I love me the weekend.

This weekend was a mix of trying new things and some tried and true traditions.

Thursday (counts as the weekend to me), Alexa and I went to the temple after we finished tutoring. I am learning to love the temple more and more. One of my favorite things about living in Logan is that pretty much anywhere you are you can either see the university or the temple.

All the roomies went to support our Kimmy Jin at her intramural championship game. Which she won. What a gal. Followed by a celebration at Pizza Pie! I'm pretty proud of Alicia and Alexa for karaoke-ing Somebody to Love in honor of the Bieb's birthday.

Friday. Cheering for Cody Juan at his Lacrosse game. Never been to a lacrosse game before so not really sure what was going on, but weren't we cute?

Friday was also officially Justin Bieber's birthday which required some celebration with the roommates. I never get tired of watching Never Say Never.

On Saturday, Lauren, Alexa and I volunteered at the Pow Wow on campus. These two girls always seem to be willing to go along with the random ways I spend my time, and I love them for it. Alexa has been my volunteer buddy all year - what a good room roommate I have. Anyway, I love the Pow Wow! I think it's something really unique and special about Utah State. Volunteering is definitely worth a free Navajo taco and a glimpse at some truly beautiful traditions.

Saturday was also my first time going to the Gossner's factory, which we've been meaning to do all year. Alicia bought us all ice cream - just one more example of why she is the sweetest person I've ever met.

Today, my roommate Kim and I had the opportunity to attend church services at the First Presbyterian Church.

What a beautiful building! I feel blessed to be part of a community that is full of faith and kindness. I have visited lots of other Christian churches before, but this time was different because I was thinking about my mission. This was a good experience for me to remember that there are so many people striving to make Christ the guiding influence in their life - we really do have so much in common. I know that we can feel the spirit anywhere where people are trying to be close to their Heavenly Father and understand His will for them. I feel like during this service God spoke to me about the people I will be meeting on my mission - I don't know how to explain that, but I felt close to them today. I have (finally) logged into my missionary account and started checking things off of the "training" to-do list. Sometimes I forget that that's the most important thing I should be doing right now - preparing to be a missionary.

So...solid weekend. And I can't even express how excited I am for next weekend. My dad and sisters are coming up to go to an Aggie basketball game with me, and the next morning I will be flying to HAWAII!!!!!! Every couple hours I remember and I get so excited all over again. My life is pretty exciting! 

Debriefing

I am bored at work, so I completely stole this from Miss Haley Goaslind who is a top-notch blogger.

The run-down. Lately....

What has made you happy?

So much! My friends and roommates. Aggie basketball. My sister telling me her mission papers are in. Tutoring my little first grader.

Starting a Newberry book club with my sisters. I know, adorable.

What has made you excited?

I'M GOING TO HAWAII WITH SOME OF MY FAVORITE PEOPLE. Ten days!

What has made you sad?

This is the time of year when everyone is apartment hunting, planning their summers, etc. I am very excited about my own plans, but it does make me sad to think about not being at Utah State next year. It's just WEIRD. Watching everyone go their separate ways, including my sisters, is hard.

What has made you frustrated?

Money. Or lack thereof.

What is your favorite song?

The cd in my car right now is definitely Justin Bieber's new acoustic album. (Happy birthday, Justin!) But favorite song? Probably "Coming Home" by The 88.

                     What is the best thing you've done with friends lately?

Since my memory doesn't go back very far...last night's karaoke night at pizza pie! We went to celebrate after Kimbo won her basketball game, and Alexa and Alicia sang Somebody to Love.

What is your favorite class lately and why?

Toss-up between raquetball and mythology, the two classes I was not required to take this semester. Raquetball because it never fails to be hilarious. Mythology because it turns every story into a poem where every character is a ready-made symbol.

 Can I also say the class I hate the most? Assessment design.

Hate hate hate hate hate hate.

What is the biggest thing to change lately?

Being able to go to the temple. This has been an exciting but overwhelming transition for me. BUT I went for the third time last night and just did iniatories, and it was finally a peaceful experience.

What is something you wish you could change?

 I wish that there were no consequences for eating every baked good in my apartment.

What have you done for you lately?

Making time to swim laps almost every day. It's one of the only times my mind feels clear.

What's something you want to remember to do in the future?

Getting up on time . I have literally been on time to my 8:30 class ONCE this semester and I can count the number of times my hair has looked acceptable before noon on one hand.

                                    What do you hope never happens again?

I hope I never spend another winter in Utah. But that is unlikely.

What are 10 things you are grateful for now?

