Words of Wisdom from T-Swift

This past weekend I had the chance to witness Taylor Swift's Red Tour, up close and personal. Okay, not really that close. We were on the 3rd row from the very, very top. But it was still AMAZING! I was definitely more excited about it than the 12 year old girls behind us. I never, ever, ever wanted to leave. Like ever.

Say what you will about the woman, but she really is a great role model. So she hasn't been so lucky in love and maybe she does have one too many break up songs. But that's life. It happens to a lot of people. Their personal lives just aren't printed on the cover of a magazine. It can't be easy trying to find the man of your dreams while touring around the country and having every detail of your personal life, true or not true, plastered on the front page for everyone to see. At least she hasn't shaved her head yet.  And hey,  I, like most people, write my feelings in a journal that no one reads. She writes them in songs. And she makes millions. Props to her.

She gave a little bit of an intro and background to each of her songs and I loved the things she said. She is just so down to earth and honest. She's real. I think that's why so many girls relate to her. Before she sang "Mean," she talked about how she hadn't always had 14,000 people to hang out with on a Saturday night. She wasn't super popular in school and people were mean. And she thought that when she got older, the bullies would go away. But they didn't. And then she said something that I think resonates with a majority of her audience. "No matter what you do, there are always going to be people trying to tear you down. But you can't let them win."

She's right. There will always be someone trying to knock you down. There will always be someone trying to tell you that you aren't good enough, that you can't do it. Sometimes that person is you. For me, the current struggle is my mission. Sometimes people say things to me that make me doubt my decision and my ability. But here's the thing, I am good enough. And I can do it. And so are you. Be confident in who you are and in your dreams, whatever they may be. Don't let anyone knock you down. Don't be afraid to go out and prove people wrong. Show them just how bright you can shine :)

You're Gonna Miss This

I have officially finished my freshman year at the University of Utah! I can't believe how quickly it has flown by! When I moved to Salt Lake City and started college last August I never could have even imagined the experiences I was going to have and the people I was going to meet. To be honest, college and I didn't start out on the best foot. I didn't really know too many people, my roommates were almost never home, my classes were hard, and I was still getting used to living on my own. But it got better and looking back now I wouldn't change a thing. I was blessed with so many wonderful people and opportunities! One of the biggest blessings in my eyes was that I was able to move in with Amanda, Avery, and Lya because not only did those three become my best friends, I also got three more less expected ones, three sweet boys that offered to help me move and eventually ended up singing songs in our shower, and with them came so many adventures!

Fall 2012

I'm gonna miss a lot of things about college. I'm gonna miss secretly laughing at the people running to catch the shuttle and then having to suck up my pride and do the same. I'm gonna miss getting donuts and chocolate milk every week in my LEAP class. I'm gonna miss falling asleep in the heavenly womb chairs in the library. I'm gonna miss hearing Brother Case's awesome stories in Mission Prep and always being able to count on free food at the Institute. I'm gonna miss the city lights and beautiful sunsets. I'm gonna miss habitually checking my mail everyday and getting super excited when it miraculously wasn't empty. I'm even going to miss trips to the HC, not because the food was good, or even edible, but because I have so many memories there.

Winter 2013

But what I'm going to miss the most is the people. I'm gonna miss Freshman Council meetings every Tuesday and family dinners afterwards. I'm gonna miss Neena and Oliver's entertaining arguments. I'm gonna miss hearing about Ashlynn's polygamist schemes and every other hilarious thing that came out of that girl's mouth. I'm gonna miss trying not to laugh listening to Chase and Ashlynn argue like a married couple. I'm gonna miss going to the temple every week with my roommates, late night talks outside Amanda's door, and sleepovers in the living room. I'm gonna miss Avery's cute little notes and gifts and her attempts to get Amanda and I to the gym despite our endless list of excuses not to. I'm gonna miss being able to count on Pitch Perfect quotes and a Taylor Swift jam session to 22 every day. I'm gonna miss never going to bed without a hug and a reminder that I was loved. I'm gonna miss Sunday morning brunch before church. I'm gonna miss our "study" parties in the living room. I'm gonna miss going on adventures with Jeremy, Sione, and London and knowing they would watch out for us all the way. I'm gonna miss hearing them say that they were "just watching out for their favorite suite". I'm gonna miss having them randomly show up at our door. I'm gonna miss hearing London rock the guitar. I'm gonna miss that angel voice of Sione's. I'm gonna miss Jeremy's awesome improv raps and Sione's beat-boxing. I'm gonna miss seeing "The Shower Song" performed live in our actual shower. I'm gonna miss getting after the boys for clanning too much. I'm gonna miss having Sione make up songs just for us and falling asleep on the couch to the sound of his ukulele. I'm even gonna miss their silly little pranks.

