a Garden Tomb, a birthday, a sickness...my ramblings of the week

The current thoughts running through my head:

1. We are leaving for TURKEY tomorrow...WOOHOO!! I am going to Turkey, that is weird. I am so excited! I didn't really know what to expect with Turkey...but this week we had an orientation and they showed us pictures and videos from the past trips...and I'm pumped! It will be such a great experience!

2. Being sick...away from home...particularly in a foreign country...is not fun. The past couple of days...particularly Friday, I was feeling a little homesick. But I'm feeling better and that's all that matters. 

Gratitude list real quick:
- I am grateful for a doctor that is always checking on all the sickies (sadly, there are a bunch of us).
- I'm grateful for worthy priesthood holders and priesthood blessings.
- Friday I missed my classes and slept. I missed a quiz in my Ancient Near Eastern Studies class...and I'm grateful for teachers that are understanding, and that know us, and let me make up the quiz after Turkey.
- I'm grateful for wonderful friends that actually notice that I am missing (in a class of 80 people, I didn't think people would even notice). And that check up on me.


Ok. Although the past couple of days haven't been as fun...I have had some fun this week!!

Saturday we went to the Garden Tomb. It was wonderful. Although we don't know if this is actually the location that Christ was buried...the message of it is beautiful. Christ has risen! We sang some hymns while we were there...and there will definitely be frequent trips back. (I took a few pictures there, but they weren't the cutest of me...so more pictures to come in the future.)

Sunday I turned the big 2-0. Woo! 20 used to sound so old...now I am 20...I guess I'm getting old. Weird.

Sunday I opened the package I had gotten from my mom! Isn't my mom the cutest? She sent a birthday package all the way to Israel? Ya, she's the best. I know.  Then, a group of us went to Tel Aviv and spent the day at the beach! It was a great day! We walked through a market, laid out on the beach, swam in the Mediterranean (how cool does that sound?), ate at some hole in the wall place that had the best pitas that I had ever tasted (I may have thrown it all up that night...but at the time it was delicious. hahaha), walked through Old Jaffa, ate Gelato (that my wonderful friends bought for me for my birthday...their cute!), watched a beautiful sunset, and took lots of pictures! Definitely a good birthday!

 The cute sign and banner that my mom sent me. Honestly, I'll probably leave it up there all semester.

 Ok. Is this not the most impressive jumping shot that you have ever beheld? We are pretty much awesome!

 My birthday skirt from my momma.

Monday we went on a field trip...we went to Tel Beer-Sheva (well, the Old City of Beer-Sheva), the Negev Desert, Tel Arad (we love Tel's around here...and cisterns...our favorite.)

My favorite part of the day was when we hiked in the Negev Desert. Initially we were all kind of dreading it, because we didn't know what to expect. They also said that they hadn't done this hike in a few years, and they were going to try it again for us. They told us it was going to be like a 2 hour hike...and I think we all thought it was literally going to be like a "wandering in the wilderness" like the children of Israel. But it wasn't like that at all. I can't really explain it...but it was cool...and not 2 hours. The Tel Arad was an action city and we could see the remnants of a church...basically just ruins of an old city, but it was cool. Same with Tel Beer-Sheva...ruins of an old city. Ruins are a frequent visitation around these parts.

(I really tried to upload pictures from this day...but my phone and computer are not cooperating. I did upload a few on Instagram...if you really care to see.)

Wednesday we had some time between classes so we went the Old City...and the the Pools of Bethesda. They were so pretty. I quite enjoyed them. It's amazing to think of the miracles done here. The Pools of Bethesda were for those that were not allowed to enter the Temple, and came to the Pools to be healed. My mind turns to the scriptures, and to the painting that we frequently see of the man in the red cap by the Pools of Bethesda, and Christ healing him. It is such a powerful story and it reminds me how Christ can heal us all. The Pools (which actually don't have water in them anymore), were just fun to explore and take pictures. I loved it.