1. My mission call.

2. An on-campus job.

3. Instant mashed potatoes.

4. Ibuprofen.

5. All five of my sisters.

6. Airplanes.

7. My back surgery. I have been remembering lately how my senior year of high school I was in so much pain I couldn't stand up long enough to take a shower. I am so lucky that I don't have to live with that every day now.

8. Second and third chances.

9. Good books.

10. Laughing.

Big Decisions

This part of my life is so intense. I feel like every time I make a huge decision about my life, I have another big decision to make immediately afterwards. Being a 20-something means that you are always moving, always changing, always DECIDING.

I spent the first half of fall semester desperately trying to figure out what it was I was supposed to be doing because I knew there was something missing - I finally figured it out and turned in my mission papers.

But ever since I got my call, I have had to worry about what I will do after my mission.

Here is a secret. In my papers, I BEGGED to leave at the beginning of May, directly after finals. I wrote about how badly I needed to be back in time to be ready for student teaching.

When I got my call, I was happy beyond belief. But that big JUNE 19TH did put a damper on things.

It means that I have to have everything for my student teaching all set before I leave and that I will be immediately thrown into teaching 5 periods a day, for the first time, when I get back.

My program asked me to decide as soon as possible where I wanted to student teach TWO YEARS FROM NOW.

Before I decided to go on a mission, I had big dreams of student teaching abroad, or at least out of the state. Now, the reality is that I will be coming home to absolutely no money, no job, possibly no car.....and definitely not enough time to leave the country again by the time spring semester begins.

Another secret: I worry about this every day.

Every day I worry about what my life is going to be like when I come home. So this morning I thought, what am I REALLY worried about? I am worried that I'm going to be horrifically poor, that I'm going to have to spend another winter in Cache Valley, that I'm possibly going to end up living at my parent's house while I student teach. I wanted to do my student teaching somewhere "cool" and now that probably won't happen.

But what am I REALLY worried about?

That my life isn't going to turn out the way I dreamed it would.

I'm worried that I have suddenly veered so far from my original plan that I have no hope of living all of my dreams. And that is ridiculous.

Let's think about this. In high school, what did I want? What were my dreams?

I knew that I wanted to teach and that I wanted to help people tell their stories. I wanted to travel. I wanted to do humanitarian work. I wanted to feel like I was contributing meaningful service. 

So here's the thing...I am already living all of my dreams.

For three years, I have been blessed with a job where I get paid to talk about writing. Over and over again I have been giving opportunities to teach - through multiple jobs, at church, while traveling, and in my classes. 

I traveled to the area of the world I always wanted to travel to, and the projects I did there fit my talents and personality better than any projects I could have planned on my own. 

Every week, I am volunteering with service-learning scholars, the STAR tutoring program, Storytellers, Friends of the Elderly, SAAVI and Alternative Breaks. I've spent my college years exactly the way I wanted to. 

I've gotten to go on so many trips with friends and family, and I will be going on a service trip to Hawaii in just a couple of weeks.

I've lived with different roommates every year and have learned different things from each one. I love the people I live with and I love where we live. I live in a lovely college town where there is always something fun going on.

My sisters are my best friends, I have a mom who laughs instead of panicking when I tell her that I literally only have two hundred dollars left, and a dad who will do anything to support my dreams.

My life HAS turned out the way I wanted it to...and there's still a lot left of it. My mission DOES fit into my life dreams, I just didn't know that's how my dreams would be realized. And....

The decision I have mostly come to is that it makes the most sense to student teach right here in Logan. That is hard for me to admit, but that is what feels right as of now. 

Bottom line: every day I have to remind myself that everything is going to work out, but it will! 

A Weekened at Home Means....

Raquetball, lunch at the taco truck, 

Beatles Rockband, Sparkler cake and presents, 

painting the little girls' nails, shopping for Rachel's 

Sweethearts dress, dinner theater at The Desert Star, 

Thai food, Lauren's NAL match, and lots of singing in the car.

Going home is always a good feeling, especially when it's been a while. And when it's pretty outside and I have new music, the drive through the canyon is one of the best parts.

 It was a nice change of scene to be home for a few days, especially to celebrate Abbie's birthday! I couldn't ask for a better sister or friend, and I am very impatiently waiting to find out if we will be going into the MTC on the same day! Everyone cross your fingers.

I took an extra day off and started working on my Visa for Australia...and who knew how stressful that would be?! I WOULD get called to the most difficult country to get into. But it's pretty exciting, I'd have to say.

Also...we had a flood in our basement last month so I spent about 4 hours moving everything I own from the living room back into my bedroom.

