the four things to get me through this week.

today is sunday, and i feel anticipation. as if it's hours before a big game (not that i know exactly how that feels because i have never been on a sports team in the entirety of my existence), or the feeling you get on the way to the mailbox. full of hope and expectations. i have a handful of random things i have to do this week, and an even bigger handful of planned things. classes, study groups, review rooms, enrichment, home teachers, give blood, write a paper or two, family home evening, try to squeeze some sort of physical activity in there, possibly eat food, and if i have extra time left over i hope to spend it in a deep sleep. i have come to grips with the fact that there are a few things in this world i cant live without that i might as well document for my posterity:

1. this book. this book contains every major/minor/insightful detail involved in my day. if something is not in the planner, there is a good chance i will completely forget about it (even something big that i should be able to remember on my own.. woops). whether it be quotes, phone numbers, birthdays, tests, meetings, to-do lists, shopping lists, assignments.. it's all in there. i love to-do lists, by the way. they motivate me and bring a sense of order.

2. the daily phone calls. unlike the thousands of other independent, care-free, fun-loving freshmen out there, i actually want to keep in close touch with my family. rain or shine, i call my mom every single day. even if the conversation lasts no more than 5 minutes, it still feels like a daily check-point. like an "okay, everything is going to be fine. keep going" moment. they mean a lot to me and well, lets just leave it at that.

3. byu creamery chocolate milk. i realize now that this is undoubtedly the place i belong as i have unlimited access to this delicacy.

4. running. if you asked me six months ago if i enjoyed running, i would have responded with one of three different comebacks. 1) laugh in your face. 2) compare running to lighting myself on fire or stabbing pins in my eyes. 3) plainly state "no. i hate it." BUT. seeing as i would like nothing more than to triumph over the "freshman 15" phenomenon, i have taken up this new hobby. if you can even call it a hobby. I know im not fast, and i certainly cant go farther than four miles, but i am kind of obsessed. its the one time a day i can listen to my music and fully forget about school work. my only concerns are which playlist i will to listen to and which route i will take. its nice. yesterday i ran in the rain, and despite the rash i got from my wet shorts rubbing together (sorry. graphic.) it was a way nice experience. everyone was out with their ponchos and umbrellas, while i'm sporting an 09 shirt and random shorts. i got a lot of crazy looks and a few utards stopped me to make some witty comments. "it's kinda cold to run huh!" whatever. dont talk to me while i'm running. everyone in utah feels like its okay to talk to anyone you want to.. complete strangers, even. do that in vegas and you get shot. the rain felt so good, and it was the perfect temperature to cancel out the hotness from running. haha. here's a picture i took from my dorm.

all i know is its gonna be a long week, but luckily i have my family's visit to look forward to! they are coming to provo on friday. i couldnt be happier.

-ashley

we're halfway there -bon jovi

i would just like to take this moment to say that i am HALF way done with my first semester at college. tomorrow will be the end of the 7th week of school... leaving me with 7 more.

halfway done with the first semester. thats weird. i feel like i just got here. i suppose i've learned a few things. like the scientific equation for cellular respiration. or like make sure you set 3 different alarms to wake up on your early days. or the back right shower comes out the hardest... definitely go back to your room and wait for it if it's in use. or how cougars dont cut corners. or limit yourself to tomassito's pasta once a week (or less). or if its the big manly girl working at subway, go to the other line... she freaking works that sandwich like its her demolition project. or if you are having a really hard time concentrating on school work, just have a friend change your facebook password. makes a huge difference.

basically. that picture is how i feel right now haha. theres so many things i love about BYU, but at the same time i do not love getting horrible grades, or feeling like everyone here is 5x smarter than me, or seeing my breath in the morning when i walk to school or the snow on the mountains. yuck. and i've said it a million times, i'll say it again... i miss my mom.

she's pretty cool. this is us at the BYU/UNLV game this past weekend when i finally got to go home for once. it was great. how bout them cougs?! woo. i cant explain how nice it felt to be in my own bed and drive my car and have a delicious roast and see baby afton and tease tanner and see mitchell and john. it was great.

