laree ulynn

Conference Weekend

2011-10-02T17:28:00.000-07:00

This weekend was great! Yesterday, my roommates, Allie, Andrea and I all listened to conference in our apartment. After conference, Andrea and I went to go grocery shopping and took a little detour to get some fish!

I couldn't get a good enough picture of all of the fish- there were 4 but one of them died (as we were driving them home) and all of my pictures came out blurry- these are fast fish!

Also, our stake, along with another YSA stake organized a group to go sing at the free speech zone this morning and had tickets to the afternoon session for people that went. When we got there, we ended up being able to go to the morning session- which was awesome in the conference center!

This is my roommate Andrea- she and I lived together last year and we're the only 2 out of the 4 of us still in Provo this semester- Paige is in France and Shelby is on a mission.

Another highlight of the weekend was that I got to ring the victory bell!

It's official!

2011-09-24T17:06:00.000-07:00

It took me over 2 years but I finally declared Public Health as my major last week! I tried to take a picture of it on my BYU profile but it didn't work. Anyways, the important fact is that I committed to a major. Hallelujah!

I have no pictures of this event. which is a bummer, but in other news, BYU won last night!

That's something worth celebrating! Go Cougars!

Pioneers and Mansions and Teeth! Oh my!

2011-07-17T09:57:00.000-07:00

How are pioneers and fancy mansions and teeth connected you ask? Well, in many ways I'm sure (if you think hard enough...). But for the purposes of this blog post, they are all things that I have experienced in the last few weeks.

Being home has been fun. I'm only here for a few weeks and so I haven't really hit the "i'm so bored I'm dying to go back to school" part of being home for the summer. Plus, with the reunion coming up, I don't think I ever will get to that point. Even with work, it feels like I'm on a vacation from my normal life where I have to go to school, work, and pretend to be social.

First of all, Pioneers.

I'm sure you've heard all about trek from mom and dad, but I went up Saturday to where they ended the trek. They had a stake activity up there after with food and swimming, etc. It was fun. Jamie and Michelle were leaders for a group of 12 and 13 year olds and were showing me their pioneer accessories. Tyson was a cute little pioneer....aka cowboy.

Mansions.

Jamie and Michelle took me to see the mansions in Newport, RI. They are beautiful!! I loved it! And so with no further ado, I would like to introduce you to my new homes:

This one is called Breakers. The best part was the backyard!

And now, welcome to my second home, the Elms. It had a little different style to it, but still really pretty.

Again, the backyard is amazing, how can you not love this place!?

I couldn't take pictures inside but a few of my favorite things about these places were firstly, their "porches" to the outside of the house, and the kitchens! I was a little jealous. They were going to tear down the Elms, but the preservation society saved it. I thought that was crazy- it's full of marble etc.

After that, we went to the beach in Newport which was amazing!! I didn't know water that close to MA could be so warm! It was the warmest ocean water I've ever been in.

And lastly, Teeth.

I will spare you the details, but it wouldn't be fair to not mention it as it was a big deal a couple of weeks ago. I got my wisdom teeth out! Now, I am only a 1/4 wise than I was before. They left in one of them because it was too far up and close to an artery (tooth #1 for those that know teeth numbers). The day of surgery I felt pretty good and was thinking it was going to be a piece of cake. Then, I woke up the next day and it was a totally different story! I was swollen for a while and soar for even longer- it took me about two weeks to feel normal again. Besides the fact that my jaw gets soar a little faster now, the only remnants of the surgery is a chronic feeling that I have something (aka food) stuck in the back of my mouth. I think it's just from how my gums healed though.

Egg Dying

2011-06-22T22:35:00.000-07:00

So like everything else I blog, this is really late, but sometime in March/April, my stake had a Sadie Hawkins Dance (don't know what that is? it's ok, neither did I until about 2 weeks before- it's a casual preference (ie. girls ask the guys) dance). Our relief society president really wanted all the girls in the ward to go and as such promised that everyone in the presidency would be there (we had all agreed on that before). Generally, this is something I kind of don't ever bother with and just don't ask, but this time, I had to. I decided to ask one of my good friends in my ward. Since I never did the fun ask-the-guy-out-in-a-cute-creative-way-thing, I took the chance to make up for lost experiences and did it then! I wrote out an invite to him on a card and then cut it out into a puzzle. I was going to just put it in an envelope and then deliver it to his door, but decided it needed a little extra pizzaz. So! My roommate and I found an awesome alien cereal that I opened from the bottom and put the puzzle inside (in the cereal bag). I closed it up so it looked like it was unopened and delivered it to his apartment ding-dong-ditch style.

A couple days later, I was talking to mom on the phone and was telling her about the invite I had done and how I hadn't heard anything back from him yet. Literally as I was finishing up the story, I heard a knock on the door, as I was opening the door, mom said "hey, maybe it's his response!". [Door opened] And viola! on our door mat there was a cute little easter basket with an egg and a dye set. The pictures can explain the rest:

making the first dye

no idea what the yarn is doing there...

He had written on the egg with invisible crayon and it said YES when I dyed it! And then, we happily went to the dance a week later and had so much fun. The End.

Too Long Overdue

2011-03-06T19:52:00.000-08:00

Like most things I do in life, I am posting this waaay later than i should. So much later that all of the excitement this may have caused if it had been posted when it should have been is probably all gone. BUT, also like most things I do, I am still posting this, even despite the lack of excitement. Enjoy.

When I first came home, mom and I took a trip into Boston to visit CRDA. It started snowing soon after our escapade began and it was coooold, but very pretty!
we've downsized alot from when all 10 of us were home for christmas!
don't be deceived, there actually was no cereal in those boxes, santa was slacking in the cereal department this christmas!
cris was very excited about his ornament!

mom and dad got scrabble for Christmas. You can see dad's enthusiasm initially above. Then, they found out it was a chocolate board, and both parties (mom and dad) were happy with that, so happy in fact that they couldn't keep themselves from just eating the whole box! (see above) [blogger isn't uploading them in the order- or else these pictures would be switched]

jamie decided to take tyson out for a run of sledding. this was the "bunny hill"

then we went to the White for a real sled hill!

I may or may not be obsessed.

2010-11-13T23:49:00.000-08:00

Ok, ok, I am obsessed. But seriously, how can you say no to cute amazingly delicious cupcakes?! It does not get better than desserts. (Yes, I am a LaPierre...no shocker there.) Through the course of my days at work in which I get to talk to my boss about food and other fun topics (I do actually do some work too, I promise!) I found out that there are quite a few cupcake bakery shops in and around provo and I have made it my goal in life to find all of them and love them all. I started out with the first one last night. I hung out with one of my really good friends (she was in my ward last year) and we went to a place called the Cocoa Bean, as it turns out, it was like just down the street from where I lived last year (it's probably a good thing I didn't know about it until now). We got a Better Than Whatever ;) cupcake and a raspberry chocolate cheesecake cupcake and they were both SOOO good! They also make flavored hot chocolates so I got a pumpkin flavored hot chocolate. It was ok, not my favorite, but they get brownie points for the good thought and creativity.. My friend got a frozen lemonade, which was really just a smoothie and it was really really good! Needless to say, I went over to her apartment this morning and worked out for an hour with her at their gym! It was sooo worth it. Going in there makes me miss cake decorating oh so much. I can't wait until I have an unlimited supply of ingredients and my box o' tricks!

