We've been changed for good.

Even though we've all said goodbye once, the goodbyes are suddenly becoming more and more real. Because now? It'll be years before we're all together again, instead of weeks or days. The future is a big deal, and it's weird to think that there's a large part of my life that these kids won't be a part of.
But honestly? There's no other reason in this world I'd rather have them leaving for. Two years may be a long time, 700ish days in reality, and even though it terrifies me, there's nothing I'd rather them be doing. They're making the right decisions, and going to all the right places.
I owe a lot to these kids; Bronson, Sam and Jackson in particular. And even though a million and a half things have changed in the last little while, I will always consider them my best friends. Sam's farewell was today, and it was completely surreal (more so than Blake's, if possible.) and slightly heartbreaking to realize that these kids are going to be gone for a relatively long time, but words can't describe how good it felt to finally be together with everyone again for one of the last times.
And in regards to the girls? I couldn't ask for better "sisters." They make me laugh, keep me updated on what's happening, and listen to just about everything I have to say. And even though we don't see each other every day, I know that they'll be the ones cheering at my wedding and the ones I call for baby advice.
I guess what I really want to say is that when it comes to friends, I'm really really lucky. And I've missed them.

Good luck, Sam. We're gonna miss ya kiddo. But you'll do great things, and those Guaminians are real lucky to have you. :)

This could be the best day of my life.

There's a real post with some college-ish stuff coming tomorrow, but for now? Here's the best thing that   has EVER happened to me. Ever. Here's the long version of the story. In 8th/9th gradeish, I got completely obsessed with a band called Mayday Parade. Then, to my utter dismay, they broke up. Kind of. The two lead singers, Jason Lancaster and Derek Sanders had a fight. Jason started his own band...Mayday went their own way. And it was the best thing to happen to music, in the history of the world. Because Go Radio? Ten bazillion times better than Mayday. [Hate to say it, fellas, but it's true.] And I have this almost freakish obsession with Go Radio. They released their new album, Close the Distance last week, and that is seriously the only thing that Emi and I have listened to in our apartment since. 

But back to tonight. Go Radio is currently touring with Safetysuit--who we are now complete and total fans of. So we got tickets to the concert, and waited in line for three hours to get a place on the FRONT ROW. Let's just say if I hadn't reached obsessive fan-girl status before, I definitely have now. 

This right here is Jason Lancaster singing Goodnight Moon. And if you haven't already heard it, you should. Because it's beautiful. And they play it at the end of every show. 

Also, during our rotation with the Safetysuit super fans behind us, I found one of Jason's guitar picks that he'd thrown and no one had caught. So now? I have his signature on my phone (from when we went to their concert in May) and a guitar pick that I watched him perform with. Ahhhh. It's a good day in Ashleytown. 

After Safetysuit was done playing, we waited in line to meet the greatest band on the planet. So here's me, and my best friend with Steven, Matt, Alex, and Jason. [Notice how we're all totally touching, and imagine the high fives and handshakes that came after. YAYYYYY.]

Sidenote: This afternoon, Hailee texted me saying that she'd seen them all at Gateway. I was super jealous, she hardcore stalked them and creep-pic-ed for a little bit. And then, when we're taking this picture, Alex (He's the one between me and Emi) says, "Hey! We saw you at Gateway!" Ladies and gents, the band remembered my best friend. We're kind of a big deal. Also, Emi caught Alex's sweat towel. And he noticed. [Seriously the grossest object that has ever been in my car. Or within a mile of me. Who wants a hand towel soaked with Alex's sweat???]

The moral of the story is that today was a very, very, very, VERY good day. Like my shirt says....when it comes to "Go Radio or Go Home," I will Go Radio, EVERY. SINGLE. TIME.

It's better than yours.

School is hard. JUST KIDDING. I only had yoga today, so I was going home to study for my science test tomorrow...and decided to randomly check our mailbox. Long story short, care packages from best friends an hour away are day makers. Nacho Libre: the only movie we absolutely need for our library, except maybe Mean Girls.

Cute notes, with specific advice for the two of us. She knows us, so well. 

And our favorite gum. Because obviously, we're all dating so much. Not really. There's a reason our Bieber board is empty. 

Hailee's a winner. And I get to see her tomorrrrrrooooowww! (And my family. And Terri. And Dave. Yay. :) ) It's been a good day. 

