JELISA

Updating the Blog:)

2010-04-27T21:50:00.000-07:00

Kim and I went to Midway for a few days in March

Matt, Me, and J at Brianhead

Me on my first double black diamond

Matt and Stef were able to come to Utah in March!

Kimber and Kelsey's 21st Birthday Party
Ree, Me, Laura, Kim, Kels, and Dev drinkin Pina Coladas:)

Adam and I at Six Flaggs for my first time ever!

I got to go visit Adam, Matt, and Stef in Texas in June. This is on the Riverwalk

Matt took me on a ride on his bullet bike around Texas

Kim, Kels and I were able to spend a few days in Cali Woot!

Kels, Me, and Kim at Seaworld

Well, I'm finally deciding to take the time to update my blog now that finals are almost over. Since my last post about a year ago a lot has happened-I'll just post a little bit from the highlights of the year:) I am currently still going to school working toward my Bachelors of Accountancy at SUU. I finally decided to take a small leap and move to Cedar for a change. I moved here in January of this year and loved it at first! I hung out with my cousin Camille almost every night watching Gilmore Girls, painting our fingernails, and just having a blast! About a month after the move, our schedules got more demanding with work and school and we weren't able to hang out as much. I hadn't met many people here and things just weren't like I thought they were going to be. I was almost wanting school to end so that I could move back home where I was with everyone I knew. Now; however, I'm really sad that the semester is over because I've been having a blast up here lately. Isn't that how it always goes? Oh well, I'll be moving back in the fall:) I still work in St. George and make the commute every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. I have discovered my new love in life down in St. George which has been keeping me down there more often. That love is ZUMBA!!! My sister Vanessa got me hooked. It's like a hip hop workout class and it's in a warehouse where there's graffiti all over the walls and we dance with the lights off and a disco ball going. Seriously, I've never loved a workout so much and it's right up my ally. If anyone ever wants to join, please come! You'll love it! I'm moving home this week for the summer which will be nice since the weather has been so horrible in Cedar this winter. I'm excited for the heat and to lose the commute for a while. This past weekend/week has been quite the ordeal trying to study for my finals. I'm happy to say that they've gone pretty good so far and I only have one more to go. Woot! I'm hoping to get a little more involved in school next semester by possibly joining a Sorority called Alpha Phi and I'd really love to join PAC which is an accounting club that helps you do a lot of networking and become more involved in the accounting world. I'm pretty excited about that! SUU is such an awesome campus and the people are super nice here. I love that! The atmosphere is a lot different from Dixie State and I feel like everyone is a lot more involved. My latest excitement in life is coming up this weekend and that's IRONMAN! I'm so excited that it's coming to St. George-what an amazing event for us to host! My sister Vanessa and I are volunteering from 4-11 and we're hoping to get a good shot at the athletes and how an Ironman works. I'm stoked! Everyone should come and check it out, it'll be such a blast!

Lake Powell Baby!

2009-05-12T10:09:00.000-07:00

Katie, Me, Ree
Me and Ree

Me and Ree eating our Cheetos...YUM!

Ree, Dad, Me

The fam eatin lunch

Sara, Katie, Me, Ree

BEAUTIFUL!

Aunt Mary, Katie, Ree, Me at Rainbow Bridge

The fam at Rainbow Bridge...way cool!

Oh, heck yes! This was so much fun! This last Saturday, me, ree, my dad, my Aunt Mary's family, and my grandparents went to Powell to go boating and hike Rainbow Bridge. We left St. George at 5:30 am and met G and G in Hurricane so that we could all ride together. We headed up and met Aunt Nin and her family there since they had stayed the night there. When we first got on the lake, the boat was having issues. It wouldn't go into gear, it was viberating like crazy, and the rpm's were running really high. We thought that we were gonna have to just put the boat back on the trailer and head home. Luckily, Aunt Mary decided to call someone to see if it was just a minor problem that could easily be fixed. We ate lunch at the Wahweap Marina and checked out the house boats while we waited for the guy to get there. Flip, there was a piece of plastic covering the air intake that was causing all of the problems. So simple! They had just taken the boat in a few weeks prior to this to have every fluid changed and have everything looked over so we couldn't figure out what they heck would be the problem? Luckily it was just minor and easily fixable! Anyways, we spent the day out on the boat and just had a great time! I got way sunburned but so did everyone else. We didn't get in the water at all because it was way too cold but it was so gorgeous there! We hiked Rainbow Bridge and just spent a day full of boating and family time! It was a blast!

