spring break

I couldn't wait to get back home for Spring Break. This semester has been sort of hard for me to get through, and I was so excited to spend time with my family. To kick of my Spring Break, we went to get burgers at the Habit. This was my first time going and it was actually really good!

I also got to make homemade salsa with my grandparents. It was so fun to learn how to learn about the process and spend time with them. This was definitely the best salsa we've ever made!

Another highlight of my week was getting to support Sydney with her SBO elections. She had to perform in front of the entire school with other students who were running for SBO. She did such a great job and I know she has been planning her skit since she started high school. She did it despite the fact that she had cysts that ruptured on her ovaries the day before. And she made it! She is one of the six students who made it through to lead the whole school! I was so proud of her-- she deserves this more than anyone I know.

Her sweet friend Gracie was so sweet and brought over dinner to our family when she found out that Sydney was at the Emergency Room the night before her skit. It was the best Mexican food I've ever had. She even brought cereal and unique sodas for every family member.

This week we also surprised my Aunt Rina for her 50th birthday. It was so fun to surprise her. She is one of the most selfless and humble people I have ever met. It was such a great experience to bless her and serve her as she does so much for others. 

And if it wasn't enough, I got to listen to Syd end the week with a fantastic lesson. She was asked to speak for our Stake Women's Conference with two other speakers. She talked about our light as women and how we can use the light of Christ to bring others back. She did such a great job and I was so proud of her accomplishments this past week.

Overall this week was a time for me to spend time with my family and ground myself before heading back to the craziness of school. I am so grateful that my family members can double as my best friends. They mean the world to me, and I can't imagine life without them.

true badger, rodeos, & the little things

The best part about this week, is that I didn't have to go very far to have fun. Jenna, Autumn, and I went to our school's rodeo down in Salina. It was really fun to spend time with them and watch the Rodeo team. I can't remember the last time I went to a rodeo, and it was so fun! After the rodeo, we went to Denny's for dinner, and just laughed the whole time we were together.

Another thing that has made me smile this week is the cute gentleman at Walmart who gave us smiley stickers. I just smiled at him when we came in and he said, "What a great smile you have. You need to keep it all day long, so here's a sticker." It made my whole day. It was a perfect reminder that there is something to smile about everyday.

Another great moment this week was when Jenna and I were able to master the art of "The Jumping in the Mirror Pic" after multiple attempts. I think our neighbors were tired of all of our jumping, but we couldn't stop until we finally got one we liked.

On Friday night, Jenna and I went sledding with some friends up Ephraim Canyon. Let me tell ya- we are awful at sledding. We crashed probably 20 times. 

visitors, sleepovers, & surprise parties

This week has been super fun! To start it off, I was driving back from Walmart with Jenna and we saw a group of deer just hanging out in someone's yard.

We also had Maddie and Courtney visit us for the a few days this week. It was a lot of fun to hang out with them again! They are so fun and it was great to be with them. 

I also got a visit from my cute cousin Scotlyn. She came on Friday and stayed with us for the weekend. It was fun to have her join us in all of our craziness. The first night she came, we went to an LTI show and had pizza for dinner. We just hung out the rest of the night, before leaving early the next morning to go up north.

We went to Top Golf on Saturday morning and had a lot of fun. Jenna and Autumn's friend Jared invited us to come, and when we got there we realized it was someone's birthday party. We felt really dumb because we had no idea who Ryan was, and accidentally told him we didn't know that we were at a surprise party (and it was HIS party!). Jenna felt really bad for ruining the surprise, but it gave us a lot to joke about. It was a lot of fun, even though we barely got any points. It was nice to meet some new friends and spend time together.

Later that day we went to Chick-fil-A for lunch and I was able to meet up with my dad and some of my siblings. It was fun to see them and visit with them! We also stopped by my grandparents house. It was really good for Scotty to see them and visit with them. Overall this week has been very fun and a great way to get back into the groove of a new semester.

bowling, valentine's day, & birthday surprises

This week started out as the funnest week! Jenna, Autumn, Ash, and I went bowling with some guys that Jenna and Autumn knew. Even though we all stunk, it was a ton of fun! Afterwards, we all got in Jenna's car and headed to a graveyard. Autumn and I squished in the back to get there. At first it was scary, but once Autumn and I locked out Ash and Jenna we ended up having a great time:) In all seriousness it was really a party and one of the best nights we've had in a long time!

Tuesday night was great, but Wednesday turned out to be really difficult for me. And it was Valentine's Day- one of the best days of the year, right?! But I ended up having a mental breakdown over a problem I had at the Testing Center. After I had come home from choir, I found out that Jenna and Autumn were also having a rough day. Ashlyn definitely made us feel better when she told us there was a candy shop in Manti that was open! We headed over and I got a Peanut Butter S'mores which was so good!

We got home from the candy shop and I saw that my Dad had sent me a Valentine's Day card. It made me so happy to read it and know that he still thought of me, even while I was far away.

Later that night, we all ate pizza and started watching The Bachelor Winter Games. Then Autumn joined us and we had so much fun "wearing" hoodies and dancing around outside. It made us all laugh so hard, and definitely changed our day.

After we finally broke free from the hoodies, we all started to watch The Notebook and made Pazookies. It definitely made this Valentine's Day turn out to be one that we would remember. Although it started off a bit rough, it became one of the funnest nights we've had together.

On Thursday I headed home to surprise my family. They knew that I was going to be headed home this weekend to surprise Sofie for her birthday but Syd was the only one who knew I'd be coming a day early. I met up with Syd after she got done with school and we went to Zupa's to get some lunch. After that I ran to get some balloons for Sofie and for Bryn. I then headed home and surprised them. 

It was so fun to be with them that day! Later that night I watched the movie Masterminds with my dad. It was so fun to just spend time with him and laugh. It was a great way to start out my weekend with all of my family!

On Friday my mom, sisters, and I had gone to run some last minute errands for Sofie's birthday party. Cute little Scarlett came and joined us for the day, and she loved going to Joanne's Craft Store. We got her some beads to make a necklace and she loved it! 

For Sofie's party we went to the ice skating rink. She had a Winter Olympics themed party, and it turned out really cute! The girls got medals, made charm bracelets, and a lot of them learned to ice skate for the first time! It was a lot of fun and all of the girls were really cute!

On Saturday night, my parents were making fun of my PJ bottoms. I knew that I got them big, but I wanted to be comfortable. We then realized they were so big that I could fit Bryn in them with me! We also fit Preston in later, but could barely walk. It was definitely a laughable moment!

On Sunday we had our traditional Valentine's Day dinner. My mom's friend Alissa brought Cornish Game Hens over for my parents after my mom had miscarried. It was that night my Mom & Dad both wished to be parents over the wishbone from the hen. Ever since that night we have always had them for Thanksgiving dinner. This was the first time everyone was able to have their own hen. It grossed Bryn and Preston out when they started to eat theirs, so we may have to cut them in pieces for them next year...

Alissa had actually come over from work later that night. It was so good to catch up with her- we haven't seen her for a while! She ended up sleeping over because we had a snow storm that night. We watched family videos with her and then ate Pazookies for dessert. It was the best way to end the weekend with my family!

I am so grateful I could make so many memories this week. I was so glad that even though I had stressful moments, my friends and family were there to cheer me up!