The Best Friends (minus Amanda)

I'm gonna miss a lot of things but most of all I'm gonna miss them; Amanda, Avery, Lya, Sione, Jeremy, and London. Saying goodbye to them all this weekend was rough. I'd be lying if I said I didn't shed a few tears. Or a lot of them. Goodbyes aren't as hard when you know you're going to see that person again though, and I know I'll see them all again. It's the big one in two months I'm worried about. But even then, there 's this:
"Don't be dismayed at goodbyes, a farewell is necessary before you can meet again and meeting again, after moments or lifetimes, is certain for those who are friends."
I am so grateful for the opportunity I've had to attend the University of Utah and to have met the people I have. They can't possibly know how much they mean to me because I'm not really very good at telling them. They have all made me a better, stronger, happier person. It's impossible not to be better, not to feel like you can do anything, not to be happy when those 6 are around you. I love them oh so much and I am incredibly blessed to have met them.

Spring 2013

I'm gonna miss college. I really am. But don't worry University of Utah! I'll be back! Just give me 18 months :)

Final Freshman Adventures

The final two weeks of my Freshman year at the University of Utah were filled with adventures with fabulous people. Here's just an idea of what they were like.

Color Festival

We weren't able to go to the big one in Spanish Fork so we went to the one in SLC! It was a lot smaller scale but it was still a blast!

                             Before                                                        After 

Suicide Rock
After Color Fest, a couple of our favorite boys took us to Suicide Rock. It's just this big rock with a bunch of really cool graffiti on it. Of course we left our mark :)

FC Banquet

Freshman Council was definitely the best decision I made this year! I met so many amazing people I wouldn't have met and had lots of awesome experiences I wouldn't have had otherwise. It's so strange to realize we won't be having meetings every Tuesday anymore and we won't be having little family dinners and I might never see some of these people, who have become such a big part of my life, again. I'm definitely going to miss this but I know the people in this group are going to accomplish some amazing things!

This is one amazing group of people

Sunset Hike
London and Jeremy took Avery and I on a hike that was supposed to be to The Living Room on Saturday. But we got lost. All I really wanted was to see the sunset without the city in the way though, so I was happy :)

The Pie

It's Legendary. All U of U students have to go there at some point, so we chose to make it part of our week of adventures!

                       Roommates                                  All my favorite people!

Hike to The Living Room

The boys couldn't let their pride be shattered so they went back and actually found The Living Room and then took us with them Tuesday night. It was an adventure, that's for sure. They took us on the most difficult trail, we listened to some epic music, quoted Pitch Perfect, watched the sunset, had a few near-death experiences, went down the "slip n' slide" on our bums so we didn't fall down the mountain, and finally made it home safe and sound.

Temple Road Trip

On Wednesday, Amanda, Avery, and I decided to go to all of the temples North of Salt Lake in one day. We went to the Bountiful, Brigham City, and Logan temples. It was really awesome and I am so grateful for the opportunity I have to go to the temple!

Build a Fort

Wednesday night we did exactly what college students are supposed to do... We built a fort! Avery and I had never made a fort before but thanks to Amanda's expertise we built the coolest fort you've probably ever seen! Then we watched The Office and had a sleepover in our little fort :)

Hike to the U

Thursday we hiked to the U!