CAVING!!!

2009-05-12T09:38:00.000-07:00

Ok, this was the best! My friends and I have recently met some guys that are so fun! Dave, Craig, and Braeden are just a crack up to be around and we've had so much fun with them in the short time we've been friends. We had talked about going caving a few times because all of the boys are from up north and haven't ever been and Kimber hadn't been either. I knew it would never happen if we didn't set a date and time and just go for it so I text everyone and we set a time and went! Caving is such a thrill! If you've ever been, you'll know what I'm talking about. You hike down into caves at night(we went to the Snow Canyon Caves) and you take like 3 glowsticks per person. Once you get into the opening, you break the glowsticks, tie a string through the hole, and swing them around above your head. The glowing specs fly all over the cave walls and floor and all over your body. Everyone is camoed in and you play hide and go seek! Oh, it is a blast! I couldn't get the look of the caves after we had put the glowsticks everywhere with my camera but it's so great! It was me, Kim, Kels, Madi, Dave, and Craig that went and it was fun to see the reactions of the people who hadn't gone before. I'm a flake and couldn't find the caves forever but we lucked out and I finally found them! It was so fun!

New Car!!!

2009-05-12T09:28:00.001-07:00

Ok, I haven't updated my blog for a very long time so the next like 3 or 4 posts are all going to be updates. I bought a new car in March and am so excited about it! It's a 2008 Hyundai Elantra and it's just so fun! I decided to get back into debt so that I could have a 4 door vehicle and a more reliable car. I loved my Civic so much but the 2 doors drove me totally crazy and it was starting to get a lot of wear and tear on it and I just didn't want to pay for all of the repairs. I also love having no subs in my trunk! It's SO nice! I enjoy being able to take 5 people in my car now and having tons and tons of trunk space! My car is a manual transmission which was a must for me on any car that I bought. It was just everything I had been looking for in a new car and it was cheaper to get a brand new Hyundai Elantra as it was to have a used Mazda 3 which was my other option. I just love it! It has XM radio, alloy wheels, sunroof, heated seats, audio controls on the steering wheel, tinted windows, 5 year bumper to bumper warranty, and just tons of little perks that I was freakered about when I was shopping for cars. Anyways, that's my latest exciting purchase!

Camping Next Door!

2009-01-18T14:19:00.000-08:00

Maddie, Kim, me, Kels

Maddie, Kim, me, Kels, Dev

Kim and me

Yes, it was very cold. Hot chocolate hit the spot!

Ok, so this was way fun! Kimber and Kelsey always do the cutest get-togethers! It was Maddies birthday and I guess that she's been wanting to go camping so Kelsey's parents agreed to let us sleep in their trailer. We were just parked on the side of Kelsey's house, hence the title "Camping next door." Kelsey has a little fire pit in her backyard so we roasted hotdogs around the fire and then went in the trailer. IT WAS FREEZING! We made hot chocolate and ate 25 Main cupcakes(which are on my top 5 most favorite desserts ever) and sang Happy Birthday! Maddie opened her presents and we just had a great time! We were laughin and just enjoying the camping atmosphere! Surprisingly, it felt very much like we were camping when we were actually in the trailer. What a fun thing to do! Kimber and Kels are darling, they always do cute stuff like that for people. Thanks girls!

Snowboarding!