Also, the shopkeepers love the mormons...Shaban especially loves us. We went to visit him...and the next thing we know we are being dressed as Arabian women. We are becoming natives real fast.

Thursday we went to a Mosque, which was an interesting experience. I know that we go to some of the world's coolest Mosques in Turkey...so this was just like a neighborhood Mosque...not as picturesque. It's just interesting to learn more about the Muslim culture and the Call to Prayer. Being in Jerusalem allows us to learn a lot about the Jewish and Islam religions, which is very interesting. But it was way hot...plus having our heads covered for a long period of time...plus standing for that whole time...equals all the girls pretty much dying.

That was pretty much the extent of my excitement for the week...because my week ended with too much time in my bed.

Tip: If you want compliments...go one day without make up, hair in a messy bun, and looking grunge...then the next day curl your hair, do your make up, wear a cute dress...and the compliments will come. I think everyone just forgot that I can look presentable some times...hahaha.


Also...tomorrow I will be traveling...so I need to give a shout out to my mother....

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY MOM!! 

My mom is amazing.

She is so thoughtful (package in Jerusalem...need I say more?) and so willing to serve those around her.  She has such a strong testimony of the gospel and is not afraid to share it with those around her. She is the best Stake Young Women's President...she always goes above a beyond and she truly has a love for all the Young Women in the Stake. She is so creative and always makes everything look so cute, whether it's the house, a young women activity, or a shutter fly book...she has such a creative eye. She is super good at photography and does it just because she loves it. She flies out to Utah just to help me...even when I know that she is super busy and has a million other things that she could be doing.

Basically, I just love her!! 

Love you Mom! 

I hope you have a great day!

Living at the JC. (Pictures!!)

Ok. I haven't been as faithful of an updater...but you have got a lengthy post ahead of you...but it's filled with the rundown of my life, my adventures...and maybe a special guest appearance by Sis. Beck. Oh! And LOTS OF PICTURES!! So, stay tuned!! :)

Basically...I love it! Yep. I guess that's all you want to know. Right? Ok fine. I'll tell more. Maybe I'll just split everything into categories. Yep. That will work.


The Jerusalem Center (JC):

Living in the JC is a funny thing. You get put with 79 other people (there are 59 girls and 21 guys) that you don't know, but then you are eating with them, sleeping with them (ok, that sounds weird...but you get what I mean), going to classes with them, going to church with them, studying with them, exploring with them...you do everything together and are with each other all the time! That's why it seems like you have been with people for more than a week! Thankfully there are places to go and different people to be around, so you don't get sick of each other...but it's just a funny concept.

It's also funny that all of this gets done in the same building. The 8th floor is where the library and where we go to church. 6th floor is the gym, cafeteria, lounge, and classes. 4th and 3rd floors are where we live. 2nd floor is the laundry room. You get the idea. It's just funny that all of our needs can be fulfilled in the same building...but with lots of stairs.

Yet another funny concept...is the fact that you live with you teachers. Ok, not all of them...but some of them. Our Old Testament teachers (there are 2 of them) and our Ancient Near Eastern Studies teachers are from BYU and have been here since August, and we are their last semester. Our other teachers are from the area. But you see your teachers walking around the building, you see them working out, you go on field trips with them, sometimes they eat in the cafeteria, they are in your ward, and in your bishopric. You hang out with their kids! (Their families live here with them...they have bigger apartments with kitchens and everything. Their kids go to the international school, which none of them love. But the kids love hanging out with us!) It's funny interacting so closely with your teachers.

Classes are interesting...but they are kind of intense. They are definitely not easy. Lots of reading. Right now it is hard to find the right balance of going into the city and studying. And even when you think you can do both...you come back from exploring and cannot keep your eyes open to do the reading...and there is A LOT of reading. Not my strong point. I'm kind of a slow reader and my mind likes to wander.

