Keep looking up.

I GOT A LETTER. 

[And yes, that is just how I announced it to the entire Lundstrom Student Center Friday morning.] It's funny how much better someone can make you feel even when you haven't talked to them in a week and a half. 

Then, I had a conference with one of my English professors to have my first college essay critiqued and reviewed. We had to do a five page analysis of a work of poetry, and I was not exactly excited about the assignment. BUT. I got in there, and he handed me my essay and said, "My only suggestion? Work on your title. It sucks. You're an excellent writer." 

Day made. 

Laundry is free in the LSC all week, and we took advantage of that...at one a.m. 

And obviously, the hour got to our heads. But good news, we have clean dish rags now. 

Even though Friday was wonderful, Saturday was...less than great. I had to work at five, after spending three hours on the phone with some of the incoming freshmen. I was planning on being home by midnight at the very latest...and then we remembered that the Mardi Gras dance on campus wouldn't be over until 1:00. I left work at 4 a.m. I love my job, but not that much.

Now it's time for Sunday dinner, the Grammy's, and a Joseph Smith fireside in the Spectrum. I'm a happy girl. 

We're just different.

Friday night, I had to work until close, which is at 2 a.m. I got home around 2:45, and all of the lights in my apartment were still on, so I knew my roommates were awake...but I couldn't hear them or find them anywhere. So I walked into my room to change, and they started singing. From my bed. Wrapped in Christmas lights. I guess I'll keep them around. 

My interview for A-Team went really well, apparently, because I have an individual interview today at 4:45. Laur, A-Ludd, and Em helped me pick out an outfit for today so they'd all feel partially responsible if I make it...we'll see how it goes. 

After I untangled the snitches from the lights, we moved our mattresses out into our family room and had a giant sleepover Friday and Saturday night. We slept until noon...and even though I've never done that before, it was so nice. First time I've had more than 8 hours of sleep in who knows how long. Even though I woke up in the crack between mine and Kenzie's bed at least three times and probably spent a majority of the night on Kenzie's mattress, it was great. And made for an even more entertaining Sunday nap session. 

When the restaurant you work at doesn't need anymore one dollar bills, you get stuck with way too many of them. So Paige decided it would be fun to throw them all over my bed and then roll in them. The ultimate waitress problem, right here. The bank is going to love me today. 

Kenzie and Adrienne did a dress rehearsal of our Christmas surprise, and decided that rather than both being elves, Kenzie was going to be a pregnant polygamist. I'm telling you, my life would be much less entertaining if these two weren't such a huge part of it. 

Jon and Bronson spent a large part of the last 48 hours in our apartment and we kept them up way too late every night, watching Warrior, making cupcakes, and last night....we painted Jon's nails. He'd make a great hand model, wouldn't he? 

We wanted to see what Jon would look like with long hair...so Emi volunteered her mane...and really, we just wanted you all to appreciate Jon's shirt. DisneyWorld sells some quality looking clothing, my friends. 

It's been quite the weekend, and this week is going to be an adventure. A-Team interview today, work tomorrow, and the Aggies play the Cougars on Wednesday in Provo [you better believe we're making the drive down there.] Then more work, more work, and finals next week. Living on the edge of crazy makes life that much more entertaining. 

Coming full circle.

Other than the fact that I'm so dead tired from last week that I can't even see straight, life is absolutely wonderful. I got to watch Kelsey and Dallin feed each other treats while the rest of my roommates were on an adventure (I'm telling you people, that right there is love. It was like a wedding reception cake eating fest on steroids. Because it was in 102. Surrounded by Halloween lights. And a homemade banana bar instead of wedding cake. They're a match made at USU.)

Saturday night was the [in]famous Howl up here, and these kiddos went all out. There's Emi the Flapper, Kyle Mafia Man, Kelsey's a 50's chick, and Taylor....he's the Sexy Saxophone man. Wearing MY leather jacket and MY leather boots. It's fine. Lauren's friends came up too, and Laur, Marley, Mckenzie, Adrienne, Lauren, Brock, Kyler and Hunter went to a corn maze while Hailee and I stayed back at the apartment and played with cats. [No folks, I'm not kidding.]

Hailee and I also had to run a couple errands for my great grandma and grandpa. My great grandpa Dave has been in the hospital for a couple weeks with multiple blood clots, and my great grandma has refused to leave him. So while they've been at the University Hospital in Salt Lake, their house has been untouched for a little while. I went to pick up their mail, check the house, and all that stuff for my aunts so that my grandma could rest a little easier, and dropped it all off at the hospital Sunday morning. Now, you have to understand how much I hate hospitals. They've always made me feel kind of anxious, and I've just never been a fan. I was a little stressed about making it to the hospital by myself, since I don't drive in Salt Lake like ever, and I'm slightly directionally challenged. But. I made it. 

I parked, grabbed the stuff, and made it all the way to the front desk without freaking out. But as I got up to the elevators, I had the strangest flashback of the last time I was at a hospital. It was the week before my grandma passed away, and we went knowing that this was the last time we'd get to see her. Getting into the elevator on Sunday, I couldn't get that out of my head. By the time I got to the 6th floor, dropped the stuff off, and was headed back down, I was in tears and shaking so bad I couldn't push the buttons for the parking elevator. I got back to my car and just cried for a minute--because I was scared. Because I miss my grandma so much it physically hurts sometimes. And I cried because I was so glad I wasn't one of the people who had lost someone and had no knowledge of what comes after this life. As I was sitting in my car, I got this message from my uncle Kip. [I hope he's okay that I screenshot-ed this, but I needed to save it.] Sometimes, its the little reminders in life that remind us that people everywhere care about us, and that our Heavenly Father is always looking out for us and knows every part of our hearts.

I'm sure Kip and Ginny don't realize how much I needed this simple reminder right at that very second--or as my grandma would call it, that tender mercy. I'm so grateful for my eternal family, for the fact that they are spiritually in-tune enough that they can help without realizing it, and for the knowledge I have that I will be able to be with them forever. Because that's the best kind of family, the forever and ever kind. 

After a busy weekend, full of parties, farewells, errands, and all sorts of stuff. It's all we can do to stay awake through the most pointless class offered at USU. Props to Jon for capturing Paige and Brianna out cold to prove to the world that David Wall can quite literally bore us all to death. Happy Monday, kids. :) 

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. 

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.