Wednesday, December 24, 2008

Finding it hard to believe...

...that 2008 is nearly over.

I know that this is a bit premature, but I was reflecting on the many things that 2008 brought with it and I thought I'd share a few of the major events in my life during 2008.

January:

-I rang in the year 2008 with Morgan at Polar Ice.
-Brad turned 19.
-I went to Utah with Morgan's family. I lost my travel card and got to drive back with Morgan and her mom. We drove through Vegas and I got my foot ran over, which was one of the most hilarious things that has happened this year. No worries, my foot was fine. In Vegas, I saw the Bellagio for the first time. How is it that I hadn't been to Vegas in that long?


-I started my sixth semester at ASU and I started interning with Shelley at Towne Meadows. So fun!
-Brad turned in his papers and received the Melchezedec priesthood.
-President Hinckley passed away.

February:

-I went to Vegas with my mom and Brad for 5 hours one day because we were bored.


-I got stuff for Valentines Day.
-I went to Disneyland with my mom.
-President Monson became our prophet.
-I had a little longboarding accident. It was nothing major, but I still have the scars to prove it. Yikes!
-I went to an awesome 80s party.
-I got called to work in the nursery.

March:

-Jennifer's birthday- I watched the kids. So fun! :)
-Landon's 1st birthday- We had desserts at Jen's.
-Spring break (Disneyland!)
-Easter- which was apparently "pretty low key" according to my journal.... whatever that means.


April:

-Lexie's birthday- She had a combined party with Landman and it was a BLAST!
-I went to Disneyland and saw the Alexanders and the Colemans there!

May:

-We took Brad to the MTC.
-The semester ended!
-Learning Safari graduation. My kiddos were so cute!
-Disneyland with Morgan

June:

-I started my two summer jobs: Swimming lessons, Learning Safari
-Disneyland with Alexis, Landon, and Jen. Jesse and fam were there as well as Morgan and fam.
-Havasupia with my dad. So so so so fun.
-San Diego for Kjerstin's shower. What a fun trip!


July:

-4th of July- We watched fireworks with the Alexanders. It was very fun.
-My "last" Disneyland trip before my annual pass expired. I went with my mom.
-Cabin Trip
-Natasha's wedding (I was a bridesmaid.)
-I got a new phone and a new number.

August:

-Sean's birthday
-Semester #7 started
-California trip- I saw Wicked again with Sage and the beach with the McCleves. It was way fun.
-The Olympics took over my life.
-Cabin Trip #2


September:

-Tanner came home.
-I went to Utah twice to visit Tanner.
-I started interning at Hull Elementary in 2nd grade.

October:

October was a crazy month. Can we leave it at that? ;) Naw, here we go:

-October 8th was a big day for me. Most of you know why.
-My birthday. It was interesting. I turned 22. I got to have lunch at Gecko's with my wonderful family. I got some awesome, awesome gifts from family and friends. I had dinner with some of my most favorite people. :)
-I went to Disneyland with friends, after planning and organizing the trip most of the year. My mom jokes that I had my first true experience as a parent because despite your best efforts, it's inevitable that at least one person won't enjoy the trip. :)
-My cute cousin, Elise, got her mission call to Sweden!
-Halloween - I went to a party at the Ellis household and to the ASU institute dance with Elise and some other friends. It was very fun.

November:

-I went to Utah for one day to hang out with Sage.
-Dad's birthday
-I watched Jen and Sean's kids
-Thanksgiving - We had it at our house for the first time in my life. It was nice.
-I went on a couple of dates. They were fun.


December:

-I went on a few more dates. Fun fun!
-My last semester of actual classes ended.
-Mom's birthday- Disneyland of course!
-I got my student teaching placement at Canyon Rim and met my teacher and future students!
-My sweet Aunt Marianne passed away and I was able to attend her funeral. It was beautiful.
-Christmas parties, which are always fun. There were so many this year! :)
-Christmas! I will blog more about this later, but it was a fabulous Christmas!

So, overall, 2008 was quite the year. I read tons of books, I went to Disneyland a lot, I taught dozens of children, I worked on countless lesson plans, projects, presentations, etc. for school, I attended some wedding receptions and a funeral, I gained a few friends and lost a few friends too, I felt lots of joy and a little heartache, I learned lots about myself and about life, I attended institute and loved it, I went to lots of YSA things and didn't hate them, my testimony grew, and hopefully I grew as a person. I'm excited to see what 2009 brings!

I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas. I hope to see pictures soon! I'll blog more about Christmas sometime this week.

Happy New Year! Have a safe one!

Tuesday, December 9, 2008

Christmastime



This past Saturday, I spent the day in Disneyland. I know, shock of all shocks. We had a great time even though it was crowded as all get out. For more pictures, click here.

In other news, Christmastime is turning out to be pretty awesome. So many little miracles have happened in my life recently. Perhaps our first Christmas miracle was this little incident:


Yes. Our Bethlehem village had a bit of an accident. So why it this a miracle? Well, for one, we were able to retrieve and fix every piece. Well, almost. One girl has a chunk missing from her wrist, but hey, beggars can't be choosers. (Haha, she's actually a beggar too. Ha.) Okay, but anyways, I had fun performing surgery all night and listening to my mom make sacrilegious comments.
On a more serious note, I got my student teaching placement! I'm headed to Canyon Rim Elementary, home to the Cougars. I'll be in a 2nd grade classroom and I'm very, very excited! I start January 5th. Wish me luck!
It's become clear to me that miracles happen every day. Life gets crazy and things can seem pretty bleak at times. But I don't believe the Lord ever closes one door without opening another. I'm pretty excited about everything that has been happening in my life and about all the daily miracles I experience.
As Christmas draws closer, let's remember all the miracles we experience. And most importantly, let's remember why we celebrate this day. Because of a small, humble miracle. The birth of a baby boy in a manger in Bethlehem.
I love you all. Merry Christmas!