I ended up throwing away 8 bags of my stuff. I sometimes have a hard time letting go of things, but it was about time I threw away that giant box of notes from junior high. There was something very freeing about putting all the things that used to mean so much to me in the back of a truck and letting it drive away.

Onward and upward!

My Favorite Beaches

I have had a very lucky life because my family loves the ocean. Living in a landlocked state has actually been a blessing in disguise because it causes us to seek out new beaches and plan new beach trips every year.

Lots of my favorite memories with family and friends have to do with beach trips! Life is just better on the coast.

One of my favorite things about the ocean is that it looks different every single day. Every beach has a completely different feel to it, and each individual beach has different colors and vibes depending on the day. Some beaches are better than others. Example...I'm not really that fond of any beaches in the L.A. area. And some beaches, like Mission Beach or Carlsbad, are gorgeous but far too crowded.

So, here is a tribute to the top 15 winners. My favorite beach towns and beaches:

15. Outer Banks, North Carolina

I have fond memories of staying in the Outer Banks! The fact that Rachel threw up in the car on the way there is not one of them. North Carolina has that Atlantic Ocean warm water, without the crowds and cheesiness of Orlando.

14. Cape May, New Jersey

This one wins the New England adorable factor. There's nothing else to say about it.

13. Virginia Beach, Virginia

Virginia is for lovers! I loved walking up and down this boardwalk with an ice cream cone in hand.

12. Ocean City, New Jersey

This is where I learned to boogie board. Of all our beach trips, Ocean City may be the place where we spent the most time actually in the water. These waves are perfect for playing in. We even had one day where it was pouring rain and the water was still nice.

11. Monterrey Bay, San Francisco, California

This water is freezing, but the rocky shores, sailboats, and bridges are beautiful. Plus, this is where are the sea lions are!

10. Indian Beach, Oregon

The colors here were phenomenal. Of course this isn't an ideal swimming spot, but the fact that the forest goes right up to the coast is breathtaking. Standing on top of these cliffs and then walking o the beach was amazing!

9. La Jolla, San Diego, California

San Diego is world famous for its beaches, and La Jolla has some of the prettiest ones. More than once, we have watched 4th of July fireworks from La Jolla beaches and it's just perfect! La Jolla also has a lot of really fun tide pools to play in.

8. Temple Beach, Laie, Hawaii

Okay so...I don't know if this is actually called Temple Beach, but it is the one you can see from the Laie temple. It is gorgeous, and there was hardly anyone on it, at least when we were there. Look at those palm trees! This is one of those beaches you can walk down for a long time without running into a cliff or something.

7. Jax Beach, Jacksonville, Florida

One reason I prefer Florida beaches to California ones is because in Florida there is plenty of beach for everyone. The East Coast doesn't have the rocky shores that the West Coast does, so the beaches just go on forever. Jax Beach is a lovely place to swim, and it also has a beautiful pier and boardwalk. I love this beach at all times of the day, but the best is the sunrise.

6. Coronado Island, San Diego, California

Another favorite SD beach! I have been to this beach with my family, high school friends, and college friends, and loved it every time. It is home to a gorgeous hotel and lots of fancy people. The beach isn't half as crowded as Mission Beach, and I think it's a lot prettier.

5. This beach in Pago Pago, American Samoa

This beach may not have a name, because it's more of a cove, but American Samoa was breathtaking! This is near the harbor, so there are lots of really pretty boats around, backdropped by these amazing mountains. The water was perfect, but it was kind of strange to swim in because the waves were going both in and out.

4. Waimea Bay, Oahu, Hawaii

Probably my favorite place in Hawaii. The "jumping rock" has enough room and enough different heights for everyone to be jumping off from different places all at once. Let me take this moment to point out that every beach we went to in Hawaii was completely different and I liked them all for different reasons. Like...some had tons of turtles swimming in the water. But this one was the prettiest to me!

3. Savaii, Samoa

Savaii is an entire island, not the name of a town or a beach, but since we were only on the island for about five hours, I have no idea what the name of this beach is. One of the cool things about Samoa is that you can swim out into the ocean forever and it never seems to get deeper. This water just feels so different than any other ocean water - it's cleaner and it really feels silky. Plus, the reef creates a million different colors of blue.

2. Sinalei, Samoa

The south side of Upolu has tons of amazing beaches, but we went to this one the most. It had great snorkeling and only like six people on it at a time.

1. Breezy Point, Chesapeake Bay, Virginia

There is nothing really that special about Breezy Point. It's actually not that great of a beach. BUT it was the first one I ever saw! And thus began my love affair with the sea.