College, the ALL American Experience

I. Love. College.
There just aren’t enough words to portray how amazing this phase of my life is going to be. Of course I have been told that from the start of this experience, but it’s nice to know that people haven’t been giving me false hope.
Not only are the people friendly, they deliberately go out of their way to be nice. Who the hell is nice these days? People in Cedar City, apparently.
It doesn’t matter if it’s 10:10 PM and Lilly is trying to do her homework, people still want us outside to go hot-tubing. I feel like the fact that our bedroom window is facing directly to the pool/sauna area is going to be a blessing and a curse.
Funny Story Alert:
So our blinds were open while we were taking a ‘Dance Break’ from homework – without music I add – and I looked up to our window and see that people were looking at us. Correction: Guys were looking at us, from across the parking lot. Yeah. I drop strait to the floor (I have the rug burn to prove it) and start laughing so hard that Lilly curls over in hysterics.
Less than 20 seconds later we hear a knock at our window (second time this week btw) and there are 4 guys inviting us to the hot tub; Lilly, the girl that has the most game ever, happily agrees. An episode of Better Off Ted, and some tried-to-do-our-homework time later, we have another knock at our window. Again the boys are inviting us out and we simply can’t refuse. Plus Lilly just won’t back down from a challenge.
We get there and are coerced into cannon-balling into the almost-seven foot deep hot tub. The wimp I am wouldn’t even dare while Lilly gladly took the challenge and literally ran with it. I was so impressed with her. (Next time I’m jumping in too).
For the next 30 minutes we conversed and laughed and got sufficiently soaked with water. It was a great night.
For being a scaredy-cat I sure am glad to have Lilly as a roommate to say, “Andie, don’t think about it and just do it.” And “Andie, you’re hot.”
I really don’t know how I got so lucky to have her as a roommate. She is a truly amazing person.
I love college.

Last Minute Thoughts:
1. I will not eat more than 2 times a week out.
2. Heavenly Father takes away the fear if you ask him to.
3. I might be the worst wingman ever.
4. I am getting up at 6 in the morning to go to the gym so this is the last thought of the post.
Love you all!
Andie;)

What to Do The World Views and EXACTLY Where to Put Them

It seems like there are just more and more heart breaking cases of immoral behavior among teenagers.

Girls addicted to pornography, Stake Presidents daughters getting pregnant, Stake Presidents wives having sex with missionaries.... it just goes on and on.

I'm getting discouraged.

If all of the 'good guys' I know that went on their missions are coming back a week after they left, where are the actual Good Guys? If some of my best friends are making choices that will dictate their future - for worse - what chance will I stand?

The worst part about my friends is that they don't understand what exactly they are doing wrong - sorry understand is the wrong word. Realize, they don't realize. Some of them actually do realize what they are doing but they are so self-involved that they are in denial that the actions they are committing will hurt them in the long run.

'I'm just experiencing what a regular teenager is suppose to do!'

'I haven't had sex. It only counts if you have sex.'

'It isn't a big deal Andie. This is my life, I can live it the way I want to.'

And my favorite excuse : "I'm a different person than I was. I don't believe in some of the same things you do anymore."

Guess what.

BULL SHIT.

They know exactly what they are doing. Their spirits are SCREAMING inside: 'STOP!'

Why the hell do I even try anymore?

Why cant I find someone who agrees with me to the same extent that their actions will follow?

Why are my best friends not who I thought them to be?

I guess why this scares me so much is because if it happens so easily for them, how easy can I fall and slip on this very slippery slope? What is keeping me from doing the same things? What examples do I have to keep my actions and future in perspective?

I have made a commitment to myself that I will not have any SEXUAL RELATIONS (and everything that that entails)* before marriage, and then once I am married, I will keep SEXUAL RELATIONS between my spouse and I - and NO ONE ELSE.

I have to hand it to my amazing Aunt Angie. I heard a long time ago that she had simple rules for dating and kissing to keep her away from certain situations that would get her in trouble. Some of these are hers, and all of them are endorsed by the church:

No kissing while parked in a car

No kissing while laying down

No kissing on a bed

No kissing on a couch

No sleep-overs with guys PERIOD

Do NOT be totally alone in a bedroom with a guy

Double dates only

A lot of these are the same standards of the church and I agree wholeheartedly to each and everyone of these rules.

