Memorial Day

I absolutely, positively love America. Honestly, I don't know if it is because it is the land I was born in or if is the land of opportunity. Today, Memorial Day, not only marks the beginning of summer, it is a day of remembrance. It is difficult not to remember the fallen soldiers who have taken and stand and have diligently fought for what they believe in. These brave men and women have helped paved the way for us to enjoy so many things that others are not blessed enough to enjoy. There is a quote that states something like this, "How fortunate we are to live in a country where happiness is more than absence of tragedy." Hopefully, we will all remember this when life gets a little bit harder than we wish it were.

The Birthday!

I had a birthday celebration yesterday, and it was pretty much amazing! I started celebrating on my birthday eve. My roommates and I went to get late night ice cream. We had a fun car ride filled with music from various musicals and Disney movies. We initially went to Wendy's, but they had closed. It was off to Dairy Queen we went. I was so excited! Everything was birthday eve stuff. I had birthday eve ice cream and water. My order number was 45. I was so out of it. This kid asked me if I was 45 and I replied, "Almost." He was talking about my number, not my age.




After a crazy Dairy Queen trip, I went to pick up some papers from our guy friends. They took forever printing them off. It was fun playing with those kids for a few minutes.



We made it home! How else do you bring in a birthday besides a dance party? We all (roommates and I) put on fun dresses and danced until midnight. At midnight we toasted 26 years of Becky's life with sparkling cider. It was definitely a fun night.

I woke up on my birthday to a door decorated with balloons and ribbons. When I walked into the living area to thank my roommates for such a pleasant surprise, I found it was filled with balloons and ribbons as well. I loved it and could not stop smiling.

I had to go to school. I wasn't skipping. After class, I went to work on a project, but the girl that I was working on it with and I could not figure it out. Charity had invited me to go to the temple with her, so I went. It was nice. The ladies at the temple were so funny. I am glad that Charity invited me. What a great way to show thanks for life!

After the temple, Charity took me to get a cupcake from the CoCo Bean. I love their cupcakes. We just hung out and played together until I took a little birthday nap and then headed off to a group. After my group, Rob taught me how to ride his motorcycle. I love it! I want a motorcycle so badly now.

After learning how to ride a bike, Charity took me to dinner at Craigo's. She planned a surprise party for me with my favorite people there. I loved it. For ya'll who know about my farmville addiction, one of my friends got me a farmiville gift certificate, along with yummy chocolates. Gotta love it.

After dinner, it was off to my apartment for cake and ice cream. Earlier in the day, Charity and I made funfetti cupcakes colored orange and pink. We swirled the colors together and they turned out beautiful. We played and laughed at my apartment. It was a fun night.

I really did have a great day. It was crazy, fun, and busy. I couldn't have asked for a better birthday. Charity has more pictures from my actual birthday. When I get them on my computer, I will post more.

26 Things You May Not Know About Becky

Last year I wrote 25 things I was grateful for on my birthday. This year, you get to learn 26 things you might not know about me to celebrate my birthday. I am sure you will know a lot of it already because I am a pretty open person.

1) I love raw pasta.
2) Dance parties with my roommates rock my socks.
3) If I could be an animal, I'd be a monkey.
4) I don't know everything...yes, I know that's a shocker.
5) My favorite candy bar (you can get at any store) is Twix.
6) I love plaid.
7) Sometimes I randomly buy men's neck ties.
8) The Millionaire Match Maker (a t.v. show) is one of my guilty pleasures.
9) I rely on spell check way too much, my real spelling kind of stinks.
10) I secretly like doing art, even if I'm not that great at it.
11) I use shower crayons to write and draw in the shower.
12) I am somewhat OCD.
13) Ryan Reynolds may or may not be the most attractive actor out there.
14) I don't like wearing clothes if I am at home.
15) I love Dr. Pepper and drink it often, even though I say I don't drink carbonated beverages.
16) I think grilling out should be a man's job...and the woman's job is to eat the medium rare steak he cooks for her.
17) I'm a procrastinator.
18) When I get bored in class, I use my laptop to do online shopping.
19) Sometimes I let myself believe in fairy tales.
20) When making s'mores, I purposely burn my marshmallows.
21) I have a crush on Micheal Scott and Dwight Shrute.
22) I google random things...like mail order husbands.
23) I can watch chick flicks 24/7. They make me want to dream. Yes, I'm a hopeless romantic.
24) I don't think their are many people out there who really know me as a person.
25) I wouldn't want to know if I only had one day left to live.
26) I enjoy making people feel awkward.

