20.

     Yes it is true..and even hard for me to believe, but today I turned 20. I am no longer a teenager! Everyone is always asking me if I like having my birthday the day after Christmas and my answer is always yes. People are normally pretty shocked, but I like it because no matter what I always have family around to celebrate with me. My family has been really good about separating my birthday and Christmas every year. I have been back from school for a little over a week now and I am loving it. It has been so good being back home, especially for the holidays.
    My family was gracious enough to wait until 9am to wake me up with our traditional birthday breakfast in bed. They sat around and watched me eat and then open my gifts. I got some fun things, clothes, movies, books, shoes, and a trip to Chicago. It was great! Then we all got ready and went to the movies to see Les Miserable. It was amazing! I have seen the musical two times and I have loved it every time and the movie was no different. I recommend that everyone go out and see it, especially in theaters, the big screen and surround sound only adds to it. Then we just came home and relaxed the rest of the day. It was a really good day!

     To add to the festivities Mom, Dad, and I are going into New York city on Friday. I love living close to the city, we can just take a day trip and explore.

Finals

     The stress of finals week is upon us. Today marks the last full week of classes for the semester. This past week has been super stressful. All of my professors assigned projects due the exact same day. So I have spent all week getting them done. One day I spent three hours in the library, I don't think I have been in the library for that long in all three semesters I have been here. It was crazy. But Im glad everything is done. All I have left is two minor tests and three days of classes, other than that NO FINALS!!
     The main thing I have to worry about getting everything into storage, packing to go home, and cleaning. Its crazy that it is already time to pack up and leave, the semester has flown by. Its going to be hard saying goodbye to my friends but I am so ready to be home with the family!

Thankful.

      This Thanksgiving Break was great! I was able to see my grandparents and Matt and Sarah in Salt Lake and then went to Saint George with Kazia. We spent Thanksgiving with all of Kazia's extended family. It was really fun being with her family but it made me really miss being home with my own family. Luckily I only have two in a half weeks until the end of the semester and get to go home.
      Like everyone else this Thanksgiving I reflected on all the things that I am thankful for. Just like everyone else I am thankful for my family, friends, health, the gospel, etc. The one thing that has been very prominent in my life these past few months are missionaries. Now that I am getting older I have lots of friends my age going out and serving missions, and ever since the age change I have even more friends preparing to leave. I am so thankful that I have friends who are such great examples to me and are ready and willing to serve missions. This past weekend two of my best friends received their mission calls. Sam was called to the Russia Moscow mission. She will be speaking Russian. She will enter the Provo Missionary Training Center on March 13, 2013.

     Kazia had to wait a few days to open her call because we were in Saint George. Once we got back to Rexburg there was no wasting time. She has been called to the Everett Washington mission speaking English. She enters the Provo MTC on January 16, 2013. 

     These girls are seriously the greatest examples to me and I could not be more grateful for them! They are going to be the most amazing missionaries, the people of Russia and Washington are so lucky to have them. I am going to miss them so much but I know that they are out serving our Lord and bringing the gospel to people who really need to hear it.

Concert Junkie.

      Well my mom refers to me as a concert junkie, and yes it's true. I love going to concerts. There is just something about being smashed next to people in a small venue to watch one of your favorite band  perform. Granted I have a lot of "favorite bands" so there a lot of concerts that are a must for me. Since I have been going to school in Rexburg the nearest venue is in Salt Lake City, UT. So I make a trip out

of the thing. The good thing is that I have concert buddies! Kazia and I are always looking at event calendars and planning which concerts we are going to drive to. Like I mentioned in my last post we are in Salt Lake for an extended Thanksgiving break, before heading to Saint George we stopped in SLC for non other than a concert (and to visist Gma and Gpa of course!)

    Saturday November 17, we saw The Maine and Mayday Parade. Two of my top favorite bands. I had never seen either of them prior to Saturday so to say I was excited is an understatement. It's weird because I have been listening to these guys since my freshman year of high school, and now here I am a sophomore in college and I still love them.

5 concerts together and counting! 

The Maine

Mayday Parade

     The best part was after the show The Maine came outside to say hi to everyone that stayed after the show. They are seriously the nicest guys I have ever met! They were all just hanging outside in the freezing cold and rain just to show their appreciation to their fans. I was able to meet all the members and get them to sign my shirt and took pictures with them all. It was so fun!

