My Thoughts on Mcom This Semester

Alright, so the semester is ALMOST over. This means that Mcom is coming to a close and it is time to take an evaluative look at this class. I wouldn't say that Mcom was a huge challenge for me, but it was definitely not what i am used to. I have to say that I am kind of glad it's over (sorry professor Thomas!). I do feel that it was very helpful and useful and that I will use the skills that I developed in this class. I needed to take it for sure. It was definitely out of my comfort zone, though. Sometimes I felt like the assignments were a little vague and I wasn't sure what the teacher wanted. However, I was always able to figure out what was going on one way or another. I liked the group work. It was a little frustrating at times, but overall I think that it was a good experience and that my group worked together especially well. I know that I enjoyed learning from my group members. I just wished that I had more experience and could have been more helpful to my group. I tried to be very supportive and volunteer for things first, so maybe that made up for my lack of experience. Overall, Mcom was stressful for me, but I think it was good for me. It's like running a marathon. when you are doing it, it is hard and uncomfortable and you want to stop, but in the end you can see that it was good for you and you are really glad you kept at it and followed through to the end.

Thanksgiving and Play

Ok, so two things. First It's Thanksgiving tomorrow and I wish I didn't have a ton of homework so I could enjoy it! haha! The parents are coming tonight and my sister-in-law's sister is here with her 10 month old and it is so fun!

Second, I have been reading this book about the importance of play in our lives for a class and I absolutely LOVE it. I got it from the library, but am wishing I had bought it. It just validates all my feelings that life should be a fun adventure and work and play should go hand in hand. It talks about how when you play as a child the gray matter in your brain grows and you literally have a bigger brain.  When kids are deprived of rough and tumble play, then can grow up to be murderers and sociopaths. It's soooo important and yet in our culture play is really looked down upon. That is what children do and when you grow up you are supposed to stop playing and start being serious about everything. 

So I'm reading last night and it talks about a couple that have a great relationship, but as life goes on they get wrapped up in kids and jobs and just all the seriousness of life and they start feeling like they don't even know if they like each other. Then...they go to a, Get This! Play Therapist! and they play together and do races against other couples and just silly stuff like that and they reconnect and realize that they just needed a little joy in their lives. But! What stuck out to me is that there is such a thing as a "Play Therapist"!!!! How fun would that be? So I think I'm going to have to look into this. I have thought about dance therapy for couples, but maybe I could look at mixing play and dance therapy or something. Anyway! I am always trying to figure out what kind of career I should choose that would make me really happy and I think something like that would be a great fit for me! Anyway! I just got ALLL excited about it. 

So that's my blog for this week. :)

Yet Another Kind of Random Post

So this is kind of going to be a hodge podge (I don't think I have ever had to spell that before) of a post. so last Sunday was my birthday. I turned 23. I always thought I might be a little depressed about turning 23...but I'm not. I am totally fine with it. In fact, I like it! I remember turning 9 and thinking how I really liked being 8 and didn't want to turn 9. 8 is special, it's when you get baptized, it means something...my sister has a set of Anne of Green Gables books and there were 8. in my eight year old mind this means 8 is special, apparently. I was just resisting the whole 9 thing with every excuse I could think of. It's almost always been this way, but this year, I'm liking being old for some reason. Anyway. That's my birthday thoughts.

Another thought is how nice people are in Provo. my brother and i were fixing my bike and we lost a tiny spring in the asphalt. We were searching for it and 2 of my roommates came home and started helping us look. Then my friend sean came up on his long board and started helping us. Then his 2 roommates came by and started looking, then another guy from my ward saw us and wanted to help. By this time I figured we would never find the spring, so we told everyone they could get back to their business and we went to the bike shop...again. my brother had been a tow truck driver and was all surprised at how nice byu students were because whenever he had dealt with them they were swearing at him. I was like, yeah, of course they are nice, dummy, but I liked that he actually had something good to say about them. 

Then, the other day I was driving my friends car and it just died at a stop light. I thought the battery had died, but I guess it was the alternator. Anyway, in a matter of seconds I had about 5 really good looking guys get out of their cars and start pushing my car. Then one of them turned my key and the engine started again, so I didn't get to talk to them...haha. But it was so cool to see these guys acting like they worked at Les Schuab or something, running around taking care of me and my situation! I'm just very impressed.
I'm excited for Thanksgiving next week! It should be a good post next week!