I am making a contract before I leave for school that entails each and everyone of these rules and I will sign it and put it up on my wall in my apartment - right above my bed.

PLEASE!

Have these talks with your children when they are ready. Five year olds are kinda young by the way...

If children know from the get go that sexual relations are prohibited - AND WHY - they are less likely to do them.

Another point that I heard, and agree with, from my dear friend Sydney, was that teenagers do not need phones with Internet on them. Heaven knows that we don't need to be on Facebook 24 hours a day. I am trying - probably in vain - to keep my fb hours to a minimum of 1 a day.

I know this sounds like a lecture - and it is - but I sincerely want the people I love the most to know what is going around them.

Sex is everywhere. Movies, magazines, music videos, music, Internet, stores, ANYWHERE YOU LOOK THERE IS BOUND TO BE SOMETHING ABOUT SEX.

The best way to defend against it, is to not look. Easier said than done, I know. But it works.

Love,

Andie:)

*If you are wondering what that entails, go look in the Strength for Youth or the church website. If you need help further, please talk to a parent or heck, me! I will answer any questions you need strictly from the LDS Church's point of view.

5. 4. 3. 2. 1. Blast Off!

As of tomorrow I will have two weeks left at home. So here is my bucket list of things to get done - in case you wanted to know;)

These aren't in a specific order.

1. Get a hair cut.

2. Go out to lunch with my girlfriends one last time.

3. Lose at lease 5 lbs.

4. Try and get some Maroon 5 tickets.

5. Get to IKEA.

6. Go up to Logan one more time.

7. Start packing.

8. Meet with my roommate (if possible).

9. Go on a mini-vacation.

10. Spend as much time as I can with the family.

11. Get my Macbook.

So there is my plan! I guess only half of these will actually happen since my life now consists of work, work, and oh - did I mention work? I currently will be working about 35-40 hours this week, and thankfully I have Saturday off for Sydney's baptism and Tim McGraw.

I love you all! Hope you are doing well!

Love,

Andie;)

~ A Whole Lot To Do, and NO Time To Do It ~

Moving Day Count Down:

52 Days.

I'm leaving home on August 17th to go down to Cedar City for SUU.

Every time I think about this it gives me butterflies. I seriously cannot wait. But at the same time, I've experienced this bittersweet after taste to the 'I'm almost outta here' attitude.

And to be completely honest, I think mom has finally started to realize that this is the real deal here. I'm really moving out.

I'm really starting my life.

I'm really going to be on my own.

Of course I have some doubts and fears about what is going to be happening in the next little while, but if I keep strong to the scriptures and the gospel, I have a feeling that those thoughts will slowly go away.

My best friend is leaving on Sunday.

She is the only person who I have truly loved and would do anything for since 9th grade.

She leaves for college in Pittsburgh - after her tour around Europe - and I probably wont see her till Christmas.

First of all, I'm absolutely pissed that I don't get more time with her this summer. We have only had about 3 weeks of it, and that isn't even a 3rd of the time I have here in Bountiful.

I have learned through a lot of experiences this summer that the unexpected will happen no matter how prepared you are, or you think you are.

I person I thought I held dear turned out to be a fake.

I got a promotion that I have been praying for for weeks now.

My little red car died on me a week and a half ago.

But from all that, I think that the lesson is: Take trials with a good and humble attitude and the consequences wont be a bad as they seem to be.

Plus no one likes a Debbie Downer!

I want to thank everyone who has written and sent cards for my graduation. That really was so thoughtful and nice of you guys.

Graduation was a blast and I am so so SO happy that it is finally over. I cannot convey the immense relief and happiness that I get from knowing that I never have to go back to High School again. Especially Bountiful High.

The next few weeks will be so interesting.

I have to buy a new car.

My family is trying to get a new house and move out.

Get a new Macbook.

And save up enough money for my housing in Cedar.

Wish me good luck guys! I'm gonna need it:)

Last Minute Thoughts:

1. I love the show Psych.

2. I am getting some feelings of Nostalgia every time I pass my high school.

3. I am so dang proud of my cousin Meghan for being so brave and Christ-like going down to Ecuador and helping those little orphans.

