Graduation 2011

My biggest fear is that I will not leave this life without positively influencing somebody in some way. I want to share life with people, and last weekend proved that I am and that my fear has no place in my life.

Graduating from high-school is considered a really big deal, so my mom went waaaaayyy out of her way to make my reception something special. And she went about and beyone....it was AMAZING!

That's the candy bar!

We spent weeks (months actually) going over every detail, even if I thought it was silly. Now, I'm really glad that Birdie put so much thought into it. We did a retro, fifties, type thing with the main colors being turquoise and red. Besides the candy bar, we had cheesecake, rather large sugar cookies, fruit and cheese, and coke and root bear in those sweet bottles. Several scrapbooks, and a slide show, showed everybody what I looked like at every section of my life (including most of the embarrassing ones I think). I even created a playlist, but sadly I never could really hear it from the front of the room where I was =(  The best part of the thing though, was the people that came.

My favorite cousin (his mom and me didn't really have any pics together) came over from Colorado just to hang with me! He's a bit goofy....but I'm really myself around this guy to it works out.

You can't really see, but that's Weezy and me (she's going to kill me over that nickname, but oh well). She couldn't make the party, but she did come over and help set up. Here we were trying to set up the balloons, not the easiest thing to do when the wind is blowing hard and it's sprinkling!

After finally getting everything set up, my family and I (aforementioned cousins, grandparents, and another related family) went to the building and waited for people to show up. I was kinda nervous, but when you're wearing an outfit like this,

you feel good enough that it's hard to feel shy. And guess what? I had so many people show up! Unexpected family showed up (Thanks guys, I appreciate it), couple water aerobic ladies, my youth pastor, and most of my friends came too. I'm disappointed that I didn't get a picture with everybody, but then I'd have over a hundred and that would be just ridiculous to try and upload. It's amazing, I didn't know I that I knew so many people!

Me and Lucy Pevensie

Best high-five with Tad ever!

Birdie and Superstar

Ok, maybe that's a little random....

The whole experience was extremely satisfying I must say that I felt very loved. It's a huge confidence booster to know that you were worth these people taking time out of their busy schedules to come see and I thank God for them all. I've been moody, my sense of humor is slightly off, and occasionally I get all tongue tied and say the wrong thing, but those people care about me and like me for it anyway. Thanks again for all the help, time, and laughs you've given me!

Don't cry because it's over, smile because it happened ~ Anonymous

Weird Weaknesses

As I sit here watching my dad's namesake on the tube....
 So funny....
I'm going back over the day I've had in general. It was pretty awesome actually, I had to get up at 5 to go work lifeguard, then at 9:30 I went to a Bible study (which was really great, good group to hang out with!)....and then the best part....my favorite cousin and aunt from Colorado came over!!! And with them coming it reminded me that I'm graduating in two days....SWEET! After working again at 3 and coming home about 6 - and work is always fun - went and bought some hair dye, frosties, and other items with cuz. Went to a track meet to watch a couple friends compete (congrats to the one friend who got first in long jump ( = . ), and it ended up that Tuck had a couple friends come over afterwards.
It was about the time when we were running around outside, in the dark, with five boys (all between the ages of 13 and 17), that I realized I was having a great time. Which is very weird for several reasons.
  1.) I have not never played paintball and haven't ever shown any interest in it. Why? I have horrible eye-hand coordination which means I can't shoot and actually hit people and I am horrible at dodging. Did I mention that I don't like to endure needless pain? However, I'll probably try it someday just to see if I CAN do it....
 2.) I don't really play airsoft either for the exact same reasons as the paintball. I have and will occasionally play it....on the rare occasion...and I usually get laughed at.
 3.) X-box is something that I try to play....and the bottom line is that I'm not great at it so I try and avoid it usually. But every once in a while I will play and get my butt kicked...but I try and look up what the games are about so I actually know what the boys are talking about. Someday I hope to be decent at video games, but that day is still a looooooonnnnggggg way off.

Thinking about all that....I figured that it was Ok that I'm not great at any of those things. I mean, I like to watch action movies and thrillers, I love rock music and some metal, and I don't mind running around getting sweaty if I've got the right clothes on. I try to branch out and try new things, but I'm glad that tonight I could hang out with people (and thats including Birdie and Superstar Aunt too) that like to just hang out with me and do whatever.