Most Random Post Award!

Ok, so I completely forgot to blog last week. I am KICKING myself right now. I wasn't sure what to write about, so I kept putting it off and bang! It's Monday and the first week of November is blogless. Yes, I used that fake word. So I was wanting to post a survey so I could check that off the list since it's my last thing to do on here. For my leadership class I made one for my 20 page project, so I am going to post it now, as I wasn't ready last week and ended up losing out on the whole blog thing completely. https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/viewform?formkey=dFFUZFRtd0oyNHFYMGpGY1g2a2U1OHc6MQ So if anyone wants to take it, feel free. It's not supposed to be anonymous, so just know that. Anyway, so I have been really stressed lately with all the projects that have to be finished before Thanksgiving. I have a 20 pg leadership paper due, a seven page book report and research paper due, a six page dance research paper due and a group project for mcom. plus all my regular homework. They are really all due after thanksgiving, but I am going to have to get them all done before them if I am going to enjoy my vacation. PLUS I have to teach the lesson in relief society on the first week of december. yeah. It's out of control right now. But luckily my angel mother is sending me texts with ideas for my lesson and she helps me to talk things out and brainstorm for projects. She is pretty amazing. So anyway, I'll try to come up with something better for next week. OH! but I can't not include this video. 

and this video, since these kids were the only ones worth watching...almost

Halloween

Ok, so this Halloween I have decided to be a....Devil Woman. dun, dun, dun. yes, it's true. Kristen Russell is going to be something bad for Halloween. If you know me very well, you know that this just does not happen. When I was young my mom didn't want us to be anything scary or evil, and I never really had a desire anyway, so I have always been happy things like, a fairy, a greek goddess, Scarlett O'Hara, ballerina, etc. you get the picture. Well, I was trying to figure out what to be, and I remembered that I have this long satin, red dress that I got at H&M. I haven't worn it for anything as it almost looks lingerie-esque and I wasn't sure when it would be appropriate to wear it. But Halloween, being the holiday of skanks, I figured I could get away with it. As you can see it's really not a skanky dress...just the material is a little satiny. So anyway, I got some sequin horns, a pitchfork to match and some fishnets and put on my pointy high heels and belt and fake eyelashes. After poofing my hair a little, I was officially a devil woman. It was an interesting experience trying this out for some parties for friday and saturday. it was fun, but people associate devil-woman with temptress and...hahahaha. yeah. that is so not me. So, we'll see how Halloween actually goes. I'm kind of all costumed out.

And for your entertainment....the funniest baby video on Youtube.

Weight Loss Competition!!

So, at the beginning of the week I talked to my mom on the phone and she said that our family is going to do a weight loss competition! I'm so excited about this! We are all going to put in five dollars a week, which comes out to $35 a week. After a month, the person who has lost the greatest percentage of weight, wins the cash! I worry a little that they boys in the family will beat all of us girls, but I am highly motivated and would REALLY LOVE to beat my brother, so we'll see. I have been running or dancing almost every night this week, and have been being very careful with food, so I think I've got a pretty good chance. I also got on http://sparkpeople.com/, which is an awesome website. I can track just about anything and everything weight loss related. It has articles and tips and success stories, etc, etc, etc. And I also blog on that website about whatever is on my mind that has to do with weight loss...now that I'm such a pro blogger. ;) 

So I'll have to give an update in a month or so and let you know how I'm doing. I'm hoping I'll just be out of the running pretty soon and can encourage the other people in my family that have a little further to go on the weight loss journey than I do. This is really going to be sooo good for my family! we all just need a little motivation and friendly competition. AND! We all really want to go on a cruise in the near future, so that is something I am motivating myself with. I know I don't want to go on a cruise until I am looking freaking incredible. So yeah, that's my little update for the week.

Ashley Simpson is Married!

Well, she did it. My sister went and got married last saturday in the Idaho Falls Temple. Want to know the best part about the entire thing? I am now the sister of Ashley Simpson! YESSS! haha. But, anyway everything went really smoothly and it was a very fun event. My whole immediate family was able to come and two of my aunts came as well! We had a blast. It was a little mini vacation.