4. I cannot help but give another amazing Air-Hug to MaRea Hess. She has helped me so much with information on computers and phones, I seriously would be lost in that department without her!

5. I love peanut butter.

6. I love chocolate.

7. I am so glad that I have learned how to work and be a good employee now.

8. I love my parents so dang much.

9. Missing my family will probably be the hardest thing for me down at SUU.

10. I get so excited thinking about going to IKEA to shop for dorm stuff!!!:)

Love you all!

Andie;)

~End of the Road~

I cant help but think that time is flying by too fast.

It feels like only yesterday I began my first day in High School. Its crazy how much has happened since that day.

Met wonderful people who eventually would become some of my best friends.

Met a guy who made me feel like I was 'wantable'.

Got a job that taught me so much, including how to have patients with people, how to communicate, and how to respectfully treat people I meet in the restaurant business.

I cant really explain how much I have learned since my first day at Costa. The whole 'hiring process' was one that is rarely heard of. I mean, who just walks in, asks for an application, and then gets hired without even filling it all the way out? Surely not every one has those experiences. Then came those lessons where "the customer is always right" and "arguing gets you no where" and "the best communication is speaking with respect and truth".

Then came the relationships that went along with those lessons, and I really wouldn't have changed a thing. Five General managers, at least 10 assistant managers, and countless shift-leads and coworkers.

Its like its own mini society, where these people spend 5-10 hours with the same people at least 3 times a week. Its more time I spend at home or at school. These people see the good and the bad, the mess ups and the triumphs, and somehow it moves us to be closer to these people, even if we don't really acknowledge it at first.

The best/worst part of this is that you don't get to choose these people at all. At school you can choose to move away from people who you have a problem with, and you also get to choose your friends that you spend your extra time with, but at work, these people are chosen by a higher-up and you have no say in the matter.

I have met the most interesting people through Costa Vida. I have met a drag queen, a swinger, a neurotic control freak (actually a few of them), a heroin addict, a borderline gay Mexican man who talks too fast for me to understand half of the things that he says, a reserved mumbler, and most of all, an amazing wonderful caring person who doesn't know how great she really is.

These people have helped me shape the person that I am today - even if meeting them was a bad, tear inducing experience.

But I feel blessed nonetheless by what my Heavenly Father has done for me in the past few weeks. I cant help but feel unworthy of all the amazing revelations and blessings that have happened, they are that wonderful. Heaven knows that I really couldn't do all of the things that I have without the immense help from my heavenly angels, Father, and guidance.

For all of those who have been with me from the beginning, I'm re-introducing an old/new concept.

Last Minute Thoughts:

1. Time flies and there really is no way of catching it, except for living in the moment.

2. In the words of President Monson, "Find the joy in the journey".

3. Maroon 5 is my favorite band. Bar none. Quickly followed by Sara Bareilles, Muse, and until very recently Nicki Manaj.

4. Graduation is June 3rd at 7 o'clock. But since I have limited tickets, only parents and grandparents will be attending the ceremony - so count yourself lucky if you don't have to go! I don't even want to sit there for 3 hours!

5. Only three more weeks left... I cant help but want to cry. One of the biggest parts of my life has almost ended.

6. I don't think I will end up going to my high school reunions.

7. My Aunt MaRea is one of the most talented people I know.

8. I ripped a part of my hamstring and it hurts like hell.

9. My favorite things to eat right now is bananas, peanut butter, and V8 juice.

10. I got Seth a job at Costa. I think he will be a sufficient replacement for me.

11. I have so much to do in so little time!

12. I think I am going to 15 with these thoughts...

13. I'm a planner. I have to have a plan. Its rather annoying and I think I'm going to try and give it up while I'm in college.

14. I will be fully accepting care packages from anyone who wants to send me one once I have moved down to Cedar City. Among the list of needs, there are: Tampons, chocolate, peanut butter, and most of all letters! I probably wont be coming home as much as I like seeing as how gas prices have risen dramatically. I would love letters, notes, and encouraging advise.

15. The more time flies by, the more I start to miss my family - even though I haven't moved out yet. Its rather ridiculous.

Love you all!

Comment please!!!:)

Andie