Goodbye 2012

I know, yesterday's post was a little ridiculous but I found those pictures of the cat that looked like Marty and I thought they were pretty funny :) Anywho, here are a few re-caps from 2012. I will be honest, it wasn't my favorite year as it was difficult in a few ways with losing my dog, grandma, and grandpa, but there were still some good things along the way :)

First of all, I had the chance to become friends with these girls after moving into my new apartment during Freshman year. They were so much fun to be around!

(But I do not miss how cold the apartment would get)

I was also able to make friends with these two and Jess. I'll admit, during Chelsea and Todd's first date (that night when I kept falling at Classic Skating and they were helping me learn how to skate), I could see some chemistry between the two of them. I am so happy to see them get married this May!!

Alicia got married

Went on a few runs with the fam

spent some time with the cousins

Went wake boarding for the first time

I was able to be a Fol peer mentor with this group, Gryffindor Basketball Awesome

And have spent many laughs, stories, and good times with these girls whom I will miss so much!!

 And random occurences over the Christmas break, like...

finally buying a purse with my name on it :)

making a gigungus bowl of muddy buddies with Ellen

 and starting to attend even more farewells


So now, after completing a year and a half of college, I have had many good times. I've loved having friends come home from missions and sad but excited to see people leave as missionary work is picking up. I've also become more involved through social media with the CF community, which has become such a blessing itself. There are so many people with CF out there who are fighting each day, and it's inspiring to hear from them and give each other encouragement. My heart goes out to those who passed on, not only through CF, but from the tragedy in Connecticut. I'm grateful for good health, and now that I've been out of the hospital for 2 week tune-ups for about 5 years (I just knocked on wood), many great things are to come! There have been many good things that have happened this year, and let me tell you, I cannot wait for this next year. Wanna hint? I've been anxious. I've never been happier to be poked 5 times at one Dr's visit (it wasn't fun, but it's for the better). I paid $40 for a Groupon I found for a dentist, took the bus and hiked in the rain up a steep hill past traffic to get to the dentist (and no cavities!). I have already bought some cute new outfits, and have a physical this week. That's all I'll say for now, stay tuned for more tomorrow, 2013. :)

My Lost Cat

So when I lived in Texas a while ago, we had a few cats over the years. One in particular was named Marty. I believe we chose him because he was part Chocolate Siamese, with the rest of his fur including paws and mouth being white. Our other cat we had before him was a cute Chocolate Siamese (you know, Siamese with short hair and the really dark brown fur covering about half of him), so I believe we thought Marty would be like Abby. Anyways, we found Marty at Petsmart and adopted him, and he was named Marty because he was found underneath a Walmart truck with his pal cat Wally.

We raised him over a few years, and he was nice at first, but then he didn't like us. He thought he was a dog, and he was grumpy. That about sums it up. He always tried to escape the Roy Realm and became a little more annoyed and mean over the years. One time, he disappeared. We saw him in the neighborhood hanging out with other cats 6 months later and he ran from us, not wanting anything to do with us.

Anyways, I saw these pics online, and I think I found him.

Before: Marty when he was sweeter before he became grumpier (Alicia took this picture when he fell asleep on her bed):

 After (pictures of Marty? found online):

So, whoever found "Marty", I applaud you for taking care of him because it must be a challenge.

*Of course, it may not Marty, especially since he looks younger, but go along with me here. He looks a lot like him. Also, I haven't blogged for a while and don't have anything too exciting to blog about so this is what I've got. I promise I'll post something a little better next time.*

Cheers

One final last week

Two this week

Four Next Week

(And finals aren't even technically supposed to start until next week.)

For one test I will I wake up at 5 or 5:30 am for the 7am test, 

with fingers crossed that I will be done with Tobi by then to wake up at 5:30 instead of 5

 And, cheers to that being THE VERY LAST TIME FOR THE 30-MINUTES OF INHALING TOBI

Because after then, I'm starting Cayston again

Yep, I'll probably be the first person ever to "smoke a pipe" at work on Byu campus for the 2nd dose, (it would be easier to keep the med in the fridge at work)

And after that month of Cayston, the puffer version of Tobi will be out.

So I'll be like "bam! That took literally 1 minute!"

But other than that tangent,

I'm going to ace these finals
Or at least pass, which would be a miracle for some of them

I made a pizza to last through this week so I won't have to worry about dinner once I get home.

But guess what?

Yesterday was fast Sunday, so I ended up