John O'Callaghan-The Maine

*I posted all my videos on my Youtube channel if you want to check them out*

Sick..

     It sucks being sick while at school. This past week I had some sort of virus, and for the second time this semester. The thing is I never get sick and now twice in one semester...its not fun! This past week it started out with me getting a cough, then it turned into a super sore throat. Then Sunday night I completely lost my voice. It was horrible, it hurt to breathe, it hurt to swallow and it hurt to try and talk.
     The hardest thing is that I still have to go to classes. Let me tell you trying to be in class when you have absolutely no voice is quite the challenge. I swear my professors new something was up so they all decided to call on me to answer a question. I struggled to get words out and nothing. I just wanted to be home snuggled in blankets, watching movies, and having my mom take care of me. Being sick in college really makes you appreciate everything your parents do for you when your home.
      Unfortunately I got two of my roommates sick, SORRY! Luckily I've got my voice back and am feeling much better. Im getting all ready to leave Rexburg for the next ten days for Thanksgiving break. We technically only have 5 days off but sometimes you just need a little extra time off. So Kazia and I are going on a road trip! First we are headed to Salt Lake City to visit Grandma and Grandpa and to go to a concert! Then we are headed to Saint George for Thanksgiving with Kazia's family. I am so excited for our little adventure!

The First Snowfall

     A few days ago we had the first snowfall of the season. We ended up getting about 4 inches. It was so pretty watching it fall..as long as I was inside:) The weather has been pretty weird this semester. It has been pretty cold and rainy and now its snowy. I guess thats what I get for going to school in Idaho. Last fall it didn't really snow until right before Thanksgiving and it has already snowed quite a bit and its not even Halloween. It makes me think the rest of the semester is going to be rough. Winter is already here.

The parking lot of my apartment complex

     So we decided to have a little fun in the snow. Anna, Kazia, Ashton and I went to one of the fields and had a mini photo shoot.   It was fun being able to mess around with my camera. We had so much fun and the pictures turned out super cute! I love having friends that I can just go out and be crazy with.

    

School and Football

       School has been keeping us all so busy this semester. We are constantly doing homework and really haven't had much of a social life. It has been hard being cooped up all day with nothing but homework. Its safe to say we are a little bit stir crazy...

    Luckily this Saturday we were able to find some time and get out of Rexburg. It has been a goal of
ours to go to an Idaho State Football game, so we finally did it! ISU was playing UC Davis. We all decided we were going to bring out our California roots and cheer for Davis. We dressed up and drove down to Pocatello. We were surprised when we got our tickets and saw we were on the twenty yard line...row one! Thats right..we were four of about 25 UC Davis fans there. It was so fun!

Thor (Kazia's cousin), Kazia, Anna, and Me

UC DAVIS TAKES THE WIN

Back To School

     I feel like it is already half way through the semester but I am only one week in! This past week has been so busy with moving in and starting classes. It was so much fun having my mom and grandma come up and help move me into my new apartment. And let me just say I love my place! It is finally all organized and everything is put together. I don't think I ever want to move out. My new place does not even compare to the prison cell of a dorm I lived in the past two semesters. Of course classes started too. This semester is going to a tough one thats for sure. Im getting deeper into my major so my classes are a lot more intense. But there is no doubt in my mind that this semester isn't going to be fun. If I can base the semester off of just this last week, Im super excited.

     It was Sam's birthday on Wednesday, so we had to start the semester with a bang and throw a huge party! We decorated the apartment and loaded up with food. We had a chocolate fountain and fondu. We wanted everyone to come so we put out a sign saying "The Party Is Here" and lit it up with christmas lights. The party was a huge success! So many people showed up, we lost count after 63 people in the apartment at once. It was a great way to take a break from the first few days of class!

     On Saturday we decided to channel our inner Idaho and go to Spudfest. We heard about it last fall but never got the chance to go, so we decided this semester we would go. The main attraction at Spudfest is the "Spud-Tug" a tug a war over a pit of mashed potatoes. We got a team together and had way to much fun coming up with team names and shirts. We went all out, we each had our own spud name.  

                                    

     The whole town of Shelley closes for Spudfest and people from all over come to see this. We watched the potatoes get mashed in a cement truck and then dumped into the pit. It looked disgusting and smelt even worse! But there was no backing out now. 

    Our team "The Plain White Spuds" were up against 5 huge guys. We knew at some point we were going to end up in the potatoes. We put up a good fight though. It took the guys a good two minutes to get us in. 