2009-01-03T09:53:00.001-08:00

Skylar, Danny, Tyc, and me

me, Mike, Lance

Me and Tyc after she got hurt--we just went and got Pepsi's

Tyce and I

Mike, Tyc, Danny, Lance, Skylar, and me

Happy New Years! On Thursday me, Tyc, Danny, Lance, Mike, and Skylar all went up to Brianhead for a day of snowboarding! This was only my second time ever going and the rest of the group has been many times. I kinda felt bad making Tyc stay behind with me but she was a gem and stuck with me! We left St. George around 8 am and headed up. We got all of our gear ready and got our lift tickets and just got goin. The 4 boys went off and did their own thing because they're way faster than Tyc and I and they go off all the jumps and stuff. Me and Tyc decided on our hill and got in line for the lift. Haha, trying to get on the lift for the first time was a little awkward for me. I couldn't figure out how to move fast enough with my snowboard attached to one of my feet while pushing with the other foot. That was a little chaotic! Haha, I ended up not getting there fast enough and so the lift just swept me up and I wacked Tyc in the leg with my board. After that incident I figured out how to maneauver my board and didn't have any more troubles getting ON the lift. Once we got to the top, I was a little nervous about how to get off the flipping thing. Tyc has never been able to successfully get off the lift without falling and I didn't understand it too well either so once we tried to get off, we crashed! Haha, that happened the first few times. Anyways, I fell and fell every single time I got up. My first two times down the hill were horrible. I was getting so frustrated and tired. Finally, I picked it up on about the 3rd time down and started enjoying myself much more! We ate lunch up there and just had a good time! At about 3 pm, Tyce and I went up the lift again to have another round down the mountain. We got to the top and by this time I could decently get off the lift. Tyc was getting much better but still struggling a little. We got off the lift and I started cruzin down the little hill but felt like I was a little out of control so I just stopped myself and fell gently. Tyc lost her balance and grabbed onto me right when I was going down so her lef and snowboard went one way and her body turned the other way. Her knee popped and she started to cry. She was in pain and she still had to ride all the way down the mountain. I followed behind her and tried to help out a little but I wasn't super good anyways. We got to the bottom, found Danny, and decided that she couldn't board anymore so we just went and chilled inside. We waited about another hour and a half til the lifts closed at 4:30 and then packed up and went home. Once we got home we went to dinner, went hot tubbing, and watched The Office. The day turned out to be very fun! Too bad Tyc got hurt because I was just getting comfortable with boarding and we had to stop. It'll be fun to go again though because now I understand it a little better! Fun day!

Christmas!

2008-12-28T17:39:00.000-08:00

Our Christmas tree at 5 in the morning!

Sherisa, Bri, Bo, Bella, and Vanessa-Christmas morning

Cousins Rikki and Steven

Mom, Brenton, me, Sherisa at G & G Bushnell's

Ness, me, Ree, Bri, and Bro

Yes, Christmas morning, 5 am-dead tired!

Bro, me, and mom opening presents

HOORAY! Christmas morning was just a blast! My little brother insists that we wake up at 5 o'clock in the morning still, which is actually really fun for me because if it weren't for him, I would probably sleep in. Christmas eve we spent the evening up in Cedar at my Grandpa and Grandpa Roper's house. We do the same thing every year; big dinner, grandpa reads us the story of the birth of the Savior from the scriptures, Christmas program (all of the grandkids prepare a talent to perform-my bro, sis, and me all play a song on the piano), and we open presents. We always come back home for the sleeping part because we all insist on being in our own home for Christmas. Once we get home, my parents give us all pajamas and we go to bed. That is our Christmas eve every year. On Christmas morning we wake up at 5 am (it used to be 4:30, thank heavens Brenton decided to let us sleep a half an hour longer) and wake up our parents. We ALL have to walk down together and we all go strait to the family room. We walk in with everything dark and my parents flip the light on and we all start opening presents. Around 7:30 we eat a big breakfast and then my sister and bro in-law and their kids come over around 9. After we're done opening the rest of the gifts, we all get ready and head up to Cedar again. We spend the large part of the day with the Bushnell's where we have soup and sandwiches and munchies. On our way out we stop by the Roper's of a couple hours and then head home! Christmas is so fun! I am so grateful for all of the traditions that my parents and grandparents have started for us and have continued to carry out. What a blessing it is to get together and remember the birth of our Savior and to spend some quality time with our families! The memories are just great! I am so thankful for a big family and the fun times that we have!

Snow in Dixie!

2008-12-23T16:01:00.001-08:00

St. George Temple/Visitors center

St. George Temple

The Dixie Rock covered in snow!

Sherisa and I

Christmas tree on Main Street

Cute little Judd's store!

Looking out over St. George

My old high school...Dixie High

AMAZING!!! It snowed in St. George a couple of nights ago and Sherisa and I just couldn't help but get out and take some pictures. It was gorgeous! My little brother actually got a snow day at school. The only snow day I ever got in school was when I was in like 4th grade; I have never had a snow day since. I had to wake up and take a final at the college that morning and the roads were so slick. It is so different to drive in but actually pretty fun! Us St. George people don't really know how to react to the snow. I was hanging out with my friends Andy and Ben out in Ivins and there was about 6 or 7 inches out there. We got about 3 or 4 inches in town. As I was driving home around midnight or so, it was just chucking snow. I just couldn't help but ponder on my life and the many blessings I receive every day. I was so happy I just wanted to cry. The snow was so beautiful as it packed itself softly on the ground. I have never seen St. George look so beautiful. I was one happy girl! Almost every house had a snowman out front since this would probably be the only chance we have in a long time. I'm so grateful for my blessings and that I was able to be a part of such a beautiful experience! It just brightened up my week!

