4th of July; We love America!

As we all know, yesterday was the 4th of July. You know, that day we honor America by lighting fireworks, going to the fair or beach, getting drunk all day (not all, but most of america does this), having a bbq, etc. You get the picture. We party. In honor of our wonderful country. I grew up celebrating the 4th of July on the beach or going to small bbq's so coming to Idaho and spending the 4th up here has been quite an experience. This place has a lot of patriotism. A LOT of it. Last year it was on a Sunday, so there wasn't much partying going on up here but that weekend Keith, Scott, Christina, and I went to a fair in pocatello for the evening to watch fireworks. Keith and I decided that was a bit of a trek for one night and some fireworks so we wanted to do something a little closer to Rexburg this year. After some research and a little bit of nagging on my part, Keith and I decided that Jackson Hole, Wyoming would be a fun place to spend the day. Annie and Ryan came along and it was so fun! It is a little less than 2 hours to get there and the drive was beautiful! I took some pictures (some of you may have noticed my facebook is gone) so I could share them on here. It was a lot of fun going and I am so glad Annie and Ryan could join us :)

On our way!

Pretty yellow flowers in the fields

Still snow!?

First things first, picnic time in Jackson Hole!

This is for you Lauren!

After Annie climbed up and sat on one of these extremely expensive wolf statues...

Best picture ever.

"We didn't have to break a bears legs to pet one Paigey!"

I thought these were pretty funny

Lauren, for you again! There was so much moose merchandise in that store, made me think of you!

We had such a great time that on our way home we had to get a picture by the Wyoming sign

We wore them out! hahaha

After our day in Jackson Hole we decided we would buy some fireworks and light em off ourselves. I mean, it's legal here so why not!? We were going to stay in Jackson Hole for their fireworks, but they weren't going to happen until 10 pm and we didn't want to drive home that late. We ate at this Mangy Moose restaurant for dinner at the Teton Village Ski Resort. That resort was pretty awesome. Really pretty out there at this time of year too...Anyway, we got back and Annie and I took Keith's car to get some fireworks for later that night. We came back and all sat out on our lawn to see if there would be any firework shows in Rexburg. There were a lot of people lighting off their own so Keith and I went up and sat on the hill above our complex. We could see all of Rexburg from there and got to watch quite a few firework shows! They weren't super awesome, but they were good enough for me. Fireworks are my favorite part of the 4th of July, so I am glad I got to see some!

Annie and her "wand"

We had other fireworks besides sparklers, but we didn't get them on camera. Hope everyone had a wonderful 4th and stayed safe! Love you all!

xoxo
ciao
P.

I sure do love those oldies!

As you can probably tell (or I guess hear), I gave my blog a tiny little makeover. I got bored with a silent blog and felt the need to add some tunes. The whole playlist is oldies (which I sure do love!) which will hopefully give you a pleasant reading experience.

I am currently sitting in the Ricks building (where my psychology class is held) doing my math homework. I luckily checked my email right before class and discovered that my class had been canceled. Lucky me! Except, that is one of my favorite classes....I would have been a lot happier if my science class was canceled. But that will never happen. Anyway, it's 4th of July weekend! Only one class today, water balloon fight tomorrow, relaxing allllll Sunday, Jackson Hole on Monday, and one class on Tuesday! yes, this will be a wonderful weekend. I'm sure of that. Only 3 more weeks here in Rexburg! wow! Time sure has flown by in these last few months. There are only four days this next week, then Keith's birthday the next week, finals after that, and then the looooong trek home. I'm really excited if you couldn't tell. haha. I am excited to go home, get a job (I know mom and dad, try not to pass out from that one), eat sushi, play with my fast growing nephew, hang with the fam, and lay on the beach. That's all I'm going to do for 5 months. Be jealous :)

I must go now, I have some math homework here in desperate need of my attention. I will talk to (and SEE) you all soon!

Love you guys so much!
ciao,
Paige

It's that time again...

no, not that time.

It's list time! I won't bore you with another list of all the things I can't wait to get home to do though. If you really want to read it you can find it in an earlier post. I'm really just too lazy to make the same list all over again.

The summer countdown has officially begun.

18 days of school, 27 days left in Rexburg.

Can you tell I'm excited??? Because I am. I CANT WAIT!

Anyway, I have started a new project.....I am hand sewing curtains for our window...I know, it's a little late in the semester, but I am going to cut them into a skirt when I get home. Its really just something to keep me busy in my spare time. I needed a hobby and to my surprise, I am really enjoying this sewing thing. Its kind of fun to create your own things. I am going to make a t-shirt quilt this summer with my moms sewing machine (no way am I sewing that by hand). I think I may have finally found a hobby.

Here is a semi creepy photo of me with the unfinished curtain:

School is going well, things are slowing down right now but starting next week they will pick back up pretty quickly. Not looking forward to that. The weather has finally gotten nicer. It's been in the 70's/80's this week. Glad it only took all semester for it to finally get nice haha.

Thats all for now, just thought I would post a little update. I love you all, can't wait to see everyone!!

xoxo

the rain just keeps..

falling.

It. Never. Ends.

I swear. It will rain up until the day I leave this place....

Anyway, it has been way too long since I have updated this thing. Where do I even begin?!

I think I will start by saying that I am sitting in the Hart Building (where the gym is) right now because I made a deal with Keith that I will work out twice a day for a week. Yikes. I know. We'll see how this goes.