I definately recommend this place for sure, though I don't really have much to compare it to yet.

Next time, I will bring my camera to document the heavenly event. ahhh....I love food.

what we learn in college.

2010-10-24T00:29:00.000-07:00

strike anywhere matches...perfect for cakes!

good bye shoes

2010-08-23T09:55:00.000-07:00

i should be packing right now. instead, i'm lamenting my semi-recent losses. i had to trash them before i left to come back home and have missed them oh so much since. these pictures do not do them justice...the flats were gross and the boots were so uneven on the heels that they hurt to walk in too much to be worth wearing. so before i threw them away, i thought i'd do a little photoshoot with them before i let them go.the goods to go to the trash...i ended up keeping the red ones. they should be trashed but i cannot part with them until i find replacements.
really, these were gross, you can't tell right here, but half the sole was unattached to the bottom and they were just in bad shape, but i probably could have kept them a little longer.
ok these on the other hand were soooo uncomfortable. i don't know what is wrong with me but somehow when i walk i shave the outside of the soles of my shoes, i have that problem with all of my shoes, but these are the most dramatic, probably because i wore them the most. anyways, it got so bad that walking in them just did not work anymore, it was just not fun. plus these shoes have always been a few sizes too big so put the two together and they were ready to go to the trash. but i miss them mucho. like alot alot. as in, i'm going to find new ones when i go back. these were my staple shoes, i wore them almost every day.
next to the dumpster i put them in. as i was taking this picture i think i got some weird looks, i felt a little awkward taking it, but i did anyways. i know i'm weird.

a sneek peak?

2010-08-17T21:04:00.000-07:00

ok, ok. i know i'm, bad at blogging. i will be up here again soon for a much longer blog! in fact, there has been talk of a possible trip to the roof of my building at work for a sweet photo shoot of the city from above. prob wishful thinking, but i'll think my wishes as long as i can. anyways, if that's not happening, there are plans for a city photoshoot in the works, i just have to figure out when. and some delightfully delish snacks are in the works too. but none of this is certain. ahhh!!! only nine days left and of course i feel the sudden urge to get everything done that i never did! oh if days were only 24 hours longer!!

anyways, while we're waiting on those delightful treats i was talking about, feast on this:

look delish eh? no worries, it was.

better late than never?

2010-08-08T10:13:00.000-07:00

i never ended up posting this. so here it is, our family get together at the hills last year!

bryce, this is for you!

blurry but too funny not to put up!

cousins!...also modeling their dartmouth shirts here!

the boys were playing with transformers (at least i think they were transformers)

behind tanner are the cute decorations betsy (and others?) made for the occassion
the table settings

this one is kind of blurry, but was too funny not to post. (above)

happy fourth!

2010-07-04T19:27:00.000-07:00

marshmallow test

2010-05-16T19:08:00.000-07:00

this is hilarious!

**note: you may have to click on the video to get it to the actual page. i think the video might be too wide for my blog...(and i can't make it smaller)

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

2010-03-17T07:21:00.003-07:00

Someone came last night and decorated our apartment!

Lucky also made visits to my good friends upstairs (see below)...

and now that you all have a full understanding of just how dorky i am, i'm going to go eat my lucky charms. happy st. patrick's day everyone! it's going to be a beautiful day!

Kimi and Kevin are getting married!!

2010-03-15T08:15:00.000-07:00

Kimi is my roommate and her fiance, Kevin, was my fhe son last semester. Now, he's my brother. They are getting married April 24th in Idaho (that's where she's from). I'm definitely not professional, but it was still fun to take their engagements for them!

I love being in utah because...

2009-11-01T16:11:00.000-08:00

I get to be closer to my favorite nieces and nephews, like this super cute kid!

2009-10-31T16:03:00.000-07:00

Happy Halloween!

and yes, i did only see this after i covered him with my arm. GROSS!!

*sorry, i don't know how this my blog font got changed to webdings,! hopefully it works not!

internet woes...among other things

2009-10-23T23:34:00.000-07:00

hello everyone!

yes... i am alive here at byu. i have oh so much to blog, but i have to figure out how to get my camera and my computer to work together, so i can actually post them! BYU is great! i LOVE it here and am learning alot for sure, but i'm so glad i chose to come here. i promise, i'll be blogging (with pictures) soon!

LAST DAY IN BOSTON

2009-08-24T19:32:00.000-07:00

On my last day here, we went as LaPierre as it gets... a trip to Plum Island with whole family (extended, not immediate), eating beans and mollasses cookies. It doesn't get much better than that!

8-2 days...

2009-08-23T19:24:00.000-07:00

wednesday was my last day of work, then it was packing packing and more packing.
my bus stop

good bye CRDA, see you next summer!

this was the luncheon they set up for me on tuesday. they are so so nice!

i was playing with my manual settings again

yup, still playing.
i've been seeing those digits on my clock alot this week!

not yet packed...

things i would like to pack.

things i was either packing or leaving for mom to sell in her yard sale

the many things i left for mom. i had lots of stuff :)... not anymore!

9 days...temple visit

2009-08-23T18:59:00.000-07:00

last sunday i visited the arlington ward for a final good-bye to all of them. while i was there, i went up to the temple to take some pictures, the flowers are always so so pretty up there, and the temple too of course.

i wish i could have taken more (there are more than this) but it was SO SO hot!!

Laundry

2009-08-22T06:26:00.001-07:00

I just did my last free load of laundry for a while...

10 Days...playing with my expensive toy

2009-08-17T19:01:00.000-07:00

On Saturday (the 10 days day) we went to York Beach. Then Jarick and Darell, friends of ours from one of the LP wards came over with their photographer friend to take pictures for their magazine. Here is an unintentional collage of pictures from York and a few of Renee's photoshoot:

(proof that i was there)

we were definately not the only ones who thought it'd be a good idea to go to the beach

*disclamer: I've been trying to teach myself manual settings on, yes, my new camera, so some of the pictures may be a little off. also, i'm not sure alot of them look quite as in focus as they do on the lcd screen, or on the file on the computer. dad also took a couple of these too.

countdown continuation

2009-08-16T18:47:00.000-07:00

in consequence of not having blogged now for at least a couple weeks, i have now consolidated my countdown to just one blog for all the lost time, so i can catch up.

here is what i've been doing for the past little bit, in "preparation" for school:

31 DAYS.... i did a little cleaning/ organizing of my room in anticipation of leaving. and to prep myself for packing, which i have done none of yet (as of sunday august 16th).

30-22 days: this was when i was up in Lake Winnepesauke, it was so much fun!

21-16 days: ugh, i started work again, after being gone for a week. that was painful. why is it that when you get your body out of it's "regular" sleep schedule, it is so painfully difficult to get it back to what you thought it was origionally?

15-11 days to go: we went to a baptism on friday of a boy in one of the somerville wards. it was so nice, and so much fun to be there. one of the families in belmont hosted a pool party afterward, which was also a lot of fun. these past couple weeks especially have been very sad because i've been saying goodbyes to everyone. friday night was especially sad because it was my last time with alot of leaders and people in the stake that i won't be able to see much anymore.
another highlight of this week was making a certain purchase to which i am very excited about! it made a heavy dent in my wallet, but it's already been well worth the buy, and i am sure it will become even more so in the future! i think it will make this blog so much more interesting too.