We are in a branch. The branch consists of everyone living in the JC (well, except the none LDS workers), a girl studying at Hebrew University, and other members that are living in Jerusalem for jobs (like, working for the U.S. Government). We aren't allowed to Proselyte, so everyone is from somewhere else. Today I got a calling, I am not a Compassionate Service Committee Member! Woot! Their is a Compassionate Service Leader and Assistant Leader...and basically I am the only Committee Member. It made me laugh. It will be great though.

It's fun! We are a little family here! You can definitely see how you come to love everyone so much! It's not a normal living situation.


The City:

The Old City is great. You've got your Muslims, Christians, and Jews. All with their own living quarters within the Old City. The Old City is so cool to me, because there are stones and buildings that have been there so long! You are walking they streets are some stones that are said to date back to the time of Christ. Ya. Crazy.

Mostly, you've got your shop keepers. Who all know that you are Mormon. At first it caught us off guard that they would just calls us out as the Mormons, trying to get us to go to their shops. "Mormons, this is where Jesus had his first Pizza." (that was a personal favorite). But then I realized that we are pretty distinguishable. We aren't in big tour groups. We are modest, with long skirts and pants. We are generally groups of girls. We are young and exploring on our own. I get it now.

The Shop keepers love the Mormons. They often give us deals. One shop keep told us that we could go in the back and look at his necklaces, because he trusts Mormons. One girl in my group said that she didn't have money with her, and he told her that she could take it now and come back and pay. Man, that's a lot of trust. But, he also knows where we live and that we will be here for a while.

The men and boys love making comments. Some creepy and some just funny. Yesterday when I was getting money from the Aladdins...he said that we were Mormon. Then he asked the other guy, "How do we know that they are Mormon?" and the other guy said, "Because they are beautiful." hahaha. Those were pretty harmless. Some men try to ask your name and have you meet them in the Old City...ya...creepy. Or just as you pass they will say, "beautiful woman!" So forward. hahaha. It's entertaining...well...until they stop and start talking to you and ask you your name and everything. One time I turned into Rebecca...but you would too if some man was asking you to meet him in the Old City.

I realized that I want to buy way too many things. I want the leather sandals, the leather scripture case, the BYU Jerusalem shirts and sweatshirts, the scarves, the bags, the jewelry. Ya. Most of it I will actually use and wear. None of that tourist snow globe action...I want the good stuff. Right now we scope it out, ask around, see what are the cheapest prices. A lot of the shop keepers have the same stuff...so you hate to buy something and find the same thing cheaper at another store.

West Jerusalem is so different than East Jerusalem. West Jerusalem is quite bit nicer. The stores are real stores and you just pay the prices they give, instead of trying to get them to reduce their prices. It's more open, and cleaner. East Jerusalem is more compact, and more like a market...less like real shops. East Jerusalem is mostly Arabic. West Jerusalem seems to be mostly Hebrew. There is a difference, and you see it right away.


My Adventures:

What have I done? Well, a lot of the fun has just been exploring the city. There is so much culture and everywhere you turn there are places to see. It blows my mind that this city has gone through so much! The United States' history is only a couple hundred years old...but this is much different. This is a place that we read about in our scriptures. Abraham, Lehi...Jesus Christ. They were here!! They walked in the places that we are walking. That's crazy!

Friday we mostly explored the city for a little bit. It was our first day out on our own, so we just looked around. Everything closes pretty early on Friday in preparation for the Sabbath.

Saturday (the Sabbath), we had church, took a nap (I am seriously always tired), and after church a group of us went to the Orson Hyde Memorial Park, where Orson Hyde dedicated the Holy Land. We mostly just wanted to get out, but it was cool. It's the only real Mormon site in Jerusalem.

Sunday we have free day. I went with a group that did the Rampart's Walk, where you get to walk on the top of the wall of the Old City. Apparently we could have gone around the whole city, but we didn't realize that and just did a little bit of it. I really enjoyed it. Then we headed to West Jerusalem, went to a food market and ate our sack lunches. We headed towards the Dome of the Rock, and the line was way long to get in the Temple Mount...but we did go up to the Western Wall, which was neat experience.