    Luckily I did not get into the pit but I did get splashed. So with the team covered in nasty mashed potatoes we found a hose and tried to wash them off. We all felt so gross! We just wanted to come home and shower. Lets just say it takes a good, long, hot shower to actually get the smell out of your hair. 

    It was so worth it though!

Crafts and New York City

   So I knew we were going to be going to New York this weekend, so like any girl my mom and I had to plan way ahead what we were going to wear. I had seen a scarf on pinterest that was super cute and decided it would be a fun accessory for our city trip. The directions looked pretty easy so I decided to try it out...let me rephrase that, I had my mom try it out. With our history of crafts, we were a little nervous and didn't know if they would turn out. Luckily the scarves were extremely easy to make and only took about an hour in a half.

City Outfit

    I was so excited to go to New York. Its a city I had never been to and have only seen in pictures 

and on tv. We took the train into the city so we did not have to deal with trying to park the car. We got into Grand Central Station, and I immediately recognized it from so many different movies. It was so fun! We went straight to Times Square to walk around and have lunch. It was so lit up and busy. 

   After lunch we were just walking around Times Square and we ran into someone famous! I was so excited! I whipped my camera out so I could capture the moment.

THE NAKED COWBOY!!!

    We walked around so many other different places, we hit all the tourist spots. We went through Bryant Park, Rockefeller Plaza, NBC studios, Central Park, and the New York Temple. We also got to experience the subway, however we mainly just walked everywhere.

    We had the opportunity to go to Ground Zero and see the 9/11 memorial. I remember being in third grade when the towers came down. I can vividly remember watching the news with my mom before going to school, and being really confused. As I grew up I became more aware of the events of that day and was really interested in it. I have read numerous books and recounts of victims families as well as bystanders. The memorials are beautiful. It was a very touching experience to be able to stand where the towers used to be. The new Freedom Tower is being built right next to the site. The entire site is so well kept and shows great respect to those who lost their lives that fateful day.

Freedom Tower

 "Ordinary People, Extraordinary Courage"

What I've Been Up To The Last Few Weeks

    So we are all settled in the new Connecticut house. It is a lot different than Naperville. It has a very small town feel to it. It took some time to get used to, but we all really like it. The east is very different from everywhere else we have lived. It is very mountainous and green. Its so pretty!

   My mom and I have gone to town decorating the house. It has been fun rearranging and being able to decorate a brand new house. We go out almost everyday and find something new that goes great with the house. I will get pictures put up soon!
   Since me and my mom are our only friends here, we have been able to do a lot together. Its been so fun! We dedicated every Thursday as our "activity day". So each Thursday we find something to do or someplace new to go. So far we have made a roman shade for the bathroom, we decided from now on we should buy things instead of try to make them ourselves.haha. We went to Rhode Island with some people in the ward(ok we do have some friends) and went to the beach. We love the being at the beach and this is no different. Most people now I am not the biggest fan of the ocean, so as usual I was reluctant to get in. But I did, and I was pleasantly surprised. The water was so warm, it was like a swimming pool. We will definitely be going back! We drove to Massachusetts to go to the Norman Rockwell museum, which was gorgeous. His work is amazing, and it reminded my mom and I a lot of my grandma. She is an amazing artist and a lot of her paintings I have seen resemble the work of Norman Rockwell. He portrays the American family in such a traditional way.

Love Her!

    As a family we took a trip to Boston, Ma. We went on a Freedom Trail tour and were able to see so many historic spots that deal with American history. It was really interesting to actually be in the place where all of these events took place, instead of just learning about it school. It made everything seem so much more real.
    Next on the agenda is New York City. The family is going this weekend, and I am so excited. I've never been to New York but have always dreamed of going, and now I get to!
    It has been such a good summer break so far. I love being back home and being able to do experience these great new places with my family!

   

California

     I just got back from a great week in California visiting Anna and her family. It was a nonstop week. We were doing something fun and crazy everyday. Here's a recap of my trip.

Day 1 and 2
     We drove from Provo, UT to Hollister, CA on Saturday. It was a 12 hour car ride. I don't think I have ever been in a car that long, and I don't plan on ever being in a car that long again.haha It seemed like it took forever. We got to Anna's that night and then went to dinner with the family. We drove around and the Dickson's gave me the tour of Hollister. It is such a cute little town. On Sunday we got up early and went to church. It was fun being in a family ward again. After church we just relaxed and took a trip to the San Juan Bautista Mission.