10 -9 days will have their own separate posts in the future. but to calm the curiosity that i'm sure you're feeling right now, regarding what i did for these 2 days (because of course you have nothing better to do than to sit around all day, wondering what i'm doing right?) i will let you in on the activities of the days. yesterday, we headed out to york beach in maine in the a.m. and walked around and such for a while. it is so fun and cute up there, but it was HOT! i also went babysitting that night too, which was fun, and oh so easy! then today, i visited arlington for my final good bye with the arlingtoners. wow, that ward has changed!! i went up for the temple after for a few minutes, but that part is for a later blog.

catch y'all later!

32 Days...Shopping

2009-07-23T18:30:00.000-07:00

tonight i went shopping in an effort to find a cover for my swimsuit. why you may ask? so that i can successfully walk around in a bathing suit for most of the days next week and not feel uncomfortable. i'll be in new hampshire next week babysitting for a family there, a different one from the family i was babysitting for last time.
anyways, so seriously, i was lucky finding one for 20 bucks and then i found a cute bathing suit top (tank top that is...no worries) for kind of cheap too.

why is this applicable to my going away in 32 days? because guess where i'll be using this babysitting money... BYU!!

33 days: Moral Dilemma

2009-07-22T19:20:00.000-07:00

this morning while i was waiting for the T in Malden there was this super cute umbrella sitting by itself on the bench. No owner to be found. I have had a fascination in finding super cute umbrellas lately so it was like it was waiting for me to snag it. so anyways, i was sitting there totally torn between stealing it and letting it be when the train came. SHOOT! so i jumped up just in time and decided the owner wasn't coming back and thus the umbrella was all mine.
but of course guilt got a workin' (mom helped too...i had sent her a picture of it and she "urged" me not to) and finally i decided i should do the right thing. i got off at the next stop, took the train back to malden and took it back to one of the workers there (for all i know he'll be keeping himself very dry in a stylish H&M umbrella for a long time). But, i did have a clearer conscience for the day.

*things to do before i go to college: find my dear friend at a nearby H&M

...and be a little smarter the first time, so i'm not late for work trying to correct myself...

Summer

2009-07-19T18:12:00.000-07:00

Pardon me for my lack of bloggings. I simply do it this way so that when i do blog, you can read these essays of posts!

I feel like alot has happened over these past few months, which maybe it has and maybe it hasn't, that's just what it seems like. My summer has consisted of going to Utah for Betsy's wedding, coming back, graduating, starting work, going to youth conference, and then getting everything underway for BYU.

There have also been many exciting things going on this summer. Namely: I finally turned 18, which means I am legally an adult and can now do exciting things like buy cigarettes and get tattoos, and live on the edge. All the things I would never do no matter my age. I can even vote and be on juries. woohoo! But, I can also do other things, to which it will only take me a small while to figure out what those exciting things may be i am sure. For now, I keep myself busy making money. My second very exciting thing about this summer despite the major change that comes to the end of it, is that I got my AP scores back this past week! And thanks to my English and Human Geography test, I have two classes I don't have to worry about next year! I was so excited! I attribute much of my Human Geography grade to the fact that there was a major essay on Mormons. I totally had that one owned.

So these are two of my exciting things happening this summer, but I will be sure to keep you much more up to date in the next month about my whereabouts. I was actually just thinking about doing a daily blog post about what thing I do that day in lieu of my very soon departure, but we'll see.

If you'd like to see all the fun things I deal with on a day to day basis, click here

last day of high school

2009-05-21T19:59:00.001-07:00

tomorrow will be my last day of high school. today, we had our yearbook ceremony. i surprised myself, i cried, one of the things i least expected to do. i always thought i was SO excited to get to college as quickly as i could, but now i'm not so sure.
my junior and sophomore years i half-seriously contemplated graduating a year early. but looking back on the past year, i know i chose well. i've learned and grown so much more than i ever would have had i not had these experiences. having the ward split, to having to make new friends in our newish ward, to getting more involved in the school, etc. i've gotten an extra footing on my life and on who i am. i love woburn! i love the people, the culture, the support and love i've felt here! there are so many great things about home that i'm going to miss oh so much when i go out to utah. i've always just been watching older siblings leave for college. now that it's my turn, i'm not really sure how i feel. i guess the change really hasn't sunk in yet, but when it does, it'll be hard.
anywho, tomorrow is prom so i get one last hoorah before it's all done!

for more information

2009-05-17T19:05:00.001-07:00

if you haven't found them already, there are several articles written up about the event. it's well documented on boston.com. you should be able to see the link fight when you get to the website. it's been pretty big news. apparently all of the big news stations were there today. how sad is this?!

LP Chapel Burning

2009-05-17T12:46:00.000-07:00

I think this picture speaks for itself. I got it off of Rachel Sorensen's facebook. so so sad

Amazing

2009-04-02T16:05:00.000-07:00

this is really good. no lies.

Response to Betsy's blog

2009-03-30T18:22:00.000-07:00

and katy's comment, to which i HAD to verify! this was one of my favorite books of all time!

for those confused outsiders....

2009-03-17T12:27:00.000-07:00

if you've seen any of my siblings' blogs today and been completely confused, let me explain... when i was younger, i had quite the imagination. i mean, a really really active imagination. one of my many imaginative victims was st. patrick's day.

i have no idea how it started (keep in mind though, i was also a very gullible child), but my best friend and i believed that there truly was a real live leprechaun named, of course, Lucky. much to the dismay of her mom (unknown to us at the time) and the glee of my sisters, we would sometimes spend our time together, making "gifts" for our little friend. we'd hide them behind a rock, or place them in a small area, announce to Lucky that the coast was clear, and then walk away. after counting to about 100 "child seconds" (aprox. 30 to the rest of the world) we'd come back to the site where the treat was placed. sometimes, we'd find it replaced by a little note, or even a return gift, or sometimes, it was just the same treat we had left for him. this was a year-round tradition, not particualarly attatched to st. patrick's day, until the holiday came. otherwise, lucky was his own separate part of our imaginations. looking back, i think it was an excuse to find magic in the every day routine of life. and no worries, it worked.

so, on to the big day...ST. PATRICK'S DAY!! My mom was very much at fault for this part of Lucky's existance in my life. on St. Patrick's day, she always did scavenger hunts for us younger siblings around the house. These were supposed to be from Lucky and were just a fun tradtion to have, we all knew that they weren't really from him (at least as far as i can remember, i knew...) but it just added to the magic of the day for me. i remember in elementary school going out for recess on st. patrick's day (and sometimes other days too) and searching for Lucky's footprints in the sand of the playground, or looking for any other remnants of his being there.

the thought that a happy (and very clever) little green leprechaun could actually exist (much like Santa and the Easter Bunny for other kids) made things magical to me. and now, not only does it give me something to smile about, but st. patrick's day is an especially happy day for me, because i get to celebrate memories i have with emily. in almost every childhood memory i have tied to this holiday, emily was right there beside me. she is one of my hereos. st. patrick's day is and always will be for me one of my favorite days becuase i get to remember those happy memories, but more importantly the support that emily has given me for the past fourteen years.

the holiday still gets me all gittery and happy inside, i can't help but still feel the magic of it! this morning, as i was driving to seminary, without even thinking it, i thought i saw a small movement in the dark, and automatically thought: "it must be Lucky!"

so, i hope y'all are wearing your green today!!! Lucky will gettcha if you don't! watch out too, he's quick! and thanks to the fam, for making the memories come even moreso alive! i loved it!!!