Warm Springs!!!

2008-12-21T21:45:00.000-08:00

Ok, so I haven't posted in such a long time. This should've been posted back in November. Anyways, it's worth posting so better late than never! My family and I went to Warm Springs in November which is located in Moapa. The water is naturally about 75-80 degrees so we were able to go swimming in November! I was so amazed that we could actually swim outdoors that late in the year. We had such a blast! There was about 21 of us and it was so crazy because we got every single person (grandpa included) in the pool except for grandma. In my whole 20 years of life, I have never seen my grandpa swimming in an actual swimming pool. We had a little picnic there and so many laughs! We played basketball, marco-polo, the shark game, and just swam! It was awesome! The pool is amazing because it is so warm and the pool is just huge! My family and I were the only ones in the whole place which is unusual because normally it's packed there! Oh my gosh, it is just amazing! The water runs all around the area in a little river and the place is just beautiful. I actually got sunburned in November; now that is unusual! Anyways, you all should take a trip there sometime; it is TOTALLY worth it! Just go to google and type in warm springs-nevada/reservations and it will walk you through steps to make a reservation. It's only like 2 bucks a person!

Mountain House!!!

2008-10-30T16:05:00.000-07:00

Me, Danny, Tycee, Lance

Me and Tyce

Oh, so fun! This past weekend my really good friend Lance came down from Arizona to take his midterms at Dixie. Him, Danny, and Tyce decided that they wanted to go to the mountain house and just have a good weekend! I was still at work so Lance stopped by and talked to me about it and we decided to go up asap! I got off work around 4 and we were hustlin to get everything packed so that we didn't have to drive in the dark a whole lot. Lance borrowed his uncle's truck and we were set. Actually, not quite yet. My dad made us go make spare keys to the mountain house gate because "he didn't want me taking his keys." DUMB! Anyways, we left at about 5 and then went to the grocery store in Cedar and headed up the canyon. Sadly, my grandparents had already winterized the cabin so we had no running water. So we bought like 4 gallons of water and hoped we were good! We had no sink and no potty. We got up there around 8 that evening and just got settled in. It was absolutely beautiful weather up there considering the time of year. We made a camp fire outside and made smores and just chatted. It was so fun to get together with all of us again! Except this time was a little different since Tycee and Danny are married now. There were SO MANY stars. Honestly, I was just amazed. I've been to the mountain house many many times and I don't know if i EVER remember there being that many stars all at one time. Absolutely BEAUTIFUL! Anyways, we played games and Lance stoked us up a fire in the fireplace because it was pretty dang cold. Lance is probably one of the most handy guys I've ever met. No joke, he can fix or figure out just about anything. I was very thankful to have him there! I was shivering and starting to get way cold until he made that fire for us. The night was cold but we all stayed warm. Again, Lance was just a gem and he kept waking up in the middle of the night to check on the fire and restock it. The next morning, Lance and Danny set out at about 7:30 to go hunt! Me and Tyce finally decided to get out of bed and start making breakfast so that we could eat when the boys came back. We had a YUMMY breakfast(probably one of my favorite things about going to the mountain house)! We cooked eggs, hashbrowns, sausage, and blueberry pancakes! The boys ended up not catching anything but they still had a good time. Later we went to Mini and Vini's grave to show Danny since he was the only one who hasn't been up to the mountain house to see it yet. We also went to the swing which started out awesome until Tycee went on it and the rope broke. It was so weird because we had all ridden it like at least 3 times each and finally it just broke. Luckily she only fell like 2 feet but it bruised her up pretty good because of the impact of the fall. We're very lucky she was ok. Around 2:30 we decided to pack up and get going. As we were driving out I told Danny that he had to have to opportunity to see the pipe at least once. Him and Lance decided to jump in which was crazy because the water is off the charts FREEZING! Their reaction showed that pretty well too. They were freaking out once they hit the water. Sorry guys! Other than those couple mishaps, the weekend turned out to be so fun! I'm very glad they all decided to go do that! It will probably be my last time up for the year which makes me sad. At least I got to go one more time though!