Monday we had a field trip that was called "Jerusalem Overlook" which was pretty much what it sounds like. We went to various locations and looked over Jerusalem. Most of the locations had significance. We went the August Victoria Church where some people believe Christ ascended into Heaven. We went to a place that honors Samuel. We went to a spot that we saw into Bethlehem. We looked out into the city from the Mount of Olives and were pointed to the possibly path Christ walked after atoning for our sins and being betrayed. It was fun. I took pictures, but all the views pretty much look the same.

(I like this picture of everyone taking pictures. The sky was kind of muggy, so not the best look out pictures. But they are all taking pictures of Bethlehem, which is cool.)

Tuesday we didn't have much time to go exploring because of our class schedule. But we got a small group and went out for a few hours (granted it takes about a half an hour to get into the city and a half an hour to get back). We went to see the Church of the Holy Sepulchre and just explored for a bit. It felt way too short and we were kind of rushed, but it was still nice to get out. Later that day, a group of us made a stop to the "7 to Eleven" which is just down the road from us. I think the Kinder candy will be bad news. It's too good!

Wednesday we got out of class at 10 and those of us in Arabic, didn't have class until 4. Hello! So much time! We went and got money, because I still didn't really have money. A bunch of the past JC students have written little notes and Aladdin has put them on a wall...well, day was basically made when I found a note that my sister wrote over 3 years ago!! Love it!! Picture taken. This was possibly my favorite day. We went to Zedekiah's Cave, which is just caves under the city that Zedekiah built. I'm not really sure...but they were cool. We went and got shawerma's. First shawerma in Israel. Definitely different taste than The Broilers in Fresno. They put fries in it and not rice. But I think places do it differently. Then we shopped. This was my first day really shopping because I actually had money. When you don't have money you don't care to actually look...but I had money, so it was fun. We journeyed over to West Jerusalem and got Gelato. Delicious. I got Kinder flavor. It was a good day! (Lots of good pictures were taken...but many are on my friend's cameras).

Thursday I was a little burned out, and also a little behind in my studies...so I was disciplined and stayed in. I don't know how much studying got done though...I was seriously struggling to stay awake!

Friday I stayed in too, because I had to write a site report for the Garden Tomb before we go on a Field Trip there on Saturday. But I finished, so it was good! 

But Friday night was way cool! We went to the Western Wall as the Jewish all gather to start the Sabbath. There were so many people, and we don't normally get to go into East Jerusalem at night, so this was the only time we will get to experience it. We also weren't allowed to take pictures, normally we can, but since it was the start of the Sabbath, it was disrespectful. The Jews all gather by the Wall, the Women go in one side and the Men go on the other. The Women's side is significantly smaller than the Men's. Mostly they enter and read the Bible in Hebrew, some are quietly crying, and some are singing and dancing in celebration of the Sabbath coming. 

We went up and touched the wall and tried to join in some of the celebrations. There was an LDS tour group there, and guess who was in their group...Sis. Beck! So...I gave Sis. Beck a hug at the Western Wall. So cool! Right? It was actually kind of funny because we were at the Western Wall, but as soon as we started seeing Sis. Beck...we all go so excited to see her and meet her. I love that lady! She is such a powerhouse woman! 

Tonight we have a field trip to the Garden Tomb, which I'm excited about!

Tomorrow a group of us are going to the beach at Tel Aviv for the day. I'm excited about the beach!

Tomorrow I also end my days as a teenager and enter my 20's. Woot! hahaha. 

Life is good! I'm enjoying every minute of this once in a lifetime experience in the Holy Land!! :)

If you read all of that...I applaud you. That was long. 

Also...I love when people comment, because I love seeing who is actually reading this! *hint hint* 

I also love getting emails and hearing about the outside world. *hint hint*

Love and miss you all!