Happy St. Patrick's Day everyone!

love,
laree...
and Lucky too

goodies

2009-03-04T12:02:00.000-08:00

The first five people to respond to this post will get something made by me. My choice. For you. (I know...a little scary, but maybe fun, huh?)
This offer does have some restrictions and limitations

1- I make no guarantees that you will like it .
2- What I create will be just for you.
3- It'll be done by the end of March.
4- You have no clue what it's going to be. It may be a loaf of homemade bread. It may be a bag, a card, an apron. It may be a book, a scarf, a poem. I may bake you something and mail it to you. Who knows? Not you, that's for sure!

The catch? Oh, the catch is that you must re-post this on your blog and offer the same to the first 5 people who do the same on your blog. The first 5 people to do so and leave a comment telling me they did it will then win a Fabulous homemade something made by me! Ready, Set,....GO!!

no pressure. contrary to the rules--- i do accept ideas/suggestions!

provo

2009-02-24T21:49:00.001-08:00

okay, okay, who am i kidding?
i'm going to provo next year of course. but for all you byu-i fans out there, be comforted in knowing that it was a tough decision...i just don't like being cold.

V.I.E.- Very Important E-mail

2009-02-20T06:23:00.000-08:00

Well, after lots and lots of waiting...my e-mail has finally come!!! this one:

A decision has been reached on your application for BYU. Please go to the BYU Decision Notification page where you can view the decision and related information. Remember, if you have applied to other CES schools you will receive a separate notification when they have made their decision.

drum roll please
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I'm Admitted!!!!

lest you think i've already packed my bags for utah,
i still have some thinking to do...

but i thought you'd like to be updated! YAY!

Six More Weeks 'Til Spring!!!

2009-02-03T19:19:00.001-08:00

And for now, you can enjoy this little glimpse into last spring...

this is one makes me laugh every time i look at it!

HAPPY GROUNDHOG'S DAY (+ 1 DAY)!!!!!!!!!

Toilet Paper Dodgeball

2009-02-01T17:27:00.000-08:00

Apparently a favorite mutual activity in the Lynnfield Ward. We've only played it once. It's not for the recyclists out there, but it's fun!

No Sugar Diet

2009-01-28T18:49:00.000-08:00

So a few weeks ago, I decided that I needed to learn to be a bit more disciplined. So, I planned a little test to "teach" myself to be so. I decided that for one week, I would give up something [not to be confused with Lent], each week increasing the difficulty of the sacrifice and the seriousness of the distraction/problem it was. The first week, would be to not eat any sugar(i was eating ridiculously unhealthy amounts of it), the next week would be music (it's a bad distraction), and the last was to give up the computer. well...the plan went through some adjustment.

not eating sugar has forced me to eat much more fruits and especially vegetables. it's been nice to feel healthy for once! so, instead of just doing this for one week, i've extended it indefinitely. i only eat sugar on the weekends. my first "free" weekend, i ate half a bag of jelly bellys and realized i really don't miss sugar all that much. i felt so sick afterward! as for the no music and no computer, i've also learned that being disciplined in one area of life helps with being disciplined in other areas as well. i definately still get distracted from doing what i should schoolwork wise, but i do feel like i have a better grasp of myself. it's been kind of fun. so in case you were wondering what i am up to, this should help satisfy you at least a little bit. no new news on college yet, you'll have to wait a while on that one. laters! i'm off to bed...seminary is cancelled tomorrow as it was today, school was too! if i'm lucky all that rain in the streets right now will freeze over, but i think i'm pushing my luck this time.
*small sidenote: i watched masterpiece's northanger abbey today and highly recommend it to any jane austen fan. it was so good!

taken right from my application...

2009-01-24T08:12:00.000-08:00

School	Term	Application Status
BYU	Fall 2009	Complete - Click here to withdraw application
BYU-Idaho		Admitted - Click here for additional instructions

it's a good one

2009-01-10T20:09:00.000-08:00

i definitely don't suggest watching it with the wee ones though. it's a bit more intense than the first one. but SO GOOD!!!

Happy New Year!!

2009-01-06T12:12:00.001-08:00

2009 is going to be a good one!

things to look forward to:
1. Graduation
-a jump start to summer vacation
2. Summer
-Plum Island!!
-Warmth
-etc...
3. Betsy's Wedding
4. Turning 18
5. College!
6. Babies....?....
-aka nieces/nephews (fyi)
7. Change
and oh so much more, i'm sure!

things to not look forward to:
1. finishing college apps
2. finding a summer job
3. finding a job while at school
4. change
5. AP exams

College

2008-11-23T12:10:00.000-08:00

No, no, I have recieved no acceptance letters yet, but... the application is in!!!!!!!!!!!! I finished it last week (as in all of the supplements are in) and it feels good! I love feeling like I'm done. I've only done my BYU provo and idaho ones though. I can't decide if I want to do more or not. Any opinions? Anyways, just thought I'd let y'all know it's in and that I am very happy about that!

ps-cami, what do you want for figuring out how to change my template? thanks for the help!

Oh the mysteries of keeping a blog!

2008-11-17T10:25:00.001-08:00

Yes, I know, 2 blogs right after each other! What am I going to do! In fact, there may just be another one coming your way sometime later this week (note the "may"). I'm a little confused with this whole change the template of your blog thing. Clearly, I have changed my blog template, but I cannot get the previous template off of my blog and it is ANNOYING ME all too much. My new template is from a different website, you can be directed there from the link in the top right corner of my blog. My previous template was just one of the ones provided by blogger in the layout section. So, if you know the answer to my little predicament, being how on earth do I take that old template OFF my blog, I will love you forever. And, prize anyone (because my eternal love isn't enough??)? I'll offer anyone who can fix this problem of mine bragging rights for the rest of their lives!! So, any takers??

And now... a peak into the my next blog....

Two Summers Too Late

2008-11-16T17:19:00.000-08:00

Alas, finally, after saying I would for the past year, I'm blogging about my photography class from last summer (2007). It was a really fun experience and probably the only time I felt like I moderately understood the MBTA system, traveling in (and out) with two friends was a lot of fun. Anyways, so on with the photography: my class was color photography, which was a first for me (I took black and white at the high school). This time, we couldn't develop our film ourselves, it had to be sent out and done by other people (the chemicals used for color are different and too dangerous to meddle with, so it wasn't allowed, with black and white I was able to develop the film...it smells nasty in case you were wondering). So rather than explaining the process through words, I figured I would explaing the color photography [printing] process through pictures AND words! And so it begins...

1.

(please forgive the flipped picture... sorry!) once the film is back from being developed, you make a test strip to find the [ideally] perfect exposure for your picture. we do this by placing the negative in the enlarger, setting the lens up, and then putting the photo paper at the bottom of the enlarger. basically, you set the enlarger to expose the paper for certain short time intervals, on this picture, I think I did 2 seconds. You only allow a small strip of the paper to be shown each time you expose. after each interval, you add on another "strip" to be exposed. the side with the darker strips on this picture is the side that the first exposure was made. you do this until you get to the end of the paper.