Hair Day at the Bushnell's!!!

2008-10-30T15:41:00.000-07:00

Kimber and I with my foils

Me laying on the counter while Kimber washed my hair

Mom with her foils

Ok, first of all, Kimber is the BEST! Honestly, she came over to my house and did mine and my moms hair. We both got cuts and two colors. Kimber has done my hair now for the past year or so probably. She just graduated from Evans hair school in September (Congrats Kimb!) and she is now looking for work. As of right now, she isn't actually working in a salon and I LOVE how she does my hair so I made her come do it at my house...rude, I know. It was pretty comical because we had to lay on the counter for Kimber to wash our hair out and it felt a LITTLE awkward! She is always such a gem though! My mom always pays like 95 bucks to get her hair done which I think is ridiculous so I told her that maybe Kimber would do hers as well. I asked Kimber and she was fine with it so we made a hair day at the Bushnell's! Thank heavens for Kimber because I love getting my hair done and I get it done probably like every month and a half to two months so she's just a gem to have around! Our hair both turned out lovely and it was a super fun day! THANK YOU KIMBER!!!

SNOW!!!

2008-10-12T21:40:00.000-07:00

Oh my gosh! This weekend was just incredible! My family and I took a drive up to Cedar to go up the canyon and look at the leaves that had changed color for the start of the Fall season. About 8 miles outside of Cedar we saw little flakes of snow coming down. As the day moved on a little bit, the snow increased and the flakes became bigger and even more beautiful! Now, if you are from somewhere like St. George where it NEVER snows, this is a pretty exciting event! I love the snow SO much! I also LOVE Christmas music (Manheim Steamroller in particular). I brought a few Christmas cd's along and we listened to them all day. It brought warm memories and much excitement! The months of October through December are my all time favorites! The many wonderful memories is what makes that such a wonderful time of year for me! We all drove up Cedar canyon together and it was BEAUTIFUL. The leaves were shades of red, yellow, orange, and lime green. Now, seeing the leaves when the sun is shinning is one thing, but seeing them while it is snowing is just incredible! I was on a high! This definitely made my Top 10 List of one of the most beautiful things I have ever seen. It made me think of how wonderful my life is and for the many blessings that my Father in Heaven has given me. It amazes me that I can drive 1 hour and go to a place so beautiful. My life is one that is truely blessed...not to mention that I am very grateful to live in the United States of America where I can find beauty and warm memories so easily!

Halloween Party!

2008-10-08T17:27:00.000-07:00

So I went to a Halloween party last Friday and we had a blast! You'll see in one of the pictures I posted that I got caught on camera laughing my head off! My good friend Kimber invited me to come join the party and we always have such a good time together. They did this little guessing game and it was just gross! There was like 10 different paper bags and inside the bags was a ziploc bag that had something in it. We had to stick our hand in the bag and guess what it was. There was like salsa, refried beans, cottage cheese, etc. YUCK! It was grossin me out! Anyways, I met a couple fun people there and it was fun to just get out and have a good time. We were all supposed to wear costumes but I didn't have a lot of time so I just dressed up in a lot of spandex stuff and went to the party! It's nice to have good friends! Kimber is such a gem and I love hanging out with her!

Long Lost Cousins!!!

2008-09-18T13:42:00.000-07:00

A couple weeks ago, I had the RARE, but very special experience of having my cousins Matt and Adam come to St. George and visit! This is the first time in almost 9 years that I have been together with both of them, in St. George at the same time. Wonderful blessing! Adam was able to come for just over a week and Matt and his wife Steph and their son were here for about 4 days. We were able to go on a 3.5 mile hike with a lot of the family and it was absolutely beautiful! After the hiking adventure, we went back to my grandpa and grandma Bushnell's house and had a BBQ. Then, the next day (this is my favorite part!) we went up to the mountain house. This was some experience for me! In our childhood years, we spent weekend after weekend up at the good ol ranch! However, it has been many many years since we were all up there together. Matt and Adam probably have no idea what a blessing that was for me. It was just like old times! Laughter, family time, and adventure! I thank Heavenly Father continually for the family I have been blessed with! They mean more than anything in the world to me. I am very grateful for the opportunity that I had to be united with them once again. What a blessing! Love you Matt and Adam!