Finally, last night, Emi and I were the only ones up after 11. And all she wanted to do was play with PhotoBooth. I think she likes my computer more than I do. And she looked like a hipster yesterday--in case you were all wondering. 

Well. Nutella Banana Bread has their second volleyball game today, and I'm sure we'll get creamed again. But it's okay, because we have the best (and only) costumes in the league. And we have more team spirit than the rest of them combined. NBBOD. 

Perfectly content and wildly restless.

Somedays, things just go splendidly. A fantastic new Institute class, a massive waterslide for FHE, and then our weekly cheering section at our favorite boys' soccer game. We finally followed through and made our glitter poster. We're basically the best friends ever. I guess they're alright too--sometimes Mitch brings us Jamba Juice when we all get stuck home doing homework. We'll keep them around I guess.

Emi and I may have used an excessive amount of glitter, so we had to go shake it off outside so Lauren wouldn't try to strangle us in our sleep. So we went outside....launched it....

And the wind promptly blew at least a half pound of glitter into Emi's face. She's still covered, and it's not going anywhere anytime soon. 

And last but not least, Monday Night Lights rule my week. And I live in a pretty place. Even with all the nasty, grayish haze the sky is a pretty thing. And I'll just have to live with sitting on the sidelines of a soccer field until hockey season starts. :) 

In other groundbreaking news, Go Radio's new album Close the Distance came out tonight. Let's just say I cannot wait until the 25th. I'll probably just freak out as soon as Jason Lancaster gets on stage. 

If you have any desire in the world to listen to an incredible record, check it out on iTunes. Here's a link to preview it in the meantime. 

Don't judge our fun.

My roommate has an obsession with Spongebob. So when I asked her to take out the trash, she felt the need to play the "Hash-Slinging-Slasher." So we sang the whole song, and then Kenzie flipped out that Emi didn't have a hand. Needless to say, we stopped cleaning and died laughing.

We had a long day yesterday. After being up until the wee hours of the morning because of dates and the presence of Mitchell and Lucas in our apartment, we woke up and went to a volleyball tournament, grocery shopped, and deep cleaned our apartment. After spending obscene amounts of time on dishes, we finally got ready--just in time for my cousin to ask if I could go to dinner with her and her kids. Ladies and gents, I absolutely adore my family. And my cousins (I don't really know what the technical relation is) Lettie and Cutter are adorable. After we were all severely depressed because of USU's loss, the day got slightly better during the "Holy War" when Utah beat BYU, three times in a matter of one second, basically. Max couldn't handle it, and spent his time in the fetal position for an hour and a half. But don't bring it up, because he's still distraught about it. 

And last but not least, we had dinner with our whole floor today--Navajo tacos and scones, FTW--and these boys were in charge of holding my phone and keys while I got food. They just want to say goodnight to all y'all, and we're off to have a craft night and listen to some country music. 

It's even better than we think.

Somedays, things just go exactly how you want them to. Go Radio, my favorite band on this entire planet, let their new album become available for streaming a week before it's release. I'm not ashamed to admit that I booked it home from class, ran into my apartment, yelled "IS ANYBODY HOME??" plugged my computer into the stereo when the answer was negative, and blasted every song on there at least 4 times. Then calmly put my headphones in and listened to it by myself while everyone did homework. And then I took a nap. College is exhausting. 

We joined an intramural volleyball team. And ladies and gents? We're fierce. Tropical shirts, glitter makeup, and funky hair. We're excellent. We got slaughtered, but it's definitely worth the laughs---and taunts--we get from the other teams. 

Here's our team in it's entirely. Nutella Banana Bread. Brought to you by Pope Benedict XVI, Charles Schwab, and Tia and Tamara Mowry. 

In celebration of our loss, the snitches of 102 went to IHop. We were the only people in the restaurant, and we all ordered the same thing. Poor waitress.

 After running a marathon from Old Farm, to Pineview, and back to Old Farm, we finally found Mitch and Josh and Matt and Jim and watched Taken. Which was not a good idea, at 12 in the morning. So we got home, and discovered we were absolutely delirious. While we were washing our football makeup off, I walked out to this. Night world. We're tired. 

There's a first time for everything.

Emi embraced her new found freedom [and by freedom, we mean she finally worked up the guts to say yes] and let me dye her hair. My once dirty-blonde haired best friend is now a brunette/redhead/non hairdye virgin. She's started down a dangerous road. Then Laur died my hair, and we got rid of the ombre. Because sometimes, when you do something trendy to your hair, it gets boring and everyone has it. So we're back in black. And it looks awesome. We're great. 