2. (no picture for this part)
Then, you have to place the paper in a special light proof box and transport it from the dark room where you did all of that to a different dark room that has a big 'ol machine that processes the print (at least that's how they did it at AIB). When you get the print back, you look at the print and decide where the perfect exposure is. On this picture, it was somewhere around the middle (the strip to the right of the strip with the middle handlebar in it, so I think that's 16 seconds, I think...)

3. Then, you do the real picture. On this picture, I set the enlarger to expose for 16 seconds all at once, and then, hopefully it's done. you have to transport it to the big 'ol developing machine again, but that's pretty much it, assuming that it's a perfectly balanced picture...

but when it isn't:
-you can color correct a photo, which is generally necessary. in the enlarger, you can change the colors that expose the photo (please don't ask for an explaination, you wouldn't get a very thorough answer anywho). so you would just do different prints, adjusting the color meter on the elarger until you got a picture you were happy with.
-you can do all kinds of things to the print while you're in the darkroom too, it's lots of fun!

end product [drumroll please....]

here are some other ones too...

these balloons were from a water balloon fight we did. we put them in one of those weeding buckets. so it actually looks really gross and dirty, i'm not sure how i feel about that.

on this picture, I burned the edges. basically, after your picture has been exposed you can put your hand over the lens and control where the light goes. so, I put it on the corners to make them look worn out/burned.

So, tada!! This was my summer of 2007, every Tuesday and Thursday of July! It was an awesome experience, and I had so much fun. I had so so many awesome experiences and was able to meet/befriend people who I would have never met before. I loved it!!

Back in the Saddle Again

2008-08-31T17:18:00.000-07:00

Alas! It's here...the beginning of another school year. I've been away from blogging for far too long and after almost a month (my busiest of the summer) I have ALOT to blog! The summer started out dull in every sense of the word. I had decided that for the first one or two weeks of my summer I was going to relax: not worry about getting anything done, try to get a job with the minimum amount of effort put into the finding one part, sleep in, etc. etc. you get the idea. Anyways...this one or two week plan transfered to a five or six week plan! By the end of July I was still sleeping in, lazying around the house, feeling virtually useless and unproductive at all! *I say virtually because I actually had a few babysitting jobs thanks to a couple families in our ward...so I wasn't entirely a bored wreck. But nonetheless, you can feel my pain, can't you? We've all felt like this at least once in our lives. Well, August came and I only had one out of the four of my summer reading books read, none of my biology summer work done, none of my spanish summer work done, and my essay for an application for a program at school was not written either! Not to mention the fact that I would be away for pretty much 3 weeks due to our trip out to CO, UT, and ID and also girls' camp that following week!
Needless to say turning the calendar page over from July to August was a very rude awakening! I managed to get all of my bio work done before we left...all in 4 days (it was a rough 4 days), and as I said before I had finished one of my summer reading books earlier. So I brought Fast Food Nation along with us (that was my book for Human Geography) on our Western tour, finished one other book after girls' camp along with FFN and now I have just one more book to read, and essay to write, and 2 spanish articles to read coupled with an oral presentation(for the first day of school) to do all before this Thursday! I've come along way, but I still have lots to do! It's been fun...kind of. I just wish I hadn't listened to my teachers when they told me to wait to do all my work until the last month, I guess that advice isn't relevant for students who were gone for 3/4 of the month-a disclaimer that should come with the package next time.
Anyways, now to the more exciting things to talk about. Our trip! It was so so much fun and I loved seeing such adorable little babes while we were gone. It was nice to see family too. Just kidding...it was equally fun to see everyone! The kids are getting so old! I just wish I didn't get so overwhelmed by being around so much family, I feel like a wimp! It was an amazing trip though! Utah was fun and something I am used to seeing, it was Colorado and Idaho that were the shockers. Colorado was super pretty and Bryce and Lisa were lots of fun to be around, as well as their 2 very cute children, I wish I had pictures to show! (ours got deleted off of the camera) One night we went out to ice cream and there was a local band playing in front of the shop. Sophie really wanted to go dancing with Bryce by the music so they went down, and I followed to take pictures of course. (I did have some very cute ones!) It was so cute and fun! This place was almost like a westernized version of Harvard Square basically. The parks there were so beautiful too! Idaho was slightly more shocking...that place is desolate! I'm amazed we've met so many people from there because I have now idea where they hide them all! I wouldn't be surprised if maybe they put some people in underground cities or something, or maybe we've just met 70% of its population throughout our lives. It was a very different kind of beautiful, and I don't mean that sarcastically or meanly. It really was a very pretty place, I almost felt like lying down in a field somewhere and reading O! Pioneers. I'm not sure why though, I didn't even finish it when we read it in school. Idaho just painted that picture in my head so much better than Willa Cather ever did. Maybe now I'll understand what she wrote. It was so pretty, in fact, I'll see if I can post pictures up here. Utah was of course beautiful and interesting all in its own "special" way. While we were in Logan with the Andersons, Nicole et al took us on a hike that was amazing! It was such a beautiful hike, I could not stop taking pictures! Nicole gave me free reign of her camera so I literally just kept snapping, the place was GORGEOUS! Definitely a must see every summer visit I make (be warned Nicole). That was a small temptation to go to USU -unfortunately the tuition doesn't match that temptation I don't think. So the trip was a good one on my account!

I would be posting pictures of the trip here, but I can't find them yet, so I'll post those later. I promise! So just use your imagination for a while.

Girls' camp was equally amazing. If it is my last it will have been a good end. My councellors were amazing and I had so much fun with my friends, meeting new friends as well. Our testimony meeting at the end was so amazing as well. In fact, I think it was one of my most powerful testimony meeting experiences ever(right up there with it was our testimony meeting at youth conference this year)! I cried for the longest time during it, not only because it was a very spiritual experience but because I didn't want to leave. Who does that?!?!? I always thought you had fun at girls' camp but you were always glad to leave when it was over-too much estrogen in a condensed area+ not showering... But it was so hard to leave, I had met so many amazing people up there, I seriously could not get myself over the fact that I had to leave it all. Clearly, I've moved on, but it took a while. I was JC over some cute gals and had lots of fun with them all!
And of course there is just so much more I could talk about, but seeing as I've already written an essay on here, I might as well just show you the pictures and leave. I'd be surprised if a lot of you acutally made it to this point of the blog anyways. And to those of you who have, sorry for the length, but bare with me, it's almost over!
And now...the pictures!! of girls' camp anyways (mom let me take the digital with me):

This frog we found in the bathroom, it was HUGE!! It could climb on the walls and everything!
These are the girls I was technically over, they're first years. but really, we worked with all of the first years, especially since they all slept in the same cabin, we combined forces with the other JCs and their group.

All of us! Including First years, our CIT, and us JCs! Aren't we a cute bunch?!

The waterfront by the amphitheater where we had testimony meeting. It was so pretty!
Some of us JCs. There were actually kind of alot of us. The theme was Treasure Hunt: what's your treasure? So the JCs dressed up like pirates. aka treasure hunters! It was SO MUCH FUN!

Change of heart...or mind.