Tycee's Wedding!

2008-09-18T10:55:00.000-07:00

Mom, Me, and Ree

Kolby, Me, Tycee, Danny

Some of the Bridesmaids
Haylee, Me, and Jessica!

Deke, Me, Lance, and Brett

Lance and I

Tycee! She looks BEAUTIFUL!

Tyce and I

Tycee and Danny

Ok, so Tycee got married about a month ago, but hey...better late than never huh? So my best friend Tycee got married on August 9th to Danny Radford. They were married here in the St. George temple and had their reception at the Marriott. The day was a wonderful success! Tyce looked SO beautiful and her husband Danny is such a gem! I was a bridesmaid along with Jessica, Haylee(Tycee's sister), Elisha, and Casey. The day started off at the temple for pictures! It was incredibly hot, however, we all looked darling and our outfits were great! Props to Tyce on the dresses and tuxes! Once we were done there, we went over to the wedding luncheon at the Ames residence and the food was DELICIOUS! Much thanks to Lance's aunt and uncle for that! The luncheon was fun because it was a lot less formal and everyone was able to just sit and chat! Lance was able to come down from Arizona which is always a treat! Also, I was able to meet Lance and Danny's life-long friend Deke (I hope that's how you spell it). Deke was hilarious! Good times! We had a break for about an hour and then we went over to the Marriott for pictures and for the ring ceremony. After that, the reception began! It was BEAUTIFUL! The Marriott did a fantastic job with the food and decorations! The wedding got over at about 9:30 and then we all went home. It was an awesome day! It was so fun to see Tyce get married! She's been my best friend for about 13 years now. Congrats Tyce and Danny! I sure love ya!

Kolob and Kolby

2008-08-08T22:57:00.000-07:00

Last Saturday Kolby and I took a drive to Kolob. Since I had never been there, he thought that it was an important item on the list of "things to do." We had a great time! Kolby's family used to own a cabin up there so he knows his way around well! It was beautiful! The day turned out to be overcast and a little rainy, but it was green and lucious and a very peaceful place to be! The Travellers sold their cabin and soon after that, it was struck by lightening and burned to the ground...everything except the chimney. Hopefully I'm not telling the story wrong, if so...sorry Kolbs! We drove all around for most of the time and just looked at the scenary! We went to the Kolob Reservor and ate lunch there! That night we had planned to cook a meal that Kolby ate on his mission. I don't even know how to spell it but it's called chipotti. Haha, that was probably totally wrong! We cooked for all of my fam and it turned out to be really fun! We made the BIGGEST mess! Haha, well, Kolby did! Just kiddin! It's not an easy thing to make without making a mess. At first I thought Kolby was full of crap. It didn't look very good while we were making it, but looks were deceiving! It was REALLY yummy! We had such a good time! Thanks Kolbs!

A day at the lake!

2008-07-31T17:14:00.000-07:00

Last Saturday my mom, dad, and brother went up to the Christensen family reunion. Me and Sherisa had to stay home because we both had to work Friday evening. My aunt Mary and Uncle Al invited us to come to the lake (Sand Hollow) and go boating with them! They are always so sweet to invite us! We LOVE going with the Moo-Al's! So we got to the lake around 9:30 in the morning to beat all of the traffic and started our day at the lake! We went tubing and ate lunch on the beach part of the lake. We weren't getting thrown around quite as much as usual but once we got me, Sherisa, and Christopher Lloyd on the tube together we had a BLAST! Uncle Al would get us goin so fast around the corners that we would be parallel with the boat. It was hilarious! David and Sarah were so cute too. They kept puttin their thumbs up to go faster and we were gettin a kick out of them! I enjoyed going to the lake so much! I appreciate Aunt Mary and Uncle Al for always inviting us to go with them...we sure love them and we have such a ball!

24th of July!