So I found a ride up to Idaho Falls and it was a little snowy and it just felt like Christmas since I was catching a ride with a stranger in the snow to meet up with family and Idaho was involved. So I got back on Sunday and felt like I should be on Christmas vacation. It was very depressing that I had to go to school the next day.

But anyway! The point is, it is great to be with family! It can be such a stress reliever! I had been soooo stressed with homework (as you can read from my last post) and then I got to have this vacation-ish time with the family and it all goes away! :) We got some great pictures too! This is the only one I had saved on my computer.  

Blessings!!

Holy Cow! I am So blessed! I don't mean to brag, but wow. I'm super blessed...all the time. Heavenly Father just must love me a ton. This doesn't mean that I don't have problems or trials or things that completely stink in my life, but wow, there is always a way out of those crappy things when you have enough faith and ask the Lord to help you. And Priesthood blessings are AMAZING! I always knew they were good and everything, and I should get one..sometime. if I feel like it...or whatever. but in the last year I have REALLY gained a testimony of Priesthood blessings. It really shouldn't shock me so much that I am so blessed because I get blessings from people and try my best to be a good person and everything, but I have really been putting my faith to work lately and the results are astounding (just like the prophets and everyone wise would have already told you). 

So, for example, I was super stressed this week and last. It seemed the homework was this unconquerable mound of terrible, mean, ugly, work that my teachers just thought they'd just toss my way like it was nothing. I could picture them laughing as they tossed it onto my huge pile. a lilting laugh as if to say, oh, here you go, no big deal. haHAhahaha ... So anyway, I was stressed. Plus, my family was coming into town, and I knew I would have no time to spend with them with all that I had to do, and my brother was coming back from Alaska...which means I no longer get to use his jeep whenever the heck I want. Plus, I didn't know how I was  going to get to my sister's wedding in Idaho next weekend. And as if that wasn't enough, on Monday I realized that I was sick...with a cold. yeah. Sucky. So I called my brother over and told him I needed a blessing...and I ride to school haha. He came and I was so proud of him for doing it because he doesn't have a ton of experience with it, but he was willing and didn't make me ask my home teachers who I just don't know very well, so I was just glad! He said all the right things and I was thankful. So guess what! It worked! :) I have been able to get everything done in an efficient manner, like unbelievably efficient, like I did NOT think it was possible to get things done so quickly and stress so little over them. Ideas for papers have just come to me and I haven't felt all anti-homework and have been able to get things done without whining. It's great! Then I had a woman call me today and say she could take me from Salt Lake to Idaho Falls on Thursday, which is when I really needed to leave AND my class on Thursday was cancelled so I have more time to get homework done before I go! and my dear, sweet, wonderful, angelic friend Railee said she would take me to Salt Lake on Thursday and we are going to have a fun little trip together! AND! the lady is not having me pay for gas...I just have to help her with her children...which could be a good or a bad thing. I'm just grateful to have the ride. :)

So, moral of the story is, when you have faith and ask with nothing wavering, the Lord WILL bless you. So be ready for all your wildest dreams to come true. ;)

Running...Could I Actually Enjoy This Activity?

So I have found through my extensive working-out experiences that I love to get my exercise through activities that I do for intrinsic reasons. I have accepted this fact and have found activities that are a great workout that are also fun to do.

I do enjoy a good cardio workout video, but this is the only exception. I tried P90X and found it to be too...manly (and I only lost like 3 lbs after two months of that crap). When I workout I like to have someone who is peppy leading my workout, telling me how great I am and that we can do this together. Not some 50 yr old, yet ripped man who is doing bicep curls while saying in a gruff voice, "this isn't a workout for sissies. this is real. We have actual DNA extraction going on here". 

So, anyway, for example I like to do things like dancing (country two step and latin are the best), biking, swimming, going to seven peaks, etc. to get some exercise. But last night, I decided to do something radical. I went...

 Running. 

Yes. I did. and I ENJOYED it! Granted, I didn't run for more than 20 or 30 minutes, but I was really surprised at how well I did. Usually when I start up running again it is a very painful process that just hurts my body and makes my self esteem drop by like 50 points as it makes me feel like I am really out of shape and I probably run funny. I also always have to do a walk-jog-walk-jog pace that is slightly embarrassing (My excuse for not running was that I needed a digital watch so I could look at it and make it look like I was training and knew what I was doing whenever I started walking...sad, I know).