Birthday Girls!!

May is the month to have a birthday. It's obviously the best month.

So, I'm giving a shout out to these two beautiful birthday girls!!

HAPPY 20TH BIRTHDAY

SYDNEY ROSE HUGHES!!

(Syd's birthday was actually yesterday (May 2nd), but my day was crazy yesterday, so I'm a day late.)

Sydney is wonderful! We were randomly assigned to be roommates our Freshman Year, and we knew pretty fast that we would click. She has been one of my best friends since! 

Syd has the best sense of humor. She is never afraid to be her crazy, fun, talkative self. She is thoughtful and looks out for others.  She is easygoing, and so much fun to be around. She is super personable and friendly. She is smart and creative. She has a strong testimony of the gospel. I could go on for a while...but I just love her! 

We will be separated for 8 months with me being in Jerusalem and her going to Paris, and I'm going to miss her and my pillow talk buddy. We keep each other cracking up and have gotten to the point where we can finish each other's sentences...it's bad! hahaha.

I love you Syd! I hope that you had the best birthday! 

Another birthday is today (May 3rd).

HAPPY 13TH BIRTHDAY

Kyky, Ky, Baby Van Wag, Soupy!!

Kylie is the best! She is so thoughtful and always looking out for others! 

From the time she was little, she has always been such a spiritual giant! She has such a strong testimony of the gospel and shares it with those around her!

 Kylie is such a good friend and everyone wants to be around her! Ky loves sports and always wants us to play sports with her. She is a rockin' wakeboarder and skiier! 

Ky has the best sense of humor and keeps us all cracking up. I hope everyone else realizes how funny she is, because she seriously cracks me up. She is just the cutest!

I love you Ky! I hope that you have the best birthday! 

(I know. I need to have a Jerusalem update. It's coming! I just needed to do Birthday shout outs first!)

I'm HERE!!

Welp...I'm in Jerusalem!! I think I am so tired and jet lagged that it hasn't completely hit me.

We started our journey from the Salt Lake Airport, where almost the whole group was on the same flight...all 80 of us. The airline was super nice though and let us all board first, mostly because they had to check all of our passports, which they knew would take a little bit of time. I hurried on, because I was so scared of not being able to get my carry on in the overhead compartment. I got on pretty fast, so it wasn't a problem...but some of the people on the flight ended up having to check their bags, which was one of my fears. We flew from Salt Lake to JFK, I was sitting next to a girl and a guy from my group, which was nicer than a random stranger.

We got to JFK and we had a little layover, so we went and grabbed food, but when we got back to the gate people said that they had walked around looking at people's tickets and passports.  This confused us because it was only 7 and our flight wasn't until 8:30. It turns out that the flight had about 400 people on it. Holy cow!! Who knew that many people regularly went to Israel? Before we got on the plane, the gate had it's own security that we had to go through. So, we slammed down our food and got on the plane...and ended up being on the plane an hour early. I have never been on a plane that had that many people!! We didn't even take off on time, so I feel like we were on the plane for almost 2 hours by the time the plane actually got off the ground!

The flight wasn't too bad. It was 11 hours...which I was dreading. I think because we knew it was going to be long, we didn't think about it too much. You know it is a long flight when they have time to show 4 movies. Thankfully I was able to sleep through the middle two movies. It wasn't the most comfortable sleep, but it helped the time go by.

We arrived in Tel Aviv about 2:30 or 3 Israel time. We went through the passport check and some people got asked a bunch of questions, but the guy I went to didn't ask me anything. All I was thinking was, "don't use the word studying, we aren't studying." I guess if you say that you are here studying for 3 1/2 months, they'll force you to get a student visa...which is a problem. We found the teachers, got on buses, and headed to Jerusalem. One girl mentioned that it is a lot greener than she was expecting. Which is what mom and dad had said when they came to visit Kara. When we arrived in Jerusalem on the buses, it was unreal. Jerusalem is so pretty!