40 days till thanksgiving break :)

-ashley

sleep deprivation.

this weekend was so fun because one of my best friends KRISTINE came into town! love her. we hung out with leah all weekend! except when we went to lagoon because leah has school. LAME. and shout-out to katherine for turning 19 over the weekend :) PARTAAY!

fab five minus two. we wish alex and kami could have joined us...

monday: woke up before 8 (gasp!) to go observe the children in the preschool on campus for my human development class. talk about creeper status. i had to go sit in this booth that has a one-way window, pick a kid, and take detailed notes on him for 50 minutes. ew. but it was pretty funny this week- my kid wet his pants! poor guy. at least it gave me a lot to write about. then, prepare to be amazed, i ran FOUR miles after classes got out. woo. and in the middle of those four miles i made a pit stop at the gym and did some squats and weight lifting and even rode the stupid bike thing for a while. then ran back to my dorm. if i recall correctly, i stayed up somewhat late doing an assortment of things (doing sit-ups while i watch the sessions of conference i slept through, homework, showering, washing my face, reading my scriptures, and facebook stalking people. you know the drill) which was perfectly fine because tuesdays i dont start class until 12! its beautiful. i look forward to it every week.

tuesday: my roommates alarm goes off at 8. fine, it keeps me up for five seconds and i immediately doze back off into sweet slumber. 8:30 "ashley, wake up!" "no." 8:40 "ashley, you have to get ready! dont you have class today?" "no. no class." 9:00 "ashley its 9:00!! you have to get up" "NO!!!! MY CLASS ISNT TILL 12!!" hahahha. i am not a morning person. and she might have been scared for her life. i was so pissed. but now i feel really bad. love you katherine! at least she was trying to look out for me. so then i go back to sleep till 11 :) mmmm. i love it. but despite how much i love tuesdays, this one wasnt that great. i spent all afternoon/evening on campus doing random crap. BUT then we had this awesome huge group date... we played MEGA twister and had a bonfire up in the canyon. fun!

today: i've done something i have never done (and will never do again) in my life. I woke up early to RUN! what the..? i dont know whats gotten into me. especially since i live in poop town where its 40 degrees in the morning. but yeah. two miles! next thing you know i'll be running marathons. haha psych. i'll admit it was kind of nice. i had breakfast for the first time since i've been here (wow) and i showered and got all ready. sent off a package for connor cuz its his birthday this week. i feel like i accomplished so much! i got my favorite at subway, and i'm trying to be healthier so i gave 3 cans of my dr. pepper to the nice boy who works at the creamery because he is so tight and knows me by name. i want to sell the rest but i dont know if thats legal here in good ole utah.

now its 9:37 and i have a load of laundry in the dryer, all of my homework done and printed out for tomorrow, just sitting here rocking out to the mamma mia soundtrack. its a fave. and in precisely 48 hours i will be home!! i cant explain the excitement. i miss my family. i'll only be home for two days but heck, i am so stoked.

i miss this crap.

why i love my mom

this whole "college/live life on your own/experience total (almost) freedom/fend for yourself/live 400 miles away from home/go live with some random person you dont know/try to live in an environment in which the average climate is 20 degrees lower than you're used to" thing is really great, dont get me wrong. buuuut, lately, i've been getting a little bit homesick. especially since a bunch of random crap has been happening to me lately... for example

1. i totally bombed my first test after DAYS of studying

2. uhh.. i had a little accident involving me, dr pepper, and my laptop. not fun.

3. i miss my friends. one called me this week in tears telling me to come home.

4. i miss my home!! i took so much for granted. like sunday dinners.. mm i would kill for my moms sunday roast right now, complete with potatoes and homemade gravy. or the stupid cheesy games we played. or our high-speed internet that lets me go on whatever site i want. i wish i didnt have to haul my personal stuff down the hall to take a freaking shower. i miss our house and the pictures and the couch and eating in my spot at the dinner table... GAH. i could go on, but i wont for the sake of time, space, and my finger muscles.

5. i miss tanner. i miss his jokes, his gay little laugh, our fights. at least he talks to me on the phone unlike some people.

anyway, i'm assuming this gets the point across that i've been homesick this week.

SO... today a little heaven-sent bundle came to me.

complete with an assortment of my favorite candies, a family picture, a note from my mom, some fuzzy socks, hot chocolate, mmmm. exactly what i needed. oh and dont forget my new face wash. how am i supposed to meet my eternal companion if my face is covered in acne? haha just kidding. give it a couple years.

basically, for all of those who dont know, my mom is a freaking saint. i miss her so much. i feel bad for her being the only female in the home.. yuck. i miss going to the gym with her, and getting yogurt after :) bahaha. we're dumb. luckily, we have these things called cell phones. free verizon-to-verizon calls save my life right now.

besides my random breakdowns, i really do love it here. its so much fun! and i cant even explain how much i lucked out with my roommate. its like we were made to be each others roommate! hahaha cheesy. whatever. she's my favorite. we just have a little problem with getting ourselves out of bed in the morning.. but we're working on it.

hope this didnt sound too emo. you cant blame me for being homesick when i have to go from such a great home to a freaking 10 by 10 cinderblock room with absolutely no closet space! haha. i love college.