But last night...that all changed. I felt light on my feet, like I could just keep going forever. My throat didn't get all dry and my side didn't cramp up and my feet and joints felt great. I felt Awesome when I did it and I felt Awesome this morning when I woke up. What caused this phenomenon of actually feeling good when I run? I'm blaming it on those stairs up to campus paired with all the dance classes I took this spring and summer. and I am much slimmer than the last time I tried running. That may have something to do with it.

But, the moral of the story is, I think I might actually enjoy this form of exercise and may start doing it regularly. It makes me feel fit not crappy! :) It's a miracle! :D Hooray!

ps: my ward just announced they are doing a combined ward 5K on the 15th of October and I totally said I was participating...hope I don't regret that.

Thirds...they are Beautiful!

I am taking a class right now that is called Leisure in Contemporary Society. I Love It! I wasn't sure if I would because some of the RMYL classes sound good, but they are actually kind of boring...ok that was just Accessible Recreation, but you get my point. So, every time I go to this class, it reaffirms that I picked the right major. We discuss the importance of leisure in society and how it shapes a culture and how play keeps children from becoming sociopaths. So, anyway! I had this reading that I had to do (which, was written by an RMYL professor at BYU-Idaho!...Rachel), and it was soooo good! I got so much out of it, but the main thing I got was something that Joseph Smith said. he said that your 24 hr day should be divided into three eight hour sections. eight to sleep, eight to work and eight to renew, refresh, and recreate. So I have been trying to apply this model to my life lately! Between actually going to school and homework, I tend to spend more than eight hours on work, but it has made me prioritize my time so much better. I don't get distracted so easily and I have actually gotten all of my homework done for this weekend up until tuesday! It's amazing! I'm so happy! The only thing I have left is posting this blog and marking that I did it! It's pretty great! :) I had time to go to the canyon today and play and it was amazing! So if I spend a little more time on homework during the week, it's really okay, because I make up for it on the weekend in playing! I LOVE MY MAJOR!!!! YESSS!!!!

Marriage...

This is my sister and her Fiance. I took their engagement photos and edited them. I should show the original. I did quite a bit of work. They finally decided to use this for the announcement and I feel pretty good about that. :)

So all of this marriage talk has got me thinking...the fact that people ever get married is such a miracle. It is so complex. How do you ever find someone that has that "it" factor? I have never run into someone that I felt like I could be with forever. It's fair to say I have never been in love. It's easy to be "in like" or be attracted for a while, but legitimate, hard core LOVE is pretty miraculous. Just to find someone who likes you and you like them back is really hard to find, but falling in love, I believe is a miracle. After ending a relationship, I felt a little discouraged. It felt like it would never happen again. It hadn't happened for me up until that point and I was feeling like maybe I had thrown away my only chance at love. That's a little dramatic, but logically, it would seem I would have to wait another 5 to 10 years in order to find someone that I would like to be exclusive with and where the feelings were mutual. But miracles do happen and I am sure at some point in the not-to-distant future I will find someone that is a great match for me. I just am amazed that people can find someone who is such a perfect partner for them in such short amounts of time when every other person they have been with isn't right for them. Only God could come up with something like this and have it work out. Crazy!

1st Week In The Life of Kristen

So, this is my very first blog post...ever. I plan on posting about some of the events of my life or just things that I am really excited about and cannot keep to myself. so this week I am going to talk about my week. Next week will be more interesting as I am going to post some pictures of my sister and her fiance. I took their engagements, so I will post the announcement when I finish it next week.
This week I only went to school for two days because I went on a two day field trip with my careers in recreation class. Monday was a holiday and we left Thursday morning. This was a very busy week for me. School was crazy and the hw load is pretty intense. The Field trip was pretty cool. time consuming, but fun. We went to several recreation facilities and learned about what they do there. I loved going to Thanksgiving Point and Provo Beach Resort. I want to event planning, so Thanksgiving point was very interesting to me. Aspen Grove is where we spent the night and I would love to take my family there sometime. It was a very impressive facility. The conclusion I came to after this week was that I am very, very happy with my major. I love that I will get to be involved with recreation for the rest of my life! What a fun life! :)