I have also been doing this service "project" every Tuesday and Thursday...It's been really great actually. I absolutely love going. I go with a group of kids from school and we go visit the nursing/assisted living homes here in Rexburg. Definitely not something I would ever think I could enjoy. But I do, more than I ever imagined. Its only an hour long but for that whole hour, I don't have to think about anything except those people sitting around me and making their day a little better. I don't stress about homework, tests, callings, roommates, what to make for dinner, and most importantly, I don't think about myself...at all. Its really quite refreshing to focus completely on someone else and the things that I can do for them. It's so easy to get all caught up in things that don't matter. Visiting these cute elderly people has helped me realize just how lucky I am to have a family that loves me, friends still around me, and a healthy, able body to live in (for now).

Last Thursday we (my roommate and I and a few others) went to visit with a lady named Allison. She was the happiest and cutest little lady. She laughed and visited with us the whole hour. She asked about school, families, and our interests in life. She told us all about her kids and grandchildren. This doesn't sound very interesting or remarkable, I'm sure. Probably just sounds like a typical conversation. Well, what if I told you that Allison was literally run over by a Semi-truck while driving on the freeway when she was 23? Yeah, pretty amazing that she is even alive right? She has some trouble speaking and finding the words to say, but that seems to be the only noticeable difference between her and her neighbors. It made me think about my own life and how she was only 3 years older than I am now when her life was completely turned upside down. I realized how lucky I am and wondered if I would be the happy, cheerful person she is today if I was in her shoes. It's hard to say how I would be.

On a brighter note, school is almost over. THANK GOODNESS. I am so ready to be done. ughhhhhhh. I just want to go home and work two jobs. Not being sarcastic in the slightest about that. I want to make money and not have to do anything else. Laying on the beach would be nice too though :) I just want to get out of Rexburg and not have homework for 5 months. This semester seems to be going wayyyyy tooooooo sloooooow. Oh well. Just gotta keep going.

Sorry there really isn't a lot going on here....

This was kind of a rambling post too.

I swear next time will be more interesting.

Maybe I will even have some photos.

love you guys!

This one's for the mamas!

Well, it is almost Mother's Day.

Tomorrow to be exact.

So, I wanted to throw some love my mamas way.

I love you Mom.

Happy (almost) Mother's Day!

Here's the thing, my mom is pretty darn awesome. Yup, no one can argue that. What makes her so awesome?!! Let me tell you a few reasons....

-her love for her children, her husband, the Savior, and the gospel.

-those mad cooking skills

-her selflessness

-her sense of humor

-she is the craziest Aztec fan I know (and she is always sober)

-her patience

-the fact that she has always loved me, no matter what

-the way she can take care of so many people at once (seriously blows my mind)

-what a great grandma she is to Easton

and all the wonderful things she has ever taught me.

I know I was/am not the easiest child you've had, but thank you for all you do for me. I really do appreciate it. I love you more than I could ever express in words.

yup, I definitely got it from my mama!

New Leaves?

I decided its time I post again.

I wrote one last week but since the internet is so moody around here it didn't save. At that point I was too lazy to rewrite it. So, I apologize.

I am back up in Rexburg with all new classes and occasional nice weather. Ok, the weather still sucks. I was a little disappointed when we got here actually. Last spring it was so warm and sunny the first week back with only a few days of gloom and rain/snow. This year it is the complete opposite. Kind of disappointing if you ask me. But I am not here to tell you about the weather. Thats what weatherchannel.com is for.

My classes. Man, where do I start.....

I am taking a statistics class this semester and two science classes. Now, for those of you who have known me throughout elementary/middle/high school you know these are NOT my areas of expertise. Not even a little bit.

What was I thinking???

Yeah, I don't even know.

I am happy to report that so far everything is going great. I am actually enjoying my math class (yes, I just said enjoying and math in the same sentence) and science isn't too bad. I know, I am just as surprised as the rest of you. I guess I am not completely math/science retarded after all. Anyway, I am also taking a psychology class and religion class. Psychology is really interesting and it is helping me decide exactly what I want to do with my major. I'm thinking clinical or school psychology right now. The only thing I am a little hesitant about with clinical psychology is the fact that I have to do 4 more years of school (to get a ph.d) after my first 4. That is a little daunting. We will see how this semester goes.

So school is good, the weather is ok, and apartment life is still treating me right. Annie is my roommate this semester and it's like a sleepover every night. We discovered that we cannot do homework in the same room if we want to accomplish anything- I am just glad we discovered that sooner than later. Keith is doing well. He is working and going to school so his free time is usually spent studying. He is going to start looking at grad schools pretty soon and I know he is really excited/nervous about that. But for now, we are busy fighting the boys off of Annie...it's a full time job! Well, I think that is enough rambling for one post...

Here are some photos from the hike we went on during our first weekend here:

Love and miss you all!

Brain Mush.

I am suffering from the its-finals-week-I-don't-want-to-be-here-anymore disease.

Not really working out for me. I was able to keep my grades up (no lower than a B) all semester which is making my brain think it is ok to slack off little now.

Never has my brain been so wrong.

I won't bore you with finals talk though. Instead I will bore you with a list of things I can't wait to do when I get home! As the semester is winding down, I have put some serious thought into what I want to do during that week. Some serious thought. Maybe a little too much.

Here it is:

hold my nephew

hug mom, dad, harper, blair, and reid (if he will let me)

eat sushi

pet kobe

VGs

sleep in my leopard clad bed

go to the beach

eat more sushi

hold my nephew some more

go to the beach, again

wear shorts

SD Zoo

eat a burrito from ricos

go to VGs

go to souplantation

disneyland??!

visit the nursery/sunbeam kids on sunday :)

buy some more gap jeans

let my brain rest

did I already say hold my nephew, eat sushi and doughnuts, and go to the beach?!

Looks like I have a lot to do. I can't wait.

This place is calling my name