We got sick of studying today, and decided to make a real duck face instead of the plastics version. Personally, I think it's a lot more attractive than the puckered face. Also, Emi has really pretty eyes that look even more blue when she's a semi-ginger. It's fine. 

Braxton barged into our room around three o'clock and unlocked a magical cupboard above our kitchen sink that held a bag of wonder from the girls of 102 from last year. The contents are secret [just kidding, they're on my FB page.] and we've already started planning our package for next year's roomies. They're in for the surprise of their lives, if they ever find it. 

Yesterday was "embarrass your best friend" day, and I used that to my full advantage. When in reality, she took all of these pictures herself and then decided which ones went in the collage. 

And last but not least, here's a full look at the new hair and my favorite wardie, Paigey-Lou. We attempt to study Psych sometimes...but it doesn't work. So we take pictures and pretend like we're learning about psychological methodology. Bye kids. :) 

It happens once each year.

Today, right this second, is one of my best friend's birthdays. My little miss Maddy is now a 19-year-old woman, and it's all a little weird. But if anyone deserves a birthday shout out, it's this girl.
We've been friends--or at least known each other--since we were 5. And she's put up with a whole lot from me.

I can't even begin to describe how much she means to me, or how much I've learned from her. She's pushed me in ways no one else can. And I'm grateful every day for her influence and example in my life. She may be a few inches shorter than I am, but she'll always be a big sister to me.
She's in Provo right now, and I'm living in Logan. I miss her laugh every single day, and the way we constantly tease/fight with each other, because I know it means she cares. I hate being 200 miles away and not having any idea what is going on in her life, and not having her know every detail of my life, because we've never dealt with that. But we're where we're supposed to be, and nothing will change the fact that she's one of my very best friends.
So Madz, happy birthday hon. I hope your day was wonderful, and that everything good happens to you. Because you deserve it, you really do. BYU is lucky to have ya, kid. :)
Love you, my crazy ginger best friend.

This is the greatest thing we've ever done.

The things we do for our football team would worry our parents. We run to Wal-Mart to buy a tent for $39.98 and then book it to the Quad to claim a spot. We fit five girls in there. [Doesn't sound like a big deal until your realize how much stuff we all brought.] 

We tried really hard to take a picture by ourselves. I didn't include those attempts, but this one only worked AFTER we'd had our tent collapsed by two reasonably obnoxious individuals, and were saved by Luke. We then had him take a picture after we'd gotten over our hysteria, and settled down once again into our massive cuddle sesh. 

Dallin has a massive man-crush on my father. So when he was freezing [the kid wore a t-shirt to camp in Logan. Seriously.] and I offered him a sweatshirt [I brought three. Don't worry] that happened to be my Dad's....he freaked. And so we sent Russ these pictures at midnight. I'm just glad my friends and my parents get along. 

We camped out for 11 hours, and waited in line for 3 hours to watch our Aggies beat the Utes for the first time in 15 years. I haven't screamed that loud since Viewmont lost to Murray in hockey my junior year, and won't until...basketball season. But whatever. It definitely made the sleep deprivation worth it. 

Stormed the field, joined a majority of the freshman at McDonald's at 12:30 in the morning, and then crashed--hard--watching Ironman in our apartment. Mitch and all his roommates and Emi and I were sound asleep before Robert Downey Jr. was even kidnapped. It was an awful wakeup call to realize that going to bed at 2:45 and going to see my parents before my dad started Lotoja was one of the worst ideas I have ever had. However, I survived. My dad finished Lotoja for the 3rd time. All the kids are in bed. And I got to have a heart to heart with my best friend at the temple. Seriously. This year is going to be awesome. And I couldn't be more excited to see what's in store. 

We do what we can.