And for my one to grow on...The park may be my favorite place on the face of the Earth!

I hope you learned something new about me. Enjoy the day!

The 25th Year

It is hard to believe that my 25th year of life will be ending in less than 24 hours. I am mildly depressed that so much of my life has passed by and I haven't accomplished the things I feel as if I should have accomplished by now. I wonder what my self 10 years ago would have said if she could see me now. Would I be proud of myself or wonder where my life has went? Life is truly a growing experience. Although I don't feel like it, I am sure I have grown a lot over the past year. I finished another year of school and even had some fun along the way. Although I am not blessed enough to have a family of my own, I am blessed with a wonderful family and many beautiful nieces and nephews. I really do love kids. I struggle with the fact that I may not have the opportunity to become a mother (Although, I still feel it could happen.) It is a blessing to have Mike and Amy's kids near and to interact with kids at elementary schools. If I never have kids, I will be able to love my students as my own. Part of me believes I choose to major in Elementary Education so I could for sure always be around children. They are delightful...except when they're not.

My 26th year probably holds some pretty exciting adventures in it as well. It will be fun to face them. This is my last year in Idaho. I will not lie, I am excited to leave but I will miss Idaho a lot (not that I have a desire to stay here). I have grown a lot here and I feel like I have spent a lot of time here discovering myself. I don't know if we ever "really" know ourselves. We are constantly changing. As soon as we think we have it all figured out, we realize how clueless we are. I know I am starting to ramble, but I felt as if I needed to write one more blog as a 25 year old. Half my twenties are over! Goodbye 25 and welcome new experiences with 26.

How Much Am I Worth?

This is an article I found on line. I was first introduced to a chart that showed this information in my anatomy class. Anyways, if you are ever feeling down about yourself or life, this will just make you feel worse. Nonetheless, we can still take comfort that we are made out of stardust!

A great number of people have spent a great deal of human and
financial resources calculating the composition of, prior to the
decomposition of, and the worth, or worthlessness of, the human body.

When we total the monetary value of the elements in our bodies and the
value of the average person's skin, we arrive at a net worth of $4.50!

This value is, however, subject to change, due to stock market
fluctuations. Since the studies leading to this conclusion were
conducted by the U.S. and by Japan respectively, it might be wise to
consult the New York Stock Exchange and the Nikkei Index before
deciding when to sell!

The U.S. Bureau of Chemistry and Soils invested many a hard-earned tax
dollar in calculating the chemical and mineral composition of the
human body, which breaks down as follows:

65% Oxygen (yes, we are mostly hot air)
18% Carbon
10% Hydrogen
3% Nitrogen
1.5% Calcium
1% Phosphorous
0.35% Potassium
0.25% Sulfur
0.15% Sodium
0.15% Chlorine
0.05% Magnesium
0.0004% Iron
0.00004% Iodine

Additionally, it was discovered that our bodies contain trace
quantities of fluorine, silicon, manganese, zinc, copper, aluminum,
and arsenic. Together, all of the above amounts to less than one
dollar!

Our most valuable asset is our skin, which the Japanese invested their
time and money in measuring. The method the Imperial State Institute
for Nutrition at Tokyo developed for measuring the amount of a
person's skin is to take a naked person, and to apply a strong, thin
paper to every surface of his body. After the paper dries, they
carefully remove it, cut it into small pieces, and painstakingly total
the person's measurements. Cut and dried, the average person is the
proud owner of fourteen to eighteen square feet of skin, with the
variables in this figure being height, weight, and breast size. Basing
the skin's value on the selling price of cowhide, which is
approximately $.25 per square foot, the value of an average person's
skin is about $3.50.

