Sometimes I might be Three

Back in January, I read this blog post. And then I wanted to do it. But January in Logan means you can't even see the sidewalk. So I had to wait. And wait. And wait. Then, at the endish of April, when it was finally warm enough to do it, Elise was always gone. Therefore the chalk was always gone. And I was too cheap to go buy my own. So then we decided that we'd make footprints up at Mill Hollow. But that still has yet to happen. So when I was looking for secret sister gifts yesterday, I gave in and bought me some sidewalk chalk. I think it was definitely worth the two dollars. Even though it got dark before I finished, it still looks pretty cool. 

Check out how small my chalk is now compared to the second picture.

Not really sure why the green is so much smaller than the others.

Plus, check out my hand. :) Finally, I can do some art that actually looks good!

On another note, I got to go the groundbreaking ceremony for the Brigham City Temple this morning. It's going to be so cool. But it'll be almost two years before it's done. :( Who knows if I'll even still be in Utah by then. Today marks exactly 27 days until I move back to Logan. Yes, I'm counting down. I am so stoked for school this year. And I got approved to do a scholarship program while I student teach where I can make up to $2300 to pay back students loans. Talk about awesome! I also really miss the social life. I'm loving Mill Hollow, don't get me wrong, but I'm ready for something new. So, here's to the next 27 days....

Ps. Elise, I will still draw footprints with you on our sidewalk in Logan if you want. :)

Because I'd Rather Blog Than Drive

I have to leave for Salt Lake, like, 20 minutes ago, so I'm going to do this the fast way. Pictures!

Rian's farewell was last week:

I've really gotten sucked into watching the Big Bang Theory up at Mill Hollow over the past two weeks. Man, that show is addicting! So last Monday Daisy and I took a break from watching and went down to split rock. And probably took a million pictures.

This is usually what my cabin looks like every week. Sometimes I wonder how I do it. 

Happy July 4th!

Have you ever read The Giver by Lois Lowry? If not, I highly recommend it. Definitely one of my favorite books. Anyway, I thought of this book during sacrament meeting today. Actually, I had two thoughts during the meeting. It being the 4th of July and all, of course a lot of people said something about their gratitude for the freedoms we enjoy by living in this country. That's what triggered me thinking about The Giver. Quick run-down of the book (don't worry, no spoilers will be included): it's about this society where no one sees color. Everything is decided for you. Girls wear their hair in braids until a certain age, and then tied back with a ribbon until a certain age; boys hair isn't cut until a certain age; kids don't get a bike until a certain age; that kind of thing. As part of school, they even have to start doing so many community service hours while people watch them so that some committee can decide what career they will have when they're older. They are told at the age of 12 what their life-long job will be and then immediately start training for it. They don't get to decide who they marry and each couple is only allowed two children: one boy and one girl. And they have send in an application to see if they are even ready to have children in their home. There's only one person who knows anything about the way the world used to be, or what it could be again.

As I was sitting there thinking about it, I couldn't help but think how truly grateful I really am for the freedoms we're allowed by living in this country. The most important being our freedom of religion. I would hate to not see any color. I would hate not being able to choose how to wear my hair, or who to marry, or how many kids I want (not that I'm thinking about those last two). I like being able to make my own decisions and not have anyone judge me for them. I like being able to say what I want to say, when I want to say it, if that's what I choose to do. I like the fact that I can be active in my religion, and that my friends of other faiths can be active in theirs and we don't judge each other for it. And I'm grateful to those throughout history, and even now, who fight to keep our country free.

My other thought during the meeting? It was loud. I love my home ward; really, I do. But I miss my student ward so much! Eight more weeks and I can go back to actually being able to hear what's being said in church.

This and That

I can't ever seem to keep up in the summer. Someday, that will change. I hope. Not much has changed since last month. Still working at Mill Hollow. Still loving it. Minus the few whiny girls that I end up. Or the sassy ones. I had one super sassy girl this past week. I don't think she ever caught on that I wasn't going to take it from her. The good news is, she went home and I never have to see her again. The snow has completely melted up there now too. So now we can go hiking and not have snow piles to worry about. Sometimes the trails are still wet, but that's usually due to the rain we get. Which so far has been practically every day. Okay, so I exaggerated a little bit. But we do usually see rain at least once a week. This week it happened to be about three times. Maybe more. We also tie-dyed shirts. I don't normally go for the tie-dye stuff, but I have to admit, it's pretty cool. And it was fun. We also sometimes stop in Kamas at the coolest swirly slide ever. And we make a train to go down it. And we have fun taking pictures at make-out rock. It's tradition...don't judge.

 

Last weekend, we went up to Daisy's cabin in Oakley on Sunday night. It was so fun! We read some Dr. Seuss, ate giant marshmallows, and didn't have to get up and leave by 7:30. Somehow, though, we still managed to get there after the buses did. Go figure. Also, Pi came to visit us this week! It's a little crazy to think that he leaves for his mission in two weeks. 

Uncle Jamie, Aunt Amanda and kids came to visit last weekend. That was exciting. But those kids wear me out. Rian wasn't home so it was just me here to play with them. However, I told them if they wanted to see the cow, chickens, pigs, etc, that they would have to ask Uncle Rick (dad) to show them. I avoid those animals at all costs. Since my camera is dead, I didn't get any pictures of them while they were here. And to Uncle Jamie's surprise, I got both Cody and Connor to eat all of their lunch. What can I say? I'm awesome. :) 

I missed the fireworks in Logan this year. Why? Oh, because I woke up Thursday morning and pretty much couldn't swallow. Same thing happened on Friday. So Mom made me go to the dr. as soon as I got home last night. Since I don't have any insurance, I didn't actually get tested for strep, but she gave me antibiotics anyway and said if it is strep, it'll start feeling better by tonight; otherwise it's probably just another cold. Well, I'm definitely feeling better tonight! My throat still hurts a little bit, but it's a huge improvement over the past two days. I'm going to miss the fireworks in Brigham this year too, since they are on Monday. Lame people; why couldn't they do them tonight? So, to celebrate the 4th of July, we went to Toy Story 3 today. Wow. It was fantastic! I so want to go see it again. We also made festive square cupcakes. And by that I mean I made them. And I think they look pretty cool.

And where's the fun in making cupcakes and frosting them and putting sprinkles on them without a mess? I think there may have been more sprinkles on the counter than the actual cupcakes.

Over the past two weeks, I've also rekindled my love for Pushing Daisies. I really wish that show had not been canceled! At least I can watch Sonny With a Chance now. But it's not as good. Glee isn't as good either, but I guess it will have to do. How much longer before season two starts? I'm really curious how things are going to go...