For some reason, Wednesdays are always the longest day of the week. Emi, Lauren and I have class together at 9:30, but we still have a hard time getting out of bed and motivating ourselves enough to get ready for a 50 minute lecture about creative ahhhhts. [Our professor is incredibly British. Ask Emi how she feels about the way he says "matter."] Anyway, we have unofficially declared Wednesdays "What The Heck Wednesday" or "Top-Knot Wednesdays" because of our inability to look socially acceptable that day. We forgot to take pictures of us all together, but the legging and hoodies and shorts look, all paired with a giant baseball of a top-knot does wonders for our social lives, as displayed in the following picture. [Just kidding. Emi was just using the most prime position for creeping while our door was wide open. Yay. :)]

The ASUSU had a barbecue at First Dam last night [if I hear one more "dam" joke, I will lose my mind.] And of course, we had to document it. Luke, some kid I don't know, Chris, Lauren, Emi, me and Dallin--prior to Luke and Dallin and I going on a canoe adventure. Someone took this picture in the middle of us laughing at Kelsey's attempt to photobomb....but the next one is alright. 

See, we can clean ourselves up from our WTHeck Wednesday and look socially acceptable, even if being social is a drag sometimes. 

One more thing. I have some fabulous roommates. Yesterday, they had the misfortune of being dragged in on a somewhat...awkward situation involving my grandparents, and they stuck it out right along with me. Edited a thank you letter, and helped me find some random house in the middle of Providence to drop it off. So thanks girls (and Luke and Dallin) for helping me out. That's all, really. :) 

Say that to my face.

Really, nothing too exciting happened today. We had an interview with our bishopric as an apartment, and Kevin is currently making our dinner. [Don't worry, we helped. We provided the ranch.] So rather than bore you with more details of my life, I figured I'd post some lovely pictures. 

Seriously. Do I not have the cutest sister on the planet? She got a pillow pet today, and was so stinking excited. There's nothing better than phone calls with a two-year-old. Except maybe lunch with one. She's a keeper. 

It's a wonder we don't have boyfriends. Really. 

 JUSTIN BIEBER'S EYES GOT TRANSFORMED. 

 And this is Snow Hall 102 signing off for the day. Happy Wednesday tomorrow, kids! 

It's all so very true.

Labor Day really is a truly beautiful holiday. Slept in til 9:30, had a job interview at 11, and then explored the depths of Logan with Emi and Lauren. We went a little crazy, and decided to actually cook some real food for a change. Placemats, table settings, and side dishes included. Emi made the main dish, so naturally, we had to pose her in all our kitchen glory. [guys. Our apartment is adorable. Lacking in family room decor, but cute nonetheless.]

"Bodily" chicken [it's a last name, not the kind of fluid. Nasty, but necessary, clarification.] Homemade rolls [thanks Lauren's sister!] with homemade peach jam [thanks Lauren's mom!] and spanish rice. We like our meals...eclectic. It was delectable. And tomorrow? Kevin's cooking dinner for all of us. We like Kevin. He fixes our DVD player, and our fridge, and apparently cooks for us as well. Winner.

We got all fancied up for dinner too. Just kidding, we actually went on a roomie+Kyle+Braden+Mitch adventure to the Brigham City Temple open house. More on that later. 

We're adorable. Even though I look like I'm praying, I have a photogenic bunch of roommates. And they can cook. [Even though Kelsey is always gone, she's a winner too.] And I quite like spending all day everyday with these ladies. 

Back to the temple open house. Folks, the church is true. I've known it since I was little, but things like the temple make me so sure I could cry--which I frequently do. The Brigham City temple isn't the biggest one out there, but it's absolutely beautiful. And I for one have no idea why anyone would want to get married anywhere other than the temple. Even with hundreds of people swarming the building, and incessant whispering, it is still so absolutely peaceful and calm while you're in the temple. We walked into the sealing room, and the Spirit hits you like a ton of bricks. Definitely one of my favorite places in the world. I don't know when the next time will be that I'll get to go that far in the temple, and there's a good chance it won't be until I'm getting married. But I know, without a doubt, that the temple is my ultimate goal, and I want to be sealed there for time and all eternity more than anything else on earth. I know that the temple is a house of God, and that it is a holy place. I love to see the temple. And I will go inside someday. 

Sidenote: It's my mama's birthday today. And I just want whoever reads this to know how much I love her. She's taught me everything I know--and I'm grateful for her every single day even if I don't show it all the time. Because really, who else sends up a chocolate chip cinnamon roll to their daughter an hour away because she's missing the first day of school at home? My mom, that's who. She's instilled a love of music and a knack [I HOPE] for cooking in this little brain of mine, and gives me a first rate example of the kind of parent I want to be when I grow up. Plus, she makes killer cake. It's a win win situation for everybody involved. Love you, Mom. :)