Walking into the Jerusalem Center was also unreal. The center is seriously gorgeous! It is definitely set up different than I was expecting. Everything just branches off of the main stairs. We took tours, had some time to unpack, ate dinner at the Oasis (the cafeteria), had orientations (and seriously struggled staying awake), and got ready for bed.

I was so exhausted, but sleeping didn't come quite as easily as I was hoping. It didn't help that they do the Call to Prayer on loud speakers at 4 in the morning. It is pretty loud. I thought maybe our patio door was open...but nope. I kind of wish I knew that was being said...it's kind of interesting. They go for a while though and they are often. I don't know how people sleep through it. Maybe I'll just get used to it and tune it out...or I'll just be too exhausted to hear it.

Thursday was our first full day!

We had breakfast at 6:30. Woo! We were all jet lagged, that I was pretty much already awake before I got up anyways. I walked out to breakfast, and I was already matching someone! Woo Target dresses! Throughout the day we realized that 2 other girls have the dress too! Twins everywhere!

Today we TOURED THE CITY!! It was great! We saw the place to do Money Exchanges, met Omar, we were shown where everything is, walked through the Old City, went into West Jerusalem. It was good! They just took us on a tour, so they didn't want us all stopping to take pictures and buy things. I'm a little nervous about buying things...because I feel like all the merchants rip you off!! Also, I need to become accustomed to what are reasonable prices to pay for things.

We got back, ate lunch, I tried to do some of the reading. The teachers give a lot of reading!! Oh, right. I'm here to be in school. I forget! hahaha. We start our first classes Friday, but the classes all seem pretty intense. I feel like for a study abroad program they should loosen up on you a bit, but that is definitely not the case here! You can't get away with not doing the readings!

We had more orientations, and I was dying. So exhausted!! I was struggling to stay awake the whole hour and half. We had time before dinner...where I probably should have been studying...but my roommate (Robin Grigg) and I just crashed! We were like, "we'll just sleep for a half an hour of so." Nope. The next thing we know my roommate is telling us that we have dinner in 5 minutes. I just laughed.

After dinner, my committee (the In Center Activities) did get to know you games. I was the designated picture taker of the activity...which I was ok with because I didn't feel like running around playing missionary tag and such.

It was a good day! It will take some time to get on this schedule! 9 hours is a big difference, especially since we are on a schedule!

But things are good!! The building is gorgeous and the view in gorgeous. We are on Mount Scopus and we just have a view of the city! The people are great, and everyone wants to be friends, so it's never weird to talk to people or sit by random people.

I still can't believe I am here!! It will be a great summer!!

(Oh...and don't always expected such detailed posts...it will probably wear off...I'm just putting off doing my readings!! hahaha)

Jerusalem Bound.

So...confession time. I actually made this blog my Senior year, but let's be real...I am awful at journaling. I had aspirations of being a good blogger...but I always felt the need to be funny, or witty, or just have something exciting to say.

But now...it's different. Now I am going to another land and pretty much anything I write will be exciting...right? At least that's what I keep telling myself. Also, my mom might get angry with me if I don't update this baby with pictures and stories.

Pressure.

So, I once again have aspirations to be a good blogger...because if I'm not...then to the rest of the world I will just be MIA all summer.

So...here is my blog...in all it's glory!! The blog where I will document the most epic adventure of my (almost) 20 year old life.

In case you didn't catch on. Tuesday I board a plane that will begin my adventures in the Holy Land, at the BYU Jerusalem Center! Say what?!?

You see...a little over 3 years ago, my sister Kara did a study abroad in Jerusalem, and ever since then...it has been part of the plan. My mind has always been set on Jerusalem...and not going hasn't even been an option to me.

And now...it's here!! When did I grow up and become old enough to spend a semester in the Middle East!! I'm going to be living in the MIDDLE EAST!!