2008-08-06T10:41:00.000-07:00

Okay, okay, okay...I was wrong. Turns out Keith Urban is from Australia. Got ya! Thanks Kristy, for setting me straight. (At least someone knows what they're talking about!) No, as it turns out, Keith is only having a concert in Fort Collins shortly. This was the 'lil bit of info I woke up to. Oh what a tired mind makes you think! So never mind on that one. Sorry for the mistake... my bad.

Random Bit of Good Ol' Info...

2008-08-05T19:05:00.000-07:00

Did you know that Keith Urban (country singer) is from Fort Collins (current location of the Bryce and Lisa M LaPierres)??? This is the little known fact I woke up to from my alarm, and of course once I heard this I just had to get up, even though it was 5:30!

^This is the famed man himself.^

And this is the town to which we owe so much interest. (aka Fort Collins!)

Instead of doing a bulk e-mail...

2008-08-01T06:54:00.000-07:00

I figured more people would actually read these or consider reading these if I posted them up here. They're just cute/funny little stories I got from a friend. She got it via e-mail, but had printed them out, when she finished with them, she gave them to me.
Stories begin now:
I was driving with my three young children one warm summer evening when a woman in the convertible ahead of us stood up and waved. She was stark naked! As I was reeling the shock, I heard my 5-year-old shout from the back seat, "Mom, that lady isn't wearing a seat belt!"
On the first day of school, a first-grader handed his teacher a note from his mother. The note read, "The opinions expressed by this child are not those of his parents."
A woman was trying to get the ketchup out of the jar. During her struggle the phone rang so she asked her 4-year-old daughter to answer the phone. "Mommy can't come to the phone to talk to you right now. She's hitting the bottle."
A little boy got lost at the YMCA and found himself in the women's locker room. When he was spotted, the room burst into shrieks, with ladies grabbing towels and running for cover. The little boy watched in amazement and then asked, "What's the matter, haven't you ever seen a little boy before?"
While taking a routine vandalism report at an elementary school, I was unterrupted by a little girl about 6 years old. Looking up and down at my uniform, she asked, "Are you a cop?" "Yes," I answered and continued writing the report. "My mother said if I ever needed help I should ask the police. Is that right?" "Yes, that's right," I told her. "Well, then," she said as she extended her foot toward me, "would you please tie my shoe?"
It was the end of the day when I parked my police van in front of the station. As I gathered my equipment, my K-9 partner, Jake, was barking, and I saw a little boy staring at me. "Is that a dog you got back there?" he asked. "It sure is," I replied. Puzzled, the boy looked at me and then towards the back of the van. Finally he said, "What'd he do?"
While working for an organization that delivers lunches to elderly shut-ins, I used to take my 4-year-old daughter on my afternoon rounds. She was unfailingly intrigued by the various appliances of old age, particularly the canes, walkers, and wheelchairs. One day I found her staring at a pair of false teeth soaking in a glass..As I braced myself for the inevitable barrage of questions, she merely turned as whispered, "The tooth fairy will never believe this!"
A little girl was watching her parents dress for a party. When she saw her dad donning his tuxedo, she warned, "Daddy, you shouldn't wear that suit." "And why not, darling?" "You know that it always gives you a headache the next morning."
While walking along the sidewalk in front of his church, our minister heard the intoning of a prayer that nearly made his collar wilt. Apparently, his 5-year-old son and his playmates had found a dead robin. Feeling that proper burial should be performed, they had secured a small box and cotton bating, then dug a hole and make ready for the disposal of the deceased. The minister's son was chosen to say the appropriate prayers and with sonorous dignity intoned his version of what he thought his father always said: "Glory be unto the Faaaather, and unto the Sonnn, and into the hole he goooes." (dad couldn't stop laughing on this one!)
A little girl had just finished her first week of school. "I'm just wasting my time," she said to her mother. "I can't read, I can't write, and they won't let me talk!"
A little boy opened the big family Bible. He was fascinated as he fingered through the old pages. Suddenly, something fell out of the Bible. He picked up the object and looked at it. What he saw was an old leaf that had been pressed in between the pages. "Mama, look what I found," the boy called out. "What have you got there, dear?" With astonishment in the young boy's voice, he answered, "I think it's Adam's underwear!!"

hope you enjoyed! I have lots of pictures to blog still, but I have to wait until I can get my film developed.

This is a picture I took of our loot when mom and I went strawberry picking earlier this month (july). When we got back, we washed them, cut out bad parts and then froze them. I have been eating these frozen strawberries like candy!!! They are sooo good! I just made a smoothie out of them yesterday, it was pretty good too! In fact, I just had a good idea of what to do with them: defrost them, puree them, put that in popsicle maker containers, freeze again, and voila! delish strawberry popsicles that are HEALTHY!!! I'll let you know how they go.

Mama Mia

2008-07-30T22:04:00.000-07:00

This was SUCH a good movie!!!! It was definately a little weird, but the soundtrack was really good! ...AND the movie was just too colorful(as in they used a lot of colors in the film) to not like it...it was like eye candy! I don't know what my photography classes and all of my digital media/tv prodution, etc. classes have done with me, but they definitley help me to recognize good cinematography when I see it, and ladies and gents, this was really really really good cinematography! Every once in a while I'll see a movie like this that uses color and filming techniques that just really make the story so much better to watch! IT WAS SO GOOD!!!! The story is a little weird, so be warned, but I liked it a lot!

On Blog Overload

2008-07-21T09:30:00.000-07:00

I guess this is what I get for not blogging in a long time. These pictures are from my birthday party. It was so much fun! We had cookies (instead of cake...) and ice cream. SO GOOD!!!

We had lots of fun! It's crazy, I'm seventeen! WOO! One year closer to eighteen!

the fourth, continued...

2008-07-21T09:12:00.001-07:00

the played Josh Groban and Pavoratti(sp?) at the fireworks! It was AMAZING! I was so so so excited when I heard Josh!

fourth of july!!!!

2008-07-21T08:43:00.000-07:00

It's only the BEST holiday ever!!!!
I think the pictures describe it all.

Babysitting...

2008-07-21T08:23:00.000-07:00

I was "hired" to babysit for a family in our ward all day for 3-4 days a week. they ended up not needing me anymore, but i had ALOT of fun with their daughter. I took her to the park at the White Elem. She wanted me to go down one of the twisty slides with her. I thought, well of course I can do that. But...well, my legs are a little longer than I anticipated, and I didn't tuck them in as much as I should have. So now I have a beautiful slide burn. They hurt!

She wanted to try on my "tea party" hat...and she looked soooo cute! I had to take a picture!
Mmmmm....and this ladies and gents is the lovely slide burn I was telling you about. SO PAINFUL!!!!!

Wishful Thinking

2008-06-21T08:22:00.001-07:00

Renee, I don't think I'll be stealing any of your shoes any time soon.

Super duper good salad! It's delish!

