it's beginning to look a lot like finals

Tomorrow is the last day of class and finals hit next week! When I got home from a good 10 hours of just running around all day and changed into this outfit I realized that finals time had arrived. Messy hair, sweatshirt, scrubs, Uggs, clashing colors . . . oh, and a bowl of brownie batter. These are the things I love about finals! Maybe we're weird, but Kelsey and I actually get kind of excited for finals because we always end up with some pretty great memories. Tonight we made cherry brownies {LOVE} and Becky & Heather came over to watch the fall finale of Glee. It reminded me of all the girls and studying for our fall finals freshman year. What an adventure! I love my friends!

So since finals are coming and I have a ton to do, I really should be focused on the paper I need to write and the study guides I need to fill out. However, the things running through my mind right now are . . .

I have cherry brownies in the kitchen, but I've already eaten too many tonight

Nate will be home in approximately 1 day, 16 hours, 18 minutes

I'm annoyed that I lost my notebook in the library today-- studying for cs and development will be grand

I'm almost out of orange juice and I need to buy more tomorrow

I hate wildlife {the class} and I'm so glad tomorrow is the last day I have to go!

I'm going to miss my cs friends and our dates in the lab

Nate is going to call me in 1 day, 16 hours, 9 minutes {approximately}

Glee was awesome tonight, and I don't want to wait until spring for more episodes

My apartment is a disaster, and I will think about cleaning it someday

Dance it out, just dance it out

I am so so ready for Colorado

Blogging is way too fun

Hanukkah starts on Friday at sundown and I'm really excited

I get to go dress shopping with Allyssa soon

I'm obsessed with Ingrid Michaelson and I need money to purchase all her songs I don't have yet

It's cold outside, but the snow is pretty.

Finals week is going to be epic . . .

I'm pretty excited . . .

coming soon . . .

Finals List of Doom FUN

baby it's cold outside

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas! Since our big snow yesterday it is finally starting to feel like Christmas. It's great to have some nice Christmas cheer at finals time. I gave blood yesterday and it totally wiped me out, so I'm not feeling very well today. I have just been laying in bed so as not to be dizzy, and decided to have some Christmas fun. We don't have any festive decorations for our apartment, so I started looking at decorations online. Anthropologie is a winner, of course. These are the virtual ornaments that are serving as my Christmas decorations today. Love them!

Happy December and Merry Christmas!

 

walkin on sunshine

Yesterday at church my bishop asked me:

"Are you really as happy as your face always says you are?"

Well, I guess I am!

Life is beautiful. I'm so blessed and I am pretty darn happy.

Life isn't always sunshine and daisies
{today it's more like snowflakes and hot cocoa!}, but it's all part of the plan.
Each day provides a new chance to learn and grow,

There is always something to be happy about,
and the bumps in the road are great adventures.

That is a lesson I have learned this year. My mom told me,
"Look for a reason to be happy today."

The world is full of things to smile about.

I looked at a list of synonyms for the word happy:

cheery, merry, joyful, jolly, gleeful, delighted, beaming, content, satisfied, gratified, buoyant, radiant, sunny, thrilled, elated, exhilarated, ecstatic, blissful, euphoric, in seventh heaven, on cloud nine, walking on air, jumping for joy, over the moon, tickled pink, happy as a clam,
on top of the world. . .

Try to read this list without smiling. Just try. I sure can't!

So when the storms of life start raining down,

look inside for a little gladness {or fill in your own word} and start

walkin on sunshine!

whoa-oh, and don't it feel good!

steady as she goes

am i there yet?

when will that day be here?

it seems i am always waiting for what comes next,

rushing through the days and weeks, months and years.

i'm losing focus.

holding on to one countdown after another.

i'm always looking for the next piece of the journey

or wishing for the past.

what is the destination i'm longing for?

maybe it's already here.

stop asking myself when i'll get there. each day i'm where i ought to be.

the present may not always be my favorite part,

but looking for greener pastures only dims the light that shines today.

steady as she goes, steady as she goes,

one day at a time.

joy in the journey.

hello goodbye

December has arrived! I can't believe how quickly time flies. Although at times I have {lovingly} referred to this semester as the "semester from Hell," things have gotten a lot better and the past few months have really flown by. I'm so thankful for my family and my awesome friends. I was thinking back on the past two Decembers and realizing that my Decembers have been full of hellos and goodbyes. At the end of each semester I am always saying goodbye to roommates, friends, classes, teachers. . . but December is pretty dramatic. Two years ago I said hello to Nate after he had been in Singapore and I in Provo for a few months, and then we said goodbye for two years. Last year at about this time I was getting ready to say goodbye to Jerusalem. That was saying goodbye to the most life-changing time of my life, the most amazing city in the world, and my fabulous friends. Then I got to say hello to my family and the good ol' US of A. This December I hope will hold a few more hellos than goodbyes-- goodbye will come in January.