2008-07-26T15:56:00.000-07:00

JB and I

Mountain House

The 24th of July was such a blast for us Bushnells! My family, my Aunt Nin and her family, my cousin Jason and his family, and my grandparents and Uncle Tom all went up to our family cabin on Cedar Mountain! We all (except for grandpa, grandma, and Tom who came in the truck) started at Swain's Creek and fourwheeled down to the mountain house! We couldn't have picked a more beautiful day to go! We met G and G and Tom there and had lunch! We went on a little hike up the mountain and went to the swing and then ate dinner. By this time, the sun was starting to set so we decided we better get movin since we were on wheelers. We headed back up the mountain and me and my cousin Christopher were in the lead riding one wheeler together. We kinda left everyone in the dust. Once we got back to our vehicles, Christopher and I waited for about 10 minutes and finally we saw my Aunt Mary flying down the road toward us. She was FREAKING out! She was yelling, "Is Katie here? Where's Katie? Have you guys seen Katie?" Me and Christopher were totally confused. Long story short...Katie got lost in the mountains all by herself. She had ridden one of their baby fourwheelers by herself and taken the wrong fork in the road. We had everyone on wheelers searching for her. All of us were so uptight and SO worried about her. She had to be scared out of her mind, especially since there wasn't hardly any sunlight left at all. We said a family prayer and I prayed alone more than I think I ever have. I was so scared. Finally, about 2 hours later we had everyone back at the cars...including Katie. Her poor little face was tear stained and all of her make up was smeared down her face. She said that she was shaking so hard out there that she couldn't even push the gas. While she was in her frenzy to find her way, she also ran off the road a little and got a little banged up. I tried so hard to have faith that we would find her. We were in such a panick and it was getting dark. We almost called the search and rescue services. The Lord answered our prayers! I gained a much stronger testimony of the power of prayer in my life that day! We're so glad our little Katie bug is alright!

Family Vacation!

2008-07-17T19:09:00.000-07:00

This past week was super fun! My family and I went on a little family vacation up to the Salt Lake area. When I say a "little" family vacation, I mean little. We left Sunday afternoon around 3:30 pm and arrived at our hotel around 8:00 pm. We just went and ate and then spent the rest of the evening in our hotel room. Monday we went to Lagoon which was a blast! I haven't been there since I was in fifth grade so everything was fairly new to me. There are so many new rides! My parents wouldn't ride like ANY of the rides...their a bunch of pansies! Me, Ree, and Bro rode almost all of the rides without our parents. There was however, a couple rides that they went on and both my mom and dad got SOAKED! It was HILARIOUS! If you know my parents, then you'll think it's funny too! They were just the photo takers! Monday evening we went to visit my Aunt Mar and her family. She took us to the BEST Mongolian restaurant! It was to die for! It was a little hole in the wall like the one Lance and I went to in Arizona. I was nervous but, there again, it was delicious! It was great to visit Mar and the fam! We get up there oh...probably every 5 years or so haha. Tuesday I was DYING to go river rafting! My dad had mentioned it, but then he didn't really want to go. I finally convinced everyone that it would be a blast and we went! It really was a blast! SOOO funny though! We went under this bridge that was so close to the water that everyone had to get all the way inside the boat. My mom and dad's reaction was classic! They were freaking out! They thought their heads were gonna get scraped off. You had to be there to completely enjoy that experience! That was my first time river rafting and holy cow...I want to go again! The water was pretty dang cold but it was so worth it! That afternoon we went and ate a late lunch at one of our favorite restaurants...Bucca di Beppo! SO yummy! We also went up to "This is the Place" and learned about where Brigham Young came into the Salt Lake Valley and told the saints that this would be the place they were to settle. It was a very spiritual experience. Wednesday we took a ride on the Heber Creeper which ended up being quite fun! The mountains were BEAUTIFUL! After that my dad made us go to Cabela's. Haha, then our day was shot. We were there for such a long time! He loves that store and seriously...it's cool, but not 3 hours cool! Once we were done there, my parents took us around to check out the BYU campus where they went to school. That was fun! The trip turned out to be just a blast!

Road Runners

2008-07-05T23:09:00.000-07:00

Me, Linds, and Brock
The fireworks!
Road Runner Mascott
Road Runners playing ball!
Me and Linds
So we have this baseball team here in St. George called the Road Runners. They took the place of the Zion Pioneers that used to be here a while back. One our friends, Brock, is the team manager. He puts free tickets up at the stand so that we can come pick them up and get in for the games! Tonight was my first game! It was so fun! My friend Linds called me and asked if I wanted to come with her so we went together! The atmosphere was fun and it was nice to be out and about! I had no clue that they would be doing fireworks after the game. I have never been that close to fireworks in my life! It was awesome! They were like right above our heads and they were BEAUTIFUL! They did a TON too! The Road Runners lost but not by too much. It sure was fun though! I'd like to go to them more often and since Brock is such a gem and gets us free tickets...it's hard to say no! It's hard to find a time to go though. They play like Monday through Saturday most of the time I think? Saturday is about the only day that I can go to them. Oh well...it was a blast!