I'll Take It

I only have a year left at BYU-Idaho. I will confess that I am stoked. Yet, my life hasn't turned out quite how I imagined it would. I even have a dream board full of dreams that were suppose to be coming true by this point in my life. I am almost 26 years old. Surely by this time in my life prince charming was supposed to have found me and we should be on our way to eternal bliss. Yet, here I am, single and wondering if this prince will ever come and find me. I remember a guy friend saying a while ago that he imagined finding a girl and being some sort of hero by saving her. I think some people view saving as some heroic act, yet it would be nice for a guy to come into my life and save me from myself. At times, I feel like I can be quite the narcissist and not even realize it. Yes, I'll admit, I want the whole marriage thing. I would like to find my best friend and spend everyday for eternity with him. (Or he could find me.) Still, I feel as if I have a ton of walls up and it will take a bulldozer to knock them down. Not only do I want a best friend to come home to, I want someone to cuddle whenever and to take care of and they take care of me. Growing up, I had three main qualities I'd like in a husband, and I am still sure I want just those three. The three are:
1) He makes me happy and can make me laugh.
2) He makes me want to be a better person.
3) He honors his priesthood.
Really, is that too much to ask for? (I will admit, each quality has subcategories, such as physical attraction and ambition.) I think if me and this person ever meet, it will be worth the wait, but it is super hard to be patient. One this person finds me (or I find him) I know eternities could never be enough time for me to spend with him. It will be fun growing in so many ways with this person. Until then though, I guess I'll just be "wishin and hopin and thinkin and dreamin each night of his charms."

Mom

I will not lie, I have been easily influenced by many people in my life. Sometimes, it is for the best, and sometimes it isn't. Out of all the people that have had any influence on my life, my mom is at the top of the list. I love my mom so much. She is a magnificent lady, even if she doesn't recognize. It is hard to see that she doesn't always realize her talents and potential. My mom is one of the people in my life that let me know it is okay to dream. I am sure everyone's mom told them they could be anything they wanted when they "grew up." I am still growing up and I still believe my mom when she tells me I can be anything I want to be when I "grow up." Mom is also a great person to talk to most of the time. She always wants to solve our problems for us. I think it is because she is such a nurturer. She is also one of the best people in the world to snuggle up to. I live far away from my mom, so I don't get to snuggle with her often, but I love it when I do. It is very intimidating for me to know that if I get the chance to be a mother, I have such high expectations to live up to. I am not saying I want to do everything as she did, but I am saying she performed, and continues to perform, the job of motherhood well. She is one of the elite women in the world that is worthy of the name, "Mother." I love you mom!

The New Calling

I got my calling for this semester...and I do not like it. I actually tried to turn it down three times, but bishop wouldn't take no for an answer. What could be the worse calling for a busy college student? Gospel Doctrine Teacher. I've had the calling before and enjoyed it, I am just nervous about finding time to prepare lessons. It will be interesting to see how it turns out. I still can't believe bishop wouldn't let me turn it down though!

Identity Crisis

Have you ever been through an identity crisis? You know, where you don't feel as if you know yourself, know what you really want, or know what you are doing with your life? Its really kind of depressing. Well, I feel as if I am going through one now. I am really trying hard to "rediscover" myself, but it is harder than I imagined it would be. I feel completely vulnerable, which makes me moody, and I HATE it!!! I really feel like I am doing what I need to be doing with my life right now, so I don't know why I am struggling with the listed questions. It is nice just knowing things. I like to know what I am doing on a daily basis (not to say I don't like a little spontaneity) and where I am going with my life. My life has gotten so out of control! I don't know what I am going to do each day. Even with school and work, it is so overwhelming that I have no clue which assignments I will choose to do. And as for being out of control, I hate it. I don't like giving up control. I am such a control freak that I have to control my desire to control. It is kind of pathetic. Maybe that is one of the reasons I am still single, I haven't found a guy I trust enough to relinquish any control I do have over my life (which is not that much) to give him any. However, I don't feel independent at all, which is odd since control is such a big thing for me. Anyways, those are my random ramblings for today. Hope I didn't sound too terrible pathetic. Until next time.