So much to do, so little time.

Well, this month has flown by. After summer term finals ended, I went to two wedding receptions and a bridal shower that following weekend. Then, I spent a week in Wisconsin, which was rainy but relaxing. My mom and I watched 3 Hallmark movies, if that gives you an idea of the pace of the week... but that's just what I needed. Now, I'm back here in Provo, helping out with freshman orientation, moving into a new apartment, and getting ready for classes! I'm in-between apartments... with most of my stuff in the new one, but I still have to go back to the old one to clean it, eek.

Freshman orientation is so much fun! It seems like yesterday I was moving into the dorms and starting college. It's fun to see the freshmen, wandering around, trying to look nonchalant (even though you can tell they're lost and a little nervous about everything) and getting excited to start classes. We've all been there. It's weird to be on the other end, but it's also nice to pass the college wisdom down to the next generation. I really had fun taking them on a campus tour, pointing out all the buildings and telling stories about my experiences and experiences of my friends. Going to the orientation leader training and listening to the BYU President address the freshman today was a nice way to start my last year of college, reminding me of what BYU is all about and what I want to accomplish before I leave this school. I remember all the anticipation of starting college, and I want this last year to really be memorable and to wrap up my college years full-circle.

With that said, there's lots to do before school starts next week. Yikes! I'll keep you posted and hopefully get some pictures up here soon!

Summer school is over!

I call it "Cramming for a British Lit. final."

Total Eclipse of the Day

It's funny how a day can turn from bad to good in such a short time. Monday was one of those days. Being the last day of the summer term, I had a LOT to finish for my classes. In one day (on 2 hours of sleep and under intense pressure) I managed to finish a course project for my American English Usage Class, finish my research paper for British Lit, take a tennis test in the Testing Center, play several games of tennis (last day of class and I had to play a certain amount of games for the class), attend 4 hours of class... needless to say, I was exhausted when I came home from school at 8 P.M., over 12 hours since I left the house.

After a shower and some food, I went and accompanied Emily Reynolds at an acoustic guitar show (I played back-up on my violin) and given my rough day... it wasn't my best performance. I thought I would go home after that and sleep for the next week... but somehow, Emily and her brother Seth, who was in town visiting, convinced me to go see "Evan Almighty" at the dollar theater.

On the way there, as I was sitting in the backseat (between two car seats... because Seth borrowed his older sister's car) we listened to "Total Eclipse of the Heart" and sang our hearts out. In that moment, something changed in me as the stress just released. "Evan Almighty" was great too, I was surprised that I enjoyed it as much as I did.

Anyhow, I came home after the movie around midnight... exhausted still, but happy. I love days like that.

Climbing Mount Timpanogos

This weekend, 5 friends and I climbed Mount Timpanogos. Of all of us (Amanda, Bryce, Tiffani, Anthony, Emily, and I), only Tiffani had done the climb before. It was an intense, but awesome experience! We left on Friday night at 8 P.M. from Aspen Grove, up Provo Canyon. After 4 hours, we reached Emerald Lake, which is like the "base camp" for the hike. Emerald Lake is a lake made from the melted glacier above it. It was FREEZING up there that night! I had no idea how cold we would be! Emily and I shared a tent, and we had to cuddle to stay warm... it was in the thirties! We barely slept about 2 or 3 hours.

Then, at 6ish on Saturday morning, we woke up and did the final climb to the summit. Wow, it was intense. We kept thinking we were close, and then we'd see another peak that we had to climb! There were a lot of people climbing the peak too... it is a popular hike. We saw kids, teenagers, college students, tourists, even dogs! Anyhow, we then had to go back down... and by the end, we were extremely thirsty, sore, and tired. Needless to say, we slept REALLY well that night!

Saturday also happened to be my 25th birthday! It was an interesting way to spend my birthday, and it will definitely be a great memory! We went to Chili's later that night and then ate cake and watched "Clue" in Emily's backyard on a projector. It was a great birthday and a great way to start my next year!

Here are some pictures from the trip:

These flowers are called "Indian Paintbrushes." Aren't they gorgeous? There were so many different wildflowers... it was beautiful!

Here are Anthony and Tiffani, enjoying the cold water at the waterfall near the end of the hike... we were so tired by this point!


Emily, Amanda, me, and Tiffani at a waterfall near the beginning of the hike.
The sun coming up near Emerald Lake on Saturday morning.

The glacier above Emerald Lake. This is a popular way to descend from the summit, by sliding down the glacier! Unfortunately, the glacier wasn't very large this year, so it was extra dangerous to go down it. So, we decided to climb back down the way we came.

This is a view near the top of Mount Timpanogos. Doesn't it look incredibly high?! It looks like the view from an airplane!

Amanda and Bryce... hiking on the way back down.

Anyhow, I've had a lot of fun enjoying all of the fun outdoor things in Utah this summer. I'm not sure that I'll be climbing Timp again in the near future, but I'm really glad I did it and I hope to do it again someday. Climbing Timp is sort of a BYU rite of passage... it seems that most of my friends have climbed it at least once. And, this weekend, a group of 6 twenty-four-year-olds (one turning twenty-five on the trip) joined the ranks of those who have climbed before :-)