only 30 More Days

Elder Larsen leaves for the MTC in 30 days. That means I only have 30 more days to torture him! Muahaha! Though he doesn't leave until the 31st of this month, his farewell was yesterday. His farewell was combined with his older brother's homecoming. Jeff is the last of 4 boys in his family to be going on a mission. I can't even begin to tell you how cool he is! His farewell was very, very nice. I enjoyed it. Anyways, this picture was taken yesterday, at the farewell. His smile looks kind of silly in it, because he started to say something just as the picture was being taken. But I like it alot! It makes me laugh!

I hope ya'll had a great New Year's Eve last night! I really had a blast! I think this was one of my favorite New Year's ever! I wish you all a happy new year! May all your wildest dreams come true this year!

Alphebet About Me:

Sometimes people e-mail me really dumb forwards. But sometimes, I actually like some of these cheesy forwards. This is one of them, so I thought, "Hey, I'm gonna put this here forward on my blog." And that's exactly what I did:

A-AVAILABLE? Only if I'm not drinking the hard stuff.

B-BIRTHDAY? June, 7th

C-CRUSH? Ouch! That would hurt to get crushed!

D-DOG'S NAME? He died a way long time ago. But his name was Max.

E-EASIEST PERSON TO TALK TO? My imaginary friend.

F-FAVORITE MOVIE? Cars

G-GUMMY BEARS OR GUMMY WORMS? Bears

H-HOMETOWN? Mars.

I-INSTRUMENT? My nose

J-JUGGLE? World champ right here!

K-KISSED? That's disgusting!

L-LONGEST CAR RIDE? To my next door neighbor's house.

M-MILK FLAVOR? Chicken

N-NUMBER OF SIBLINGS? 3 sisters and my twin Meganagan.

O-ONE WISH? To fly

P-PERSON WHO E-MAILIED YOU LAST? Kara

Q-QT THAT I HAVE A CRUSH ON? I have know idea what a QT is.

R-REASON TO SMILE? If I hear a tractor.

S-SONG THAT YOU LAST LISTENED TO? Endless, Helpless, Hoping by Josh Gracin.

T-TIME YOU GOT UP THIS MORNING? 8:15

U-UNKNOWN FACT ABOUT ME? My ultimate goal is to live in a country town.

V-VEGATABLE THAT I LOVE? Asparagrass.

W-WORST HABBIT? Procrastination.

X-X-RAYS? Why of course!

Y-YUMMY FOOD? Jamba Juice.

Z-ZODIAC SIGN? Dragon

Photos

Most of us have had our pictures taken at least once in life. What is the common thing among photos? Smiles. Whenever someone is having their picture taken, they smile, even if they don't want to. It is just a natural reaction for our faces when a camera is in front of us. Or maybe we like the photographer, so we give a little flirty smile. Anyways, that's my random thought of they day.

Updated Christmas Poem

I've finally decided to write a new Christmas/Winter poem. It's been about 7 years since I have last attempted this, so I am a little nervous. Here it goes:

The skin on my face burns with chills,

My cheeks evolve into a cheery red,

What is this powder flocking from the skies above?

It shimmers, when touched by light.

Crystals decorate every housetop.

How can there be a place like this?

Does not existence require chaos?

As I shiver, I see all I ever wanted...

Peace.

Oh yeah! Take that John Donne! Take that Emily Dickensen! Kristen, does this beat Robert Frost too? That was my Winter poem. Now for the Christmas poem:

A very large figure out in the distant air.

How can he fit in that flying device?

If that ginormous creature can fly,

then why, oh why can't I?

But, alas!

What can it be?

He sneaks into houses, through the chimney.

Burgular? Shall I warn the police?

No. I will speak to the lipid man himself.

He tells me: "I see you when your sleeping,

I KNOW when your awake...I know if you've been bad or good."

I flee from my stance.

He sees me when I'm sleeping?

He knows when I'm awake?

Oh, am I afright!

It is a stalker!

I am on the nice list!

It is Santa who is naughty!

Christmas Poem

Today I cleaned my room. Not that it was extremely messy, but it was beginning to bug the heck out of me. What's bugging me the most is the stuff under my bed. I really need some new storage boxes or something. Anyway, while cleaning I began to look through all my school projects and assignments. I found papers of when I was first learning to write. I found report cards clear from kindergarten. I found all my class pictures from kindergarten to sixth grade. It was fun to look at people in like my 3rd grade class who became the popular kids in Jr. High. I even found my kindergarten and 1st grade journals, which are filled with so many lies about pets I never had. Anyway, one thing of interest I discovered was my 6th grade school journal that my teacher made us keep. I found a pretty good Christmas poem that I wrote in it. I decided it was appropriate for my blog, so here it goes. I wrote this on Wednesday, December 8th, 1999:

Christmas Poem:
Christmas is a special time of year.
Remembering Christmas carols that we hear.
Celebrating Jesus' birth,
The time that he came to this earth.
Watching snowflakes fall from the sky,
Eating up all the pie.
Santa Clause bringing good kids toys,
Everyone is full of joy.
That's what Christmas is about,
This time of year no one needs to pout.

If It Weren't For My Parents, What Would I Know?

1. My parents taught me to APPRECIATE A JOB WELL DONE.
"If your going to kill each other, do it outside. I just finished cleaning.

2. My parents taught me RELIGION.
"You better pray that will come out of the carpet."

3. My parents taught me about TIME TRAVEL.
"If you don't straighten up, I'm going to knock you into the middle of next week!"