     “Live life fully while you're here. Experience everything. Take care of yourself and your friends. Have fun, be crazy, be weird. Go out and screw up! You're going to anyway, so you might as well enjoy the process. Take the opportunity to learn from your mistakes: find the cause of your problem and eliminate it. Don't try to be perfect; just be an excellent example of being human.”

While I'm usually a very happy person (happy as in Phoebe from Friends, without so much of the dumbness), there are times when I begin to think about things and I switch into sad or thoughtful mode. Drives my family nuts because moodiness is NOT cool! I don't mean to be either....it's just sometimes stuff gets me down and it takes a while to pick myself back up. Why do I bring up this emotional problem now? Because I was just thinking of someone I know VERY well....and the kind of stuff she's recently gone through. It wasn't all her fault, but things would have been a lot different if she'd paid more attention....

A long time ago in a galaxy far, far way....
 (No, I'm just kidding, it wasn't that long ago or far away...I'll try not to let the nerd inside of me escape again)

ANYWAY....there was a girl who saw everything in black or white. Either you did something and believed in something or you didn't. There were absolutes and no middle ground. She had a great and loving family, she was pretty and smart, and believed that the world was hers for the taking. She believed in dreams, miracles, love, and God. She had two of the best friends anyone could ask for; friends who cared and included her and loved her. Stir in a good dose of athletic talent and she had everything she could ever ask for. Or at least, she felt that way until after a very busy summer.

Then the bomb dropped....one of said best friends decided that he really liked girl....and she didn't feel that way about him....she didn't want to date anybody. So friend sat in silence and cut off almost all contact with the girl, and then began to morph from a supportive and encouraging person into an over-sensitive and judgemental one. She didn't understand- she didn't know why everything coming out of her mouth came across wrong- and she felt duped, abandoned. Eventually she found out that he had only really liked her for her potential as a girlfriend and his sudden change of heart was this: He'd decided that she was not worthy of him. She's gotten over it, and has since forgiven and forgotten, but remembering how she felt at the time still feels like a lightsaber to the gut (Ugh, sorry). Also didn't help that other best friend became busy with family member/ best friend and said to her that she was too busy to hang out. Yeah, she was upset and lonely.

So for two months, girl was sad and lonely. Her parents said that she hadn't done anything wrong...but the girl wanted to know, WHY? Why if I did nothing wrong...if I did what was right....if I played by the rules... why do I not have a friend I can go to? It wasn't that her parents weren't patient and awesome, it was that there is a relationship you can have with someone who is not blood-related that you can't have with the family. She prayed, she asked God these questions and asked for a friend - and she looked around her for one wherever she went.

And then she met someone from a totally different planet. Someone who had a life almost nothing like hers, and yet the two became friends somehow. I won't go into details because for her it always comes out in a rushed and jumbled mess...but let's just say that they both had problems, and found a welcome ear in the other. And then, in November, he asked the girl a question that changed a lot, and her answer started an emotional roller coaster that only recently has she been able to get off of. He wanted to spend more time together, she told him he would have to ask her dad about that. He kept asking, she kept answering, and every time she did it hurt because she knew that he was too scared. He didn't understand the rules of chivalry or the book on How to be a Gentleman. The girl secretly liked the guy, much more so than she ever should have and people told her so, but she kept waiting and hoping that he would have the courage. And when he didn't, she'd become angry and cry and take out all her frustration on her family. She was mad that she let herself be played with, that she had become the damsel in distress that she had promised herself that she would never become. It took her a while to realize something: to him, she was not worth being uncomfortable for. She was only worth hanging out with because she worked with him. Now, liking someone and knowing that is like a lightsaber being rammed into your gut and then jerked upwards. It hurt her badly and she finally just said no to his offers because she became sick and tired of it.

I'm happy to say that, for the most part, the girl is OK. She still hates talking about time period, but she avoids it usually so it's all good. She might not be so much into romance anymore, but she's still looking around for that guy who will fight with her and for her and tell her that she's worth it to him....