2008-06-19T19:26:00.000-07:00

Today, I was put in charge of making dinner. I knew we had chicken left over from a previous dinner and I really wanted to make a salad of some kind. So, not having any great manifestations of my own, I turned to the internet for some help. I found this recipe. However, I did have to make some modifications, salads are great in that they allow for some flexibility with the recipe, I used a creative license with this one. We didn't have celery and I wasn't in the mood for raisins. So...this is the new and quite improved recipe:

-chicken, diced and cooked of course
-craisins, about a handful or two
-3 or 4 handfuls of walnuts (granted my handfuls contain about three nuts...), chopped
-1/4 cucumber, diced (you could do more, this was just all we had left)
-1 red pepper, diced
-1 green pepper, diced
-1/2 a medium sized onion, diced
-2 apples, chopped/diced
-approx. 1 cup cooked pasta, cut to small pieces (depending on size/shape)
-parsley, chopped , to taste
-about 3 big globs of mayonnaise, or just to taste (aka that "salad dressing" stuff I grew up calling mayonnaise, but apparently it's just salad dressing, real mayo is gross!)
-salt and pepper to taste

mix and enjoy!

I was pretty nervous at first that adding so many different things would make it taste bad, but I was pleasantly surprised! It also tastes great in a pita. The days of finding great summer recipes is here and I am loving it! Yay for summer!

For my young makeshift photographer self, I think I should add a picture to this blog. How good is a blog without a picture anyways, right?
I took this at Horn Pond a couple of days ago, it was the prettiest, most picture perfect day EVER!! I think I'll post more pictures from that day later, there was a swan family there that let me get like three feet in front of them to take pictures. They were sooooo adorable!

And now the boring update on my life...
I have been trying to find a summer job for a while, but have had no luck. Literally, I think I've filled out about 20 applications. (I'm tired of it.) Anywho, I went back down to the theaters yesterday after not getting a call back and they set me up for an interview today! The guy talked to me for about five minutes and that was all. I handed him my resume, but he didn't even look at it. Oh well. It's really not the greatest job in the world, but I'd get free movies and...well, that's all the perks I can think of. And that is assuming that they actually do hire me. I am still waiting to hear back from about a zillion other places and I really really hope I get another "bite", so I can choose a hopefully "better" job that this. Apparently asking for a simple 9-5 clerical job is too much to ask for these days. The years of good summer jobs are over I think. Meanwhile, I have lots to catch myself up on this summer, including photography projects, jewelry making/repair projects, a list of about 30 books I want to read this summer, cake decorating self-reteaching to do, somehow get myself into some exercise routine that will theoretically continue into the school season (I'm open to any suggestions), a blog to keep up, colleges to check out/getting prepped for applications galore, and oh the many other wonderful things I hope to keep up this summer! If only I could just have a company pay me to do this, I would be one very happy camper.

more photography fun

2008-05-26T18:18:00.000-07:00

i couldn't put all the pictures i wanted to on the last post...so here are some more favs...

photography fun

2008-05-26T18:02:00.000-07:00

on saturday we had a photographer over doing pictures at our house. needless to say, it got me in the photography mood...so i put all those classes to use. it was the perfect day. i took a bit more than 200 pictures! i took more today, but those will have to be put up later. and, now that i think of it, i never posted my pictures from last summer, so those will make appearances up here to on a later date. these are a few of the good pictures...spring/summer is in boston finally!

wedding cakes!!!!

2008-05-07T06:45:00.000-07:00

look what i found...

here

Who Loves Hit and Runs?....

2008-04-21T16:54:00.000-07:00

Laree does (apparently). i'm not sure which was more of a wreck...me or the car i hit. either way, we had a morning-side yesterday at the sivers' house and i/mom thought i knew where i was going. well...i got lost and ended up in MEDFORD!!!!!! when i finally decided i was lost and could not find my way back, i found a parking lot and pulled in right next to a black car (this car is important later on). anyways, so i walked into this restaurant with tears formulating in my eyes (i didn't cry yet though). i was lost and now i was late, and i had no idea where i was (aka i was lost). so i walk in and asked if they knew of such and such a street and they started naming off about 3 of them. we finally realized that the street i was looking for was not in medford indeed, and that i needed to go back to winchester. meanwhile a cop came in and he found me directions to their house. not too bad things were okay now. well...as i was backing up to leave and find my way back, i turned too quickly and too fast and i tapped the front end/side-ish of that black car (told you it'd come back). then those tears i was telling you about that were just waiting to pour down came back, in FULL force. so i parked the car and got out. there was a pharmacy right there so i went in and called dad. once i calmed down a bit, i went back outside to write a note, but they had left already!! then i started freaking out because hello... a hit and run! they are going to think i was being dishonest, etc. or, they saw me in the pharmacy and realized it wasn't worth it talking to that emotional wreck on the phone (that was me by the way). so then i left and finally found the bishop's house and all was well. we had a good morning-side...i missed byc though, felt pretty bad about that. then it ended and i realized that after getting so confused and lost, i couldn't find my way back, so one of my leaders drove me back to the library and i could get back from there. it was an interesting day.

but on a brighter note, i got a ton o' color at the marathon! my arms are killing me, they're beet red!!!!

never mind

2008-03-24T13:18:00.001-07:00

okay, that last post never actually happened. the day of i found out i wouldn't be housing her anymore, so now i have no trips to be planned... at least for now. Happy (belated) Easter!!

Spanish Exchange!!

2008-03-11T18:17:00.000-07:00

so somehow, in a very fast series of events, i got kind of pulled into hosting a girl coming from spain for the school's exchange! i am so excited! her name is paula! it will be so much fun! i went over jenicia's house tonight and we planned our outings, tell me if you have any other suggestions!...
1. Burlington Mall/Rainforest Cafe
2. Jordan's Furniture
3. Beach!!!!!
4. Roller World (maybe...)
5. Wendy's (apparently this is a big hit)
6. Chuck E. Cheese
7. Lanes and Games
8. Good times
9. Plaster Fun Time

seriously, if anyone knows of any american places to take a spaniard, please let me know!

JOSH GROBAN

2008-03-10T19:03:00.000-07:00

I've been in love with Josh Groban for a while, but i just recently got the polar express soundtrack from the library and these are 2 of my new favorites from it. one is josh groban, the other one isn't , but it's still so so good!

Church.

2008-03-09T13:00:00.000-07:00

I gave a talk today! I think I should be all set until I leave for college. It was on the blessings of tithing. I really honestly can't remember all that I said, but I"m hoping the Spirit had me say what I needed to say. It was a good ol' experience.
We had a good sunday school lesson. my teacher showed us this video that I'm posting up here. It's pretty interesting. Our Young Women's lesson was on creating a spiritual environment in the home. It was nicely done, I have such good teachers!
We got home, I got on the blog and now we have an hour and a half until our dinner guests come over so I'll have time to do whatever(music, read, nap, write, all of the above...). Sundays are so great!

katy and micah

2008-02-06T14:19:00.000-08:00

WOOHOO!!!! congradulations katy and micah! i think i'm probably the last one to blog this but i'm super excited for may 10! may i suggest this wedding cake?...

seriously, is this not the coolest cake ever! i bet i could decorate a cake like this... :)

2008-01-30T11:33:00.000-08:00

passing the test...and the cars!

2008-01-24T19:01:00.000-08:00

well folks, i passed my test, please visit my blog in later dates for more info. a picture just for kix, i should get my license in the mail in a few days! woo hoo!

next time i'll get a boater's license!

i was supposed to do this a LONG time ago

2007-12-15T10:50:00.000-08:00

this is my tag:

1. i hate the dark.
2. i'm really good at taking as many random classes as i possibly can. even if i really don't want to go into that profession. my justification is that i'm doing it for the experience.
3.i get really obsessed about using the same color pen in my notes.
4. my goal in life is to convert josh groban and marry him. okay, well, not really, but it's up there.
5. i change what i want to do with my life just about every day.
6.my favorite part of photography is printing the pictures. i hope that when i'm older i'll have a dark room, or access to one. this is kind of ironic because being in the dark by myself freaks me out. i just learned to do everything in there really fast i guess...
be cause i was late:
7.my one of my favorite times to go into boston is when it's raining. :)
~ boston and plum island are two of my most favorite places to go.

ps-i'll try to get my pictures from this summer up here as soon as i can.