Natural History Museum

After our hike, we went over to the Natural History Museum. I'm not much of a history person but the dinosaurs were pretty darn cool! However, my favorite part was probably laying in the sun on the roof.

10 Things I've Learned Working in a Preschool

I've had the wonderful opportunity to work at one of the preschools on campus this year. I loved it and even though I was the teacher, I learned a whole lot from my two and three year olds. This was my last week at the preschool so in honor of that, I thought I'd share with you a few of the things I learned during my time there.

1. You can buy kids at the store. 
    - One little boy drew me a picture and told me to give it to my kids. I replied I didn't have any kids. He thought for a minute and then said "Well... you can get some at the movies. Or you could get some at the store." So keep that in mind.
2. Don't cry over spilled milk.
    - Literally. You'd be crying all through lunch every single day. I can't even tell you how many pints of spilled milk I've cleaned up.
3. Differences don't matter.
    - I had kids in my class from China, the Middle East, India, Russia, and the states. They all spoke               different languages but that didn't matter to them. They still talked to each other and acted just like the best of friends. We got a couple of new students, twins straight from China, and the other kids hardly even noticed. They grabbed the girls' hands and brought them over to play with them. Kids are awesome.
4. Forgive quickly

    - It's amazing how easily and how quickly a child forgives and forgets. It really made me realize how much time I personally have wasted holding grudges and waiting for people to do the right thing before I was willing to forgive them when I could have just been enjoying life.

5. Kids give the most sincere compliments.
    - Working with kids is a major boost to your self-confidence. A day never passed without a compliment from one of the kids and you knew they really meant it because kids are honest. They just say what they think and most of the time, that's a good thing.
6. You can choose to cry or choose to laugh.
    - You know when a little kid falls down and there's that moment of deliberation and you can see it in their eyes that they're deciding if they should cry or laugh it off? I realized we all have that choice in any situation. We can cry or we can laugh and sometimes it's okay to cry. Sometimes that's the right choice. But sometimes we just have to smile and laugh it off because we're stronger than that.
7. Nap time is a war zone.
    - It's a war to get twelve 2 year olds to sit down. And hold still. And be quiet. And maybe fall asleep. It's a war for the teachers not to fall asleep. I mean, do we really have to turn the lights out and play relaxing music?
8. It's impossible to get mad at an adorable smile.
    -But really, when they make some sassy little comment and then look up at you with their adorable little smiles, what are you supposed to do? Oh you committed murder? (smiles an adorable smile) Okay just promise me you won't do it again. Heaven help me if my kids have adorable smiles!
9. Be kind.
   - When a child was sad the kids wouldn't hesitate to give hugs and words of comfort to the one in need. There was one little girl who would cry and cry all day long and the kids would put their hands on her arm and say "It's okay, mama will be back." Remember that most of these kids didn't even speak the same language. Seeing my 2 and 3 year olds do this made me want to strive to be kinder and to not hesitate when I saw someone in need of kind words.
10. Celebrate EVERYTHING!
    - We're going outside. (Jumping up and down screaming yay, yay, yay, yay!) Time to go inside. (Jumping and screaming ensue) Turn off the lights. (Jumping and screaming again) Turn on the lights. (Same thing) Lunch time! (You can probably guess what happened) It didn't matter what we were doing, (as long as it wasn't nap time), the kids got so excited! Even over the most trivial things. There is so much in life to celebrate, so celebrate!

I am so grateful for the opportunity I had to work at ECEC and I'm definitely gonna miss those cute kids!

Coincidence? I think not.

Meet Avery and Amanda, two of my roommates. They're also my best friends. I went to Family Home Evening once. (I'd like to say that I do that regularly, but unfortunately that just isn't the case). It was the 2nd week of college and I volunteered to drive a few people to the park. Two girls got into my car and I didn't think much of it. We talked a little bit but to be honest, I'm not sure I even remembered their names when the night was through. But fate would have it that Amanda and I would both be on Freshman Council. Fate would also have it that they were going to have an empty room in their suite 2nd semester. Of course I jumped at the chance and now I get to see their lovely faces every single day!