Walking where the Savior walked. Going to places that I have only read about. Experiencing the Old City. Standing in front of the Dome of the Rock. Traveling to Turkey...and maybe munching on some Turkey. Floating in the Dead Sea. Chilling on the beach in Tel Aviv.

This is real life!! This is MY life!!

So...Tuesday at 11:07 am is when the adventure begins...and I couldn't be more excited!!

Freshman year.

So...I found this in my drafts...and Sydney Hughes got mad at me for not posting it...so here is a very late post from the end of my Freshman year...

As far as my blog goes, I always seem to be MIA. I think blogging/journaling just overwhelms me because I always feel the need to catch up...so for the few that actually look at this...here we go. Welp, my freshman year is over! Crazy, right? I can't believe that I was in school for 10 months straight with a few little breaks. It was bittersweet saying goodbye, but I have learned that this phrase applies to most things in life. It is always sad to say goodbye to something good, but there are always great things to come!

Well, here is a rundown of some of the things that have made my freshman year so grand! (not including events that I have previously posted about)

Sleepovers! There is nothing like putting your mattresses together...taking silly pictures, watching a movie, and chilling after a crazy week. The funny thing about sleepovers in college is that they are generally with your roommates, so we don't necessarily stay up late talking...because we can do that any night! haha :) They are still great though. (yes, there are chairs in the back because often these sleepovers were in the kitchen. haha.)

Harry Potter!! Yes, we did dress up and yes we were there and pumped at midnight. We may have even helped instigate a small dance party in our theater while we waited. It was not as successful as we may have hoped...but hey, we tried. This picture is my roommate Sydney and I dressed as house elves. :)

The lights at temple square! We planned a ward activity to see the lights at temple square before Christmas! They are so fun to see. We also got the chance to watch the Joseph Smith movie. That movie is amazing, it really helps me appreciate all the Smiths went through...especially Emma Smith. They did not lead easy lives, but they put their lives into the Lord's hands and did whatever was asked of them to bring forth the gospel. It was a great night!

Pajamas! My roommate Marissa (the one next to me) made us all pajamas for Christmas...amazing, right? She totally surprised us, none of us had any idea...which is surprising considering we live together. So fun!

Ice skating! We went ice skating for FHE. I am terrible, but it was so fun to go with my group and improve my skills. haha.

My FHE group! We were definitely dysfunctional at time, but we sure did have fun together. I love all of them! The boys will all make amazing missionaries.

Photobooth! We very often entertained ourselves with photobooth...and then further entertained ourselves my looking at our ridiculous faces!

Ice cream trips!! Ok...weakness...we would have seriously gotten ice cream every night if we didn't have some self control. It didn't exactly help that the BYU Creamery was in walking distance. Hey...it's part of the Freshman experience...right? haha.

BYU sports! Yes, we were most definitely Jimmer fans...ok, we were not as devoted as many of BYU students. People camped out and waited for hours to get into games, and we didn't have that kind of time to devote to a game...but we still supported when we had the time.

Uh...holiday celebrations!! haha. So, I felt that St. Patrick's Day needed to be celebrated somehow, so we had a green breakfast for dinner. Some of my roommates were a little weirded out by all the green, like in the milk and eggs, but I was pumped and went for it. I thought it was a cute meal...new tradition? Or maybe I'll try some Irish food in the future...we'll see.

My hall!! I seriously loved the girls in my hall (which is also my relief society). We had so much fun together and the best of memories...with sleepovers, engagements (yes, a few got engaged), dances (picture below), hall meetings, and just being together. I loved all the Penrose girls!!

Family visits! I got lucky this semester because I got to see my family when we went to Hawaii, I saw my mom and sister when Kara reported to the MTC, and I saw my dad because he came down just to go skiing with me! It was a perfect day on the slopes too. Love love love.

My roommates!! I love them. I think we pretty much had every personality in one room. They taught me so much. We laughed so much and I am grateful for them and all the great times we had together.

Since I have been home people ask me how BYU is...I love it! I wouldn't have it any other way!! :)