Day 3

     Monday Anna and I spent the day going to different beach towns and walking around the shops. We started off in Capitola where we watched all the local surfers try and catch a good wave. 

     We then just laid on the beach for a few hours. It was pretty overcast but it was still really nice weather. We both got some color, which is what we wanted. We walked around and just went into some of the shops right along the shore.

How fun would it be to live in one of these houses??

     After Capitola we went to Rio Del Mar Beach. Its Anna's favorite beach. It is pretty hidden so there are never really that many people there and the water is fairly clean. As we were laying there we saw a huge group of dolphins and a few sea lions just right out in front of us. It was pretty cool. 

     

     The craziest part of the day starts now. Anna's dad calls us and tells us there is a Giants game that night. It sounded fun the only problem was that the only tickets left were standing room only. So it would really be worth it to get those tickets for the whole family. So Anna's dad tells us we should just drive up to San Francisco and see if we can get some tickets. The idea intrigued us. If you know me or Anna at all, we are always up for a spontaneous adventure. We left the beach put the AT&T Stadium in the GPS and headed to the game. Luckily we had brought some clothes with us to the beach so we changed in the car up to SF. So we got to the stadium and found parking. We just got out of the car and headed to the front. We saw some guys selling tickets on the corner of the street so I asked how much and where they were. One guy was selling tickets on the lower deck right on the third base line. He wanted $50 each but we got him down to $40. We decided we would take what we could get, especially for those seats. We decided we needed to get some team gear so we bought shirts. We got to our seats just in time! 

The Giants beat the Padres 7-1, it was a fun game to be at. Luckily Anna and I are willing to be adventurous and just go to a different city and buy tickets off the street to a baseball game:)

Day 4 and 5

     Tuesday was another long and relaxing day at the beach. Once again Anna and I got fried! It was pretty bad. Tuesday night we met up with Anna's family at went to the Santa Cruz Boardwalk. Its a fun strip with rides and games and shops. We also ended up meeting Krista and her family there. 

Yet another embarrassing face I made on a roller coaster.

    On Wednesday we went north and hit all the little cities leading up to San Francisco. We went into Morgan Hill, Santana Row, Oakland and a few other cities. In Oakland we stopped at the temple which is absolutely gorgeous. It looks out right over the bay, words cannot describe the beauty.

We eventually made it to Brentwood. A two in a half hour drive, for one soul purpose...To prank Eric back for the crow. We couldn't think of anything to outrageous right on the spot. So we just decided to leave a little something on his doorstep. He had no idea we were going to do this. 

Day 6

     Anna, Krista, Dawn, and I all headed down to Monterey Bay on Thursday. We went on the pier and had lunch at a fancy little Italian restaurant. It had huge windows so we had a great view of the bay while we ate. We all felt so classy.

     We found a place that rented tandem bikes for really cheap so we decided we couldn't pass up the opportunity. We biked all along the shore and then down to Cannery Row. 

 Day 7

     My final day in California:( Anna, her sister, her mom and I got up and headed to San Francisco. We decided it would be fun to spend the day up there since my flight was not until 11:30pm. We hit all the tourist attractions. We first went to Pier 39 and got some delicious cheese, bread, and salami to snack on. We walked down the pier and we were able to see Alcatraz. It was pretty spooky.

     After the pier we walked to Ghiradelli Square! It was delicious, we all got some really good ice cream and malts. It was fun walking the streets and looking into all the shops, watching the street performers, and seeing the trolleys go by. 

     We then went and drove across the Golden Gate Bridge. It was so cloudy and so windy. But I was still amazed by it. We also drove down some of the more famous streets in San Francisco, Lombard Street and Filmont Street. They were both extremely steep and curvy. Its crazy to think that people can actually live on such streets. 

           

     It was a great way to end such an amazing week. I was excited to come home but I was so sad to leave the Dickson family. I love them so much, and thank them for being so awesome and showing me around everywhere all week. It was so much fun to be with them. I just felt like I was apart of the family:) And after two extremely long overnight flights I barely made it home to Connecticut. I am already loving it here. It is so different from everywhere else we have lived. The house is really coming together. It feels like this has always been home. I am excited to keep exploring the town and getting to know everything a little bit more.