-ashley

hello president

Today is a day i will undoubtedly never forget. For devotional, President Thomas S. Monson came and spoke! we were in the same room. it was such a neat experience. i got there with a friend at 9:30 to get a good seat (it didnt start till 11) and it was already packed. needless to say, every seat in the marriot center was full by the time he started. before he came in, everyone was talking and it was really loud but the second he stepped foot on the court it took about 2 seconds for the whole stadium to become dead silent. it was incredible. he is hilarious. we busted up laughing so many times. he went through all of the prophets in his lifetime and shared stories, favorite memories, quotes, etc. about all of the different prophets. it was really interesting! its interesting how close of a relationship he has had with all of them. i think he said David O. Mckay was his stake president when he was in young mens! and of course he and President Hinkley have been life-long friends. did you know President Hinkley's favorite dessert is pie and ice cream? mmmmm. It was so cool to be able to look at President Monson in real life, not through a tv screen or the computer. He is so cool, and i love him!

well on a more secular note... cougars are 2 for 2! woo! we play florida this week at home, hopefully i can fit it into my busy personal life schedule. here's a picture of me, audrey, and katherine at the second game that was broadcasted in the smith field house. i didnt watch the first game because i was studying, but i was aware of our victory the SECOND it happened. i was sitting in my silent dorm and all of a sudden everyone within a mile radius of me started screaming. in the dorms, in the halls, outside my window, down the road... everyone. it was crazy.

i still love it here. i miss home a lot... and i miss my mother and her food and hugs. only 10 weeks till thanksgiving :) now im about to go out with my bff leah to buy some dye for my hair. i am so glad she lives here... its sooooooooo nice to get off campus for a while and hang out with her like the old times haha. love you leah. and thats pretty much it in my life right now. no boys still. but im making lots of good girl friends! we have movie nights. its awesome.

tomorrow will mark katherine and my 3rd week anniversary. haha. we're gonna go get ice cream or something! woo.

peace and love.

my full circle moment.

oprah always talks about her "full circle moments," and since my goal in life is to emulate her as closely as possible i figure i will share mine with the blogging world.

In third grade i made a time capsule.

We put a bunch of random stuff in it; receipts, pokemon cards, a doll i made out of yarn, etc. One thing inside was a survey. The survey had your general questions from "how old are you?" to "whats your favorite color?" One of the questions was "describe your perfect day" and my answer was as follows.

My perfect day would be my first day at BYU.

I wrote that in THIRD GRADE! this has been my dream for so long, and it amazes me that i am fulfilling that dream this very second. My first day of school was perfect. of course i miss my parents and brothers, but i love everything about this place. the weather, the dorms, the food, the spirit. president hinkley once said that "byu is truly a sacred ground", and i couldnt agree with him more. Its so cool that we all have the same standards, and that we open my history class with a prayer, and that if you share a scripture as a spiritual thought in the opening of my biology class you get extra credit.

I love this!

im so blessed that i got accepted. Everyone here is a valedictorian, or a national merit scholar, got a 35 on their ACT or plays every sport and instrument imaginable. It's a little intimidating. I wouldnt want to be anywhere else, though.

One week down, Fifteen to go.

RISE AND SHOUT!

oh. my. gosh.

i am writing this from my dorm at brigham young university.

can i just say that these past 50 hours have been the best/worst/craziest/most depressing/exciting hours of my LIFE?!

i wish i could compile all of the thoughts in my head onto this little web page... but i cant. there are too many. I am living in Helaman Halls, which means i share a bathroom with maybe 40 girls. and showers. its super fun haha.

this is my beautiful roommate, katherine. we are getting along juuuuust fine. everyone keeps asking if we knew each other before this and when we answer "no" they are in shock. apparently we appear to be life long friends. haha. we agree on almost everything... we say the same things at the same times.. its great. the only thing i dont approve of is her fascination with cats. but whatever. i can look past that.

the only negative things are

1. i had to say bye to my mom and my dad

2. not as many cute boys as we expected

3. i really miss my queen bed.. uhg...

4. i cant get organized in this stupid room

aaaand yeah.. thats pretty much it.

I LOVE COLLEGE!

-ashley