4. My parents taught LOGIC.
"Because I said so, that's why."

5. My parents taught me IRONY.
"Keep crying, and I'll give you something to cry about."

6. My parents taught me about WEATHER.
"This room of yours looks as if a tornado went through it."

7. My parents taught me about HYPOCRISY.
"If I told you once, I've told you a million times. Don't exaggerate!"

8. My parents taught me about the CIRCLE OF LIFE.
"I brought you into this world, and I can take you out of it."

9. My parents taught me about BEHAVIOR MODIFICATION.
"Stop acting like your father!"

10. My parents taught me about ANTICIPATION.
"Just wait until we get home."

11. My parents taught me about RECEIVING.
"You are going to get it when you get home!"

12. My parents taught me MEDICAL SCIENCE.
"If you don't stop crossing your eyes, they are going to freeze that way."

13. My parents taught me HUMOR.
"When that lawn mower cuts off your toes, don't come running to me."

14. My parents taught me HOW TO BECOME AN ADULT.
"If you don't eat your vegetables, you'll never grow up."

15. My parents taught me GENETICS.
"Your just like your father."

16. My parents taught me WISDOM.
"When you get to be my age, you'll understand."

17. My parents taught me about JUSTICE.
"One day you'll have kids, and I hope they turn out just like you."

Pretty Flippin' Sweet!

Sometimes, I Feel Like Quiting

Do you ever feel that way? Do you ever have the feeling that you are doing everything wrong? That's what I feel like right now. I am an assistant swim coach. This is a really great job for me. It pays well, and the hours usually fit my scheduele pretty well. But right now, I am a little pi...... and upset. I don't know what to do.

First of all, I feel like I am a bad coach. I feel like parents are constantly watching me to see if they can find something wrong with me that they can complain about. I feel like I can't control the kids, and I feel like the kids don't even want to listen to me. They complain when I try to help them improve their swimming skills. I just feel like I don't know what I'm doing.

Next, I have to say that I REALLY do not like water polo. Today, I went to work, ready with plans to help the swimmers that I coach, on their breaststroke turns. I was hoping for a successful practice, until I walked into the pool and saw that the head coach was going to have everyone play water polo. I went to the pool ready to coach swimming, not polo. I don't even understand polo. When I played it in highschool, I was the head, varsity bench-warmer. Our coach never put me in, and when he did, it was out of pity. He felt he had to. This is probably one of the main reasons I am not a big fan of the sport. I also dislike the body contact.

To top this all off, I am convinced that my boss HATES me. He is the highschool water polo coach as well, and I think that he hated me all thoughout highschool because I never liked polo.

I try to never dedicate an entire day of blogging to complain about something, but I feel like crap right now. I just don't know if I should go on with this coaching job or not. I like it, but, ya know. There is this one little Hispanic girl on Jr. Bronze that makes my day, everyday. She is so cute, and nice, and she always makes me laugh. Hopefully, she will stick with the team.

Whoever reads this post, does anyone have a suggestion for me on places I could apply for a new job this coming summer?

Office Christmas Party

This time of year brings about lots of Christmas parties and get-togethers. I have an employee holiday social coming up pretty soon. I am really excited for it, because we get to do square dancin`. I love that kind of stuff! Anyways our behavior is very important when we attend Christmas parties for our different employers, so I found some tips on how to act at one of these parties.

1.) Watch the alcohol intake.
2.) Dress with a sense of work in mind.
3.) Don't be a brownnoser. (This includes trying to suck up to the boss.)
4.) Mingle
5.) Consider your date wisely.

Take these tips into consideration. I know I will, especially the first one. :) You don't want to be the subject of office conversations for the next year do you?

What Is This World Coming To?

Who ever thought anyone would want a Toilet Paper Dispenser iPod Dock? Does anyone really need to listen to music while they are doing business? That's what bathrooms are for. Turn the fan on and you can sing for hours. You can put on an entire concert, of yourself, in the bathroom. Bathrooms are like personal stages. It's rather disgusting that someone would want to touch thier iPod while sittin' on the John. I guess Nedge may need this divice though. She is a huge bean fan, if you know what I mean. Ha ha ha!

Winter Wonder Land

I went and did some Christmas shopping today. It was ok, except that the stores were so dang crowded! Gosh! Next year, I think I am going to do all my Christmas shopping in March, so I don't have to deal with the crowds! Sweet!

Other than that, I had a pretty lame Saturday. But, oh well. Only four more days of classes for me for this semester. But then I have to take a math final, which I am nervous for. It's nice to see the light at the end of the tunnel though.

I was so excited to have received our first big snowfall for this year! I love snow! I did slip about 10 times at school because of the snow and ice, but I still love it! I can't wait until we get our next big, huge snowstorm! That's why I've posted some big snowstorm pictures-to get me even more excited. I especially love to watch snow fall on Sunday afternoons. It is so comforting to me, I don't why. Snow is "cool!"

I Look Up To Her

My older sister Maddie is one of the COOLEST people I know! Though one of my main hobbies is to tease her and make fun of her, she really is an amazing example to me. First of all, she is so strong in the gospel. Just this past summer, she got married in the temple. I am so proud of her for living her life worthy to be married in the temple. She probably followed my parents example in doing this, and some day I hope I can follow both her and my parents example in being married in the temple-not for a few more years though. Maddie is never rude to anyone. This is one of her many amazing qualities. She is also WAY smart, and she has always been successful in school. This has really motivated me to work hard in school. Though she use to drive me nuts when she would take forever in the bathroom while getting ready for school, I am proud to call her my older sister. I am greatful for all that she has taught me. I hope that someday I can be as cool as her. I hope that I can be as good of an older sister to Natalie and Emily as Maddie is to me, and to everyone she knows. She is awesome and I really look up to her a TON!