Eggs, the Easter Bunny, and A Whole Lot of Love

"So give me something to believe / 'cause I am living just to breathe / And I need something more / To keep on breathing for / So give me something to believe" - The Bravery

It's Easter!!! You know, the time where you get candy (or pinch it off of the little kids), hide eggs, decorate eggs, get you're picture taken with a big pink bunny...
 Personally, I think they are always really creepy looking...

Or maybe go to church and hear the amazing story of how Christ rose from the dead! And while maybe some people feel like its a bit redundant to hear the same story that they get told every year (or maybe every week, I don't know), I still marvel at how one man could possibly go through that hell for me and still return in glory filled with love for me! I'm shocked that He would be willing to take on all the guilt and embarrassment I've ever felt, along with the rest of the world's. His love is so much bigger than mine and I'll never understand it, but I can learn from it and I try to every day.

So it's with this knowledge that God loves me unconditionally that I was able to thoroughly enjoy my day. Even if it was cold....rainy....wet....rainy....yeah, the whole day looked pretty miserable actually. Went with family to another family's gathering after church and I ate like a hog - I have a cookie weakness. I did hide eggs for some younger ones and am kinda sad that I don't have a digital camera because otherwise I would have some awesome and hilarious pictures: kids trying to grab the eggs out of trees (being 5'10 has its advantages), older kid trying to dig out an egg, the jackpot of eggs hidden in glass frog....I really enjoyed watching the egg hunt this year  =)  Hope you all enjoyed your Easter as much as I did, especially those that had to travel out of town this weekend!

Oh, and King Kong lost his first top tooth today. He looks so dang cute!!!

Tale as Old as Time, Song as Old as Rhyme...

Call me a little kid at heart, but my favorite movie of all time is probably Beauty and the Beast. I own the soundtrack and listen to it all the time, probably could quote the entire film, and it's one of only two movies that's ever made me cry. Why? Well, first off, I really feel a connection with Belle.

She has her nose stuck in a book all the time (which, from personal experience, takes some skill!), people think she's slightly weird, and when she see people she sees them for the person they are, not what they look like. Even though she's gorgeous, she doesn't seem to realize it and wants someone to like her for her. Belle wants adventure and romance, and that's exactly what she gets!

Perhaps why I like this movie so much is the message behind it (the songs and animation alone are pretty cool too though). People CAN change if given time and the right friends; they can rise above the mistakes they've made and become better people! After all, the Beast goes from wanting to keep a young woman trapped so that he can be a pretty boy again, to willing to throw away his chance to be human so that the same girl can take care of her dying father. Love can change even the most beastly person. (He's so awkward....)

So I'm really hoping Beastly, a modern retelling of this story, is good too.
 
Probably not though. I mean, how can you beat the version that has a womanizing candle, a stuck-up clock, and awesome musical numbers??? But I'm going to go see it in theaters today anyway, because even if the movie isn't great I enjoy chick-flicks every once in a while...but after it's finished I'll probably come home and watch the cartoon again and wish I could dance around in a yellow ballgown too.

Beast - "I want to do something for her.....but what?"
Cogsworth - "Well, there's the usual things: flowers...chocolates....promises you don't intend to keep...."

My Life Under the Sea

“Dream as if you'll live forever, live as if you'll die today.” - James Dean

There is no way I could use a couple of sentences to describe my life in a nutshell, so I'm not even going to try and attempt to do so in my first blog post. However, I can start by kind of talking about myself and my family which is probably the biggest part of my life!
First, there's me the mermaid! I love to swim, am active competitively, and you'll probably find me at the pool most of the time. I love books, movies (please no horror ones), and music. I like to giggle, talk, and enjoy life! My sense of humor is sometimes off, but I'll try to explain it the best way I can....if I can figure out what was so funny in the first place.
Now let me introduce you to my family:
First there's the head of the family, Roy
He's an IT guy. No, he doesn't usually look this sloppy.
Then There's Birdie
 She's awesome
And Tuck
 The most lovable guy you'll ever meet
Sally
She's sweet, but not always
And King Kong
 He's just crazy, but you gotta love him!

Going back over the pictures we look like some crazy form of the Munster family or something....

Life is crazy with these people, but it's an adventure and I love it!