Amusing video

2007-12-15T10:47:00.000-08:00

so i don't really know how i found this, but it's pretty good...

new clothes...

2007-11-10T10:43:00.001-08:00

well... here are some new clothes i got a while ago. it's funny, i've been wanting to get some new pairs of pants for a while (i have like 3 pairs of jeans that i just cycle through every week), but everytime we go shopping...we can't find any pairs that fit! SO ANNOYING!!!!! anyways, so on one of these trips in search for a pair of pants, i came back with 6 shirts and a skirt...and no pants (as usual). i hate pant shopping.
anyways, this passed week was the school's accreditation week. Allison Geary was part of it, and she came into a couple of my classes. on tuesday, she bought jenicia and me lunch at the cafeteria. that was fun. i'm still driving. good fun... this weekend is a long one! no school monday! i'm so excited, my friends and i might be going into boston on monday, but nothing is final yet. yesterday, was a best buddies activity. best buddies is a program in school that has students from the school and students in the mentally challenged program in the school come together. when you join best buddies, you can choose to be a peer buddy. this means that you are committed to a one on one friendship with one of the kids. you're supposed to hang out with them, etc., basically, just be their friend. so yesterday, we all went bowling and then out to dinner at a new restaurant in the center. it was alot of fun. my buddy's name is kevin. he's a sweetie. we had a lot of fun. he beat me by a mile with the bowling, i'm a terrible bowler. it was a really good experience and i'm really glad i went.
life is going well, i just finished a poetry notebook for creative writing. we were supposed to compile at least 20 poems, at least 8 of which we had to write. they were supposed to also have a common theme in them. so all 20 of my poems were about the beach. it came out alright. not too bad. i never thought i'd actually like writing poetry. the class is fun, but not as intense as i wish it was, to most of the people in the class, it kind of seems like it's a joke. so, next year, i'm hoping to take a journalism class. i want to actually IMPROVE my writing and i wanted to have the teacher that teaches it(mr. hedges, for all of you who may know who he is). i've heard he's a good one. he chaperoned a field trip i went on a couple weeks ago to see hamlet in boston. it was so much fun.
i think i did enough blogging to be all set for a while. see y'all later. love ya!

and people drive because why????

2007-11-03T19:40:00.000-07:00

i get my licence in 3 months! i'm excited, but not. mom takes me out every morning for seminary, which is fun, pretty simple. however, dad is the one who always gets stuck with taking me out durning the day or...the highway driving. he let me drive back from revere tonight. it was okay, but i still think that driving is just too stressful, and it's so darn scary! geez, i don't know how people do it!

sisters

2007-08-19T09:44:00.000-07:00

as i was working on my girls camp quote book, i found this quote. i thought it was funny, not true, but funny nonetheless...

"Big sisters are the crab grass in the lawn of life. "

Charles M. Schultz
1922-, American Cartoonist, Creator of ''Peanuts''

...so this is my life...

2007-08-19T04:58:00.000-07:00

well, these past few weeks have definitely been an adventure. while mom and dad were gone, i continued to work, and get better at it, i worked on a quilt, and i still have just barely even touched my summer reading. not to mention that i took a lot of late nights and made up for them by unfortunately also having to deal with really really late nights. however, things are somewhat looking up. next week is girls camp! this is the one week that you are excited for, but usually not entirely until you are actually there. i'll be a jc (junior councellor, for those of you who don't know girls camp lingo). i have a group of 7 second years. i'm planning on making them little quote books and i've already started the process of making braclets...lets hope they have small wrists. i really don't think it'll be necessary to bring them too much because well, in my experience of girls camp, the jc's i looked up to and liked the most weren't necessarily the ones who brought the most stuff for us, they were the ones who spent the most time with us and who actually seemed excited to be there. that, i think, will be my tactic also i hope. oh, and by the way, the theme of the picture is bugs (beautiful unified grateful sisters) and that should explain the picture. i'm a little overwhelmed at the moment with all the many things i need to be doing.
okay, so while i'm excited about girls camp, the one thing i am so so so so so not looking forward to is jamie and renee going back to school. this summer has been so much fun with them here that i really don't know what to do with myself. i'm kind of excited for the fall and all the things i can do then that you really can't do any other time, but i still think those things would be so much more fun if i had siblings here. :( oh well, we can't have them forever, too bad.

2007-08-10T22:19:00.001-07:00

this is of course the infamously adorable megan sweeney! she likes to put on my sunglasses and she is so darn funny with them on. she is just the cutest!

16!

2007-07-19T13:59:00.001-07:00

so i do believe that all mormons would appreciate these shirts. matt romano made rachel white and i these shirts. they say PUCKER UP...I'M 16!!!! on them with a kissy face in the middle. he made us promise to wear them during mutual. so we did. mom took a picture. it's kind of small, but i can't really change that. sorry. and hopefully brian will notice this anyways, but i did change the font for you!

Laree is a permitted driver!

2007-07-16T13:05:00.000-07:00

so i just went to get my permit...and i passed! i was so nervous going in but it really wasn't that bad. i'm just happy to be done with it. Massachusetts drivers:WATCH OUT!

on saturday, dad and i got back from youth conference. it was so much fun. i didn't get much sleep, but i had a blast! there were so many fun things to do there and so many fun people to do it with. i had fun both with the girls/guys i had already known, met some new ones, and got to hang out with some of my most favorite people from the longfellow park wards!

Sixteen Candles

2007-07-15T18:58:00.000-07:00

these are the cupcakes i made. i'm not sure you can tell but they
had starfishes and shells on them.
the hat that dad left a note on for me. how sweet!
my dress that betsy got for me. i had to make some alterations on it.
i.e. : i put a skirt and tank top under it.
another picture of the cupcakes
the actual party!

happy mother's day...a wee bit late.

2007-06-27T18:45:00.000-07:00

stirring the alfredo sauce not so attractive one of me stirring...it was HOT in there.
the finished product.

so for our mother's day gift, to mom, we all agreed to make a dinner. for mine, i made shrimp alfredo (i made the alfredo sauce too...i am no cheater.) and a weird little salad i made spur of the moment. i was told that the alfredo was good. the salad supposedly was a little funky. i'm not sure the dressing was a smart move. it was lemon juice, salt, pepper, and carmelized almonds. the almonds were great though. so anyways, mom felt that she should document the dinner, so here are the pictures.

Discovery of Divine Comedy

2007-06-26T06:54:00.000-07:00

i found mormon ads that they change to make funny titles. this was one of them. origionally the mormonad talks about the divinity in each of us. if you can't read the picture, they changed it to say.... FACE IT: you'll never be prom queen.
i found it pretty amusing, hopefully everyone else will too.

I'm here now!

2007-06-26T06:23:00.000-07:00

YAY FOR BLOGGING!!!!