BFF

I have some good friends, I do!

Brooklyn is the best friend that everyone wants. Not only is she super fun and acts way mature for her age, but she is also my little sister. We didn't always get along, but we've been super close for almost a year now. She is hilarious and we share the same interests. It's impossible not to be myself around her and she doesn't hide how much she cares. She's beautiful and the coolest little girl ever.

Every girl wants a best guy friend. Jordan is mine, and I am so lucky to have him. He's fun to be around and makes me happy. He is constantly making me laugh and I love that. (Funny guys are the best guys!) He occasionally makes me feel stupid, but honestly, who doesn't make me feel stupid? Ha. . . he's very honest, which is very good for me, and he's such an amazing guy. (He's also single and quite the catch ladies!!)

Leshabird is the best! She is gorgeous, loud, and adorable. She is the only person I can be anywhere with and be my complete self. She brings the loud out of me and I love it. (We even danced on a jumbotron together!) I love this girl and would do anything for her!

Kristin is the best friend that everyone needs. She is the most caring, sweet, thoughtful, and honestly nice (not fake nice) person you could ever meet. She cares about everyone and has good things to say about every person she meets. She is beautiful and just the best and I love her!

Zachary is not only my best friend, but my missionary. He is extremely smart, down to earth, has the best sense of humor, and is very thoughtful. He is a great match for me and we are just awesome when we're together. We have a ton of the same interests, but enough different ones that everything is still interesting. We've been best friends for years and years and together for years. He is the ying to my yang, he's the right shoe and I'm the left, he's my other half. I love this guy.

My friends are the best, and I love them so stinking much! I wish I could go on and on about every single one of my friends that I love, but this post would never end!

Aren't best friends amazing??

Amazing!

Brooklyn!

When Zachary left on his mission I felt like my life had ended. We had spent at least a little time together almost every day for two years. We were inseparable. We were perfect, and he made me happier than anything else. I remember saying goodbye to him in his driveway, (most difficult moment ever,) and then bawling the entire way home. Once I got home I sat with my dad and cried while I watched Glee, (haha.) I don't think I got any sleep at all the first few nights he was gone. All I could think about was how difficult the next two years were going to be, all alone. I'm the type of girl, correction, I was the type of girl that once I'd get a boyfriend I'd stop hanging out with all of my other friends and I'd focus all my time and energy on the boy. (Not a good thing, but it's how I was.)

So there I was, my boyfriend, best friend, only friend, was on a mission and I was completely alone for two years. . .At first. After a few nights of crying myself to sleep, my little sister, Brooklyn, began talking to me a little. She said she wanted to have a sleepover in my room, so we did. And I realized something, when she slept in my room with me I was able to keep myself from crying. The first couple months Zach was gone she slept in my room a lot. I don't know if she did it because she knew it kept me from crying, or because she just wanted to hang out with me, but she helped me so much more than she knows.

Two months after Zach left I moved my bedroom from the basement to the upstairs, across the hall from hers. As soon as I was moved upstairs, we became best friends. She would always leave me cute little notes on my bed and door telling me how much she loved me or how awesome I am, she'd sneak into my room at night to watch movies with me, and we went everywhere together. Our favorite thing to do was go to Allred and J.Wride concerts, (we LOVE these bands.)

A year after Zach had been gone, I moved out of my parent's house. The hardest thing about this was leaving my little sister. It was so fun living across the hall from her, and even though I only moved a little more than five minutes away, it still sucks not being five seconds from her. She got a cell phone for Christmas so now we're able to text whenever we want, and we still go to concerts and do other things together, we're still best friends. And that makes me so happy because I was so worried when I moved out that we wouldn't be close anymore. It is a little harder to do things now, because I'm so busy and she can't just hang out with me for a couple hours every night, but we do still get together when we can.

I love Brooklyn more than she knows. She is the coolest little sister and I love that I can tell people my best friend is my little sister. She is the most beautiful, awesome, amazing sister ever!

I love you Brooklyn!!

Don't Worry, Be Happy

A few weeks back I was working with my kids and the lesson that day was on being happy. We talked about what real happiness is and how to find it. The kids had been having a hard time with being happy that week so I encouraged them to write a list of 50 things that make them happy. A list that they can pull out and look at when they're sad or having a bad day. They wrote it a lot quicker than I expected, and it really did help cheer them up. They had forgotten about all the sweet little things in life that make us smile. Things that we often take for granted. I went home that night feeling satisfied with the lesson, knowing that I had helped them, at least for a day, remember how to be happy. But as I was making that 35 minute drive back to my house I got thinking. I take way too much for granted, and I always overlook the little things in life. I tend to dwell on the negative. Too too too much. Lately it's gotten even worse as I've had a few more trials jump into my life. Nothing I can't handle, but I sure complain like I'm not going to be able to deal with it. So, I'm trying something new. Somehting that I hope will help me become a happier, more positive person. I am going to write a list of 50 things that make me happy. Things I can think about and do any time I'm feeling down. I know it's not something that will make everything better, but it's a start right?

1. Letters
2. Coloring Books
3. Movies
4. Driving
5. Fun socks

6. Yummy food

7. Wrapping paper
8. Painting my nails

9. Having my hair played with
10. Robots
11. Days off work
12. Plane rides
13. Phone calls
14. Writing in cursive
15. Being organized
16. Baking
17. Yahtzee, Scrabble, and Jenga
18. Taking a nap
19. Sleepovers
20. Taking pictures

21. Music Videos
22. Wearing sweats and a hoodie
23. Laughing hysterically
24. Word searches
25. Getting hugs
26. Zumba
27. Brushing my teeth
28. Chewing Wrigley's Original Bubble Gum
29. Giving and receiving compliments
30. Subway sandwiches
31. My friends

32. Baths
33. Singing at the top of my lungs
34. Making watches
35. Getting good grades
36. Finishing a great book
37. Making lists
38. Losing weight
39. School supplies
40. Slinkies
41. Magazines
42. Drawing and Painting
43. Ikea
44. Slolum Skiing
45. Shooting
46. Boyfriend and his family

47. Warm weather
48. Downtown
49. Trying something new
50. Remembering good memories

So now that my list is finished, I challenge you to write one. Not only is it fun to write, (I do like writing lists,) but I honestly feel it really helps you remember not to take the littlest things in life for granted. Also, I'd like to know if anyone else has any advice on ways to be happy? Let me know! K?

Thanks! S'much!

Excitement!

I just ate two brownies, (they were small though!!) and a cupcake. Well crap.

I'm leaving soon to go see a movie with my best friend, so this will be short and to the point. I'm thinking my next post will be my entire dating experience since I was 16, (I'm 21 now!) Awesome, right? No, I promise it's not boring! It consists of three different boyfriends and quite a few blind dates. (To excite you, my blind date stories are pretty. . . different. Don't know if I've ever been on a great blind date? Super!) Names will all be changed, so that'll be cool. Even though now that I'm thinking about it, I don't think anyone I've ever dated or been on a date with will read this. So fantastic!

Get excited, I am. Dating post later tonight!