Avery is our small town girl. She just has such a fun personality! Plus she loves country music, which is a hard quality to find these days. There is seriously never a dull moment with this girl. Especially if she stays up past 10pm. That's when it gets really funny :) She is one of the most caring people I know. She is always worrying about a friend, taking someone to dinner, sending a package to a missionary, or doing some random act of kindness. Many a time I've come home to a cute little note or a treat on my desk. Once she even brought me and Amanda a treat and said it was for St. Patrick's Day. Who gives St. Patrick's Day gifts? Leprechauns and Avery, the most thoughtful person on the planet, that's who. She gives the best hugs. If you ever want to have a really good talk, talk to Avery. She's a great listener and a deep thinker. She's strong too. She's had trials in her life that I can't imagine but she always manages to be happy and positive. She is always sharing her light with others and looking for opportunities to share the gospel. She's just plain amazing!

Amanda is from Provo but no worries, she's a true Utes fan. Me and her have a pretty strict pact where we wear sweats all the time and and use Pitch Perfect references to get out of going to the gym when Avery invites us. I'm not implying that we're lazy, we just don't like vertical running ;) She is, in fact, a very hard worker. She works, volunteers, is involved on campus, and gets awesome grades. She is going to make one amazing PA someday! She is kind and is always seeking to do what is right. She is a great example to me and everyone around her. She is always there to give great advice and to unknowingly strengthen my faith when I need it. Her testimony is a shining example of the fabulous young woman she is. She just got her mission call just a couple of weeks ago to the El Salvador Santa Ana/Belize mission. I am so excited for her! She is going to be such an amazing missionary!

Enjoying the view after Priesthood Session ;)

Runnin' Utes Basketball Game

Our "Babe" tattoos at Rock the U

Basically I don't know what I would do without these two. I can tell you that my first year of college definitely wouldn't have been the same. I'm a better me because I met them. Do you think it was a coincidence that the 3 of us showed up at Family Home Evening (once...) and these two got in my car? I don't think so. I had begged Heavenly Father that shy little me would be able to make some new friends and that I wouldn't end up going through Freshman year alone. They were literally an answer to my prayers. I will be forever grateful that of all the people on this great big campus, my Heavenly Father sent me these two. I can't even begin to express to you how grateful I am for them or how much I've grown to love these two girls over the past 9 months. So coincidence? I think not.

Here We Go

I've been considering making a blog for about a year now, but here's the thing. I couldn't think of a name. I tried countless times to come up with something that was witty and creative and perfect. I agonized over it for weeks, MONTHS!

Okay, maybe not agonized. But no matter how hard I thought, I couldn't think of anything at all. Then a miracle occurred folks. I found out that the name of a blog is NOT permanent. Hallelujah, praise the Lord! So I came up with a name that was neither witty nor creative and here we are.

Anyways, I might as well tell you a little bit about me and why I thought I oughta start a blog.

I go to the University of Utah and am majoring in Advanced Indecision. Or in other words, I don't really know what I want to do with my life quite yet but I'm considering physical therapy. I am a below-the-knee amputee and I have been since I was 14 months old.  I'll elaborate on that in a future post. I am a soon-to-be missionary for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints and I am so excited! I believe in a loving Heavenly Father and a Savior who knows me perfectly and I want to share the happiness of the gospel with whoever Heavenly Father would have me share it with. I love spending time with my crazy family and friends and I love them very much.  I want to be a mommy when I grow up. I'm a sucker for chick flicks and homemade chocolate chip cookies and I have an addiction to ice cream, shopping, and watching mission call videos. My roommates have become my best friends. I love the smell of the rain and I believe there is a relatable country song for every situation in life. I'm not real fond of shoe shopping or the cold and I'm absolutely terrified of needles. I believe everything happens for a reason and that it always works out in the end. I love being me :)

I started a blog because I'm going on a mission and I want to keep people up to date on my life and also because A LOT of things go through my mind, and every once in a while I think "Wow Shalee, that's an awesome thought! Too bad the rest of the world doesn't know what you're thinking!" Well, here you go world. You're welcome.