Valentines Day

I love Valentines Day! I don't think it's overrated to have a day dedicated to love! Sometimes people forget to celebrate love, and they just need a little reminder! Here are some quotes about love that I enjoy:

“If you love somebody, let them go. If they return, they were always yours. If they don’t, they never were.”

"To love someone deeply gives you strength. Being loved by someone deeply gives you courage"

“Find a guy who calls you beautiful instead of hot, who calls you back when you hang up on him, who will lie under the stars and listen to your heartbeat, or will stay awake just to watch you sleep… wait for the boy who kisses your forehead, who wants to show you off to the world when you are in sweats, who holds your hand in front of his friends, who thinks you’re just as pretty without makeup on. One who is constantly reminding you of how much he cares and how lucky he is to have you… The one who turns to his friends and says, ‘that’s her.’”

And of course, Albus Dumbledore's thoughts on love:

"love... leaves its own mark. Not a scar, no visible sign ... to have been loved so deeply, even though the person who loved us is gone, will give us some protection forever."

The Battle With the Heart Isn't Easily Won.

My thoughts after midnight...

another day.

another long day.

sometimes it's hard to know how i get by.

but I do.

and for that, i am grateful.

nobody can tell me how to live.

they can try, but in the end the only person i have to please is me.

i CAN do hard things.

but why do they have to be so hard?

you can't always get what you want...

but what if i want it so bad?

There are no tricks or shortcuts.

Just me, my faith, and the long road ahead

Jimmer University?

This year I have heard a lot about a man named Jimmer Fredette. Is he a super hero? Immortal? A gift from the Gods? Many might answer yes to all of the above. In fact, I think some might be in favor of changing this school's name to Jimmer University. I, for one, did not understand this obsession with a basketball player. I never really got why people idolize athletes to such extreme extents.

So, I went to the game against San Diego State with my dad to see what all the fuss was about. At first I still didn't understand. I mean, the intro to the game made it seem like this was the most noble calling any man could be called to fulfill, and the crowd was PACKED with fans who looked like they would go into shock if they didn't see Jimmer soon.

Then the game started, and BYU was behind. I felt myself getting nervous. Wasn't Jimmer supposed to be the greatest thing that ever lived? How can we be losing? But, never fear my dear readers. Jimmer didn't disappoint. He scored basket after basket, pounding them in like nobody's business.

The game was so intense, and the refs (like always) were so dumb! My heart was racing and I found myself on my feet screaming my lungs out. I never knew I had it in me. BYU pulled ahead (with the help of Jimmer's 43 points), and I could finally rest when it became clear that we would win.

And so, as the clock ran out, and Jimmer continued to score, I finally understood why so many people can get so into sports. Thank you Jimmer, for helping me understand.

Ich bin neunzehn Jahre alt!

It's my birthday and I am nineteen years old! o how I have grown.

Mom asked me what i wanted for my birthday, and I had really no idea. So the girls in my hall who play the ukulele inspired me to ask for one. So, we went to the mall and bought this little beauty and I named her Layla :)

She also got me the pop-up book of the century! Just look at this baby! This is no child's pop up book. I love it so much. The pages include Diagon Alley, Hogwarts (as you can see here) Hagrid's Hut/Forbidden Forrest, Harry retrieving the egg from the Hungarian Horntail, and Harry and Voldemort in the Graveyard in Great Hangleton!

Jacob got me my very own Bean Game, the most amazing photo book full of pictures of us, and an entire cheesecake! He also went to the fabric store with me and took me to dinner at Cafe Rio! He is too good to me.

Harly and Lauren took me to Zupas for lunch, my cousin Ryan and his friends made me brownies, and my parents are taking me to dinner this weekend! Birthdays are so very wonderful!

Deutschland!

The moment we've all been waiting for! Elder Jacob Brogdon had been called to serve in the Germany, Berlin mission! His departure date is March 2. He has been so anxious to get this call and it's so exciting that it's finally here! He is mostly excited that he doesn't have to go to school this semester :) He's still got a lot to prepare before he leaves (like learn German) but he will definitely be an amazing soldier in God's Army! Congrats Jacob!

College

Well I am now entering my second semester at BYU. I'll admit, before coming to college, I was terrified. I thought that I would have to stay up until 4 am every night studying my brains out. Turns out that's just for the kids who party until 1 am and leave their homework for when they get back. And that is definitely not me.

I'm not gonna lie, I did have a bit more to read and study than I did in high school, but it was nowhere near overwhelming. I am proud to say that I received a 4.0 GPA for my first semester and plan on doing what I can to maintain that. Full tuition scholarship, here I come!

This semester I am taking the following classes:

Book of Mormon (second half)

American Heritage

Sewing (which I am so excited about)

German

Child Development

15 credits in all so not a bad load. I'm really excited to learn some great stuff that will help me throughout my life. I am praying constantly so that hopefully the Lord will help me out. I know I can use all the help I can get! Go Cougars!

Harry Potter World!

After I graduated, I didn't really get to go on a trip to celebrate this great accomplishment. Instead, my mom agreed to schedule a trip to Universal Studios/Islands of Adventure in December. Of course the parks in general were not what interested me. It was the new addition to Islands of Adventure that made me so keen to attend... The Wizarding World of Harry Potter! It was such a magical place. I would have been content to stay there quite a bit longer

On top of that, we got to spend the vacation with the Simmons Family! They were so much fun. I spent half a day just with Jessica and we went on all the water rides because it was raining anyway.

Ellie was also very fun to play with when she wasn't tired:) Her favorite part was Dr. Seuss Land. She rode the Cat in the Hat ride about a million times.

Adam's favorite part was definitely... his grandpa. That little boy could not get enough of this man!