ARIZONA!

2008-07-01T23:29:00.000-07:00

Well, I had the opportunity to go to Arizona this past weekend to visit my good friend Lance. It was a blast! We had so much fun and I got to try lot of new things! I stayed in Prescott with Lance at his brother and sister in-law's house. They were such sweet people and so much fun! I got there Thursday evening and just kinda got acquainted with everyone! Friday was probably my favorite day! Lance planned a lot of fun things for us to do! We went fourwheelin in the Jeep and walked around Jerome (it's a city on a hill). We went out and about that night and went to a movie. Saturday we went and painted pottery. We were there FOREVER! the problem was, Lance and I are both perfectionists and so we took forever to paint our cars. It's the neatest little shop though! You can choose from a huge variety of things to paint. You just pay 15 bucks and paint it how you want it! Then they glaze and fire it and you get it back in a few days! After we were done we were STARVING! Lance found this little ghetto Thai restaurant and we were a little worried about our choice. WOW, it ended up being probably some of the best food I've ever eaten! It was SO yummy! Sunday we went to church and just dinked around and then I went home Monday morning. It was so good to see Lance! He was like my best bud while he lived in St. George and I sure miss him! He's so fun to be around and I had a lot of fun spending time with him! It was worth the long drive by myself!

Me and the Army

2008-06-22T23:30:00.000-07:00

Me going to lab

Me and Bro before my lab

Well, I am still in a toss-up about joining the Army. I thought that I had finally decided to not do it, but somehow it keeps eating at me. Every time I hear a certain song or see the flag or anything that represents the military, I want to be a part of it. As you all probably know, I am in the Army ROTC program at Dixie State. In the ROTC, they train you in a specific class for four years while you are earning your degree. After the four years, if you have passed all of the requirements, you come out as an officer. As I have had a break from it for the summer, I have been freaking out about my decision. It is probably one of my biggest stresses! Last semester I passed the class with an "A" which was SO nice! WOOHOO! It was probably the hardest thing I've ever done! I did pass the class though and it was really a fun experience! There are some things that I would never want to go back and do again, but other things that I loved! The people, the paintballin, the shooting, the rapelling, the Military Ball, the Cadre, wearing that uniform, representing something that I love and respect and take great pride in! It was a life changing experience I'll tell ya that! I took Chad Clawson to the Military Ball! He was my escort and he was just a trooper to tag along! I was awarded a Service to the community award which was pretty fun...nothing big though! It is so important to me. Whether I decide to join or not, it will always be close to me. I love the Military without a doubt and have loved wearing that uniform with great pride! Representing the great country of the United States of America has made me so prideful! I can't even describe the emotions I have felt. This is truly a blessed nation, a nation under God. I am so blessed to be a part of it! We live in the land of the free because of the brave! God Bless our Troops!

My new calling!

2008-06-22T16:17:00.000-07:00

Well, no more relaxing on Sundays. I was just called last Sunday to be the first counselor in the Relief Society Presidency in my college ward. Wow, SHOCKER! I feel completely inadequate. I am so super excited though! I have loved my college ward since the day I started going! I just love the liveliness there and how everyone is just trying to make friends and have a good time! This calling will definitely help me get to know people better and get out of my comfort zone a little more! I already taught my first lesson last week before I was even set apart for the calling. I was so nervous but I got through it and it ended up being half way decent! I'm very excited for the challenges ahead and the friendships I will make!

New to Blogging!

2008-06-22T15:29:00.000-07:00

Well, I am finally getting a blog so I can stay in touch with my sister a little better! Life is going good! I am currently working two jobs: Superior Party Rentals during the day and good ol' Chuck-A-Rama at night! I work Monday-Friday which keeps me running most of the time since I work both jobs some days. It's not my idea of a fun summer, but it sure is nice to have extra money! Saturday's are my play days and Sunday's are my relax days! Usually when I'm not working, I'm spending time with my family which isn't like me at all! I've grown to love being with them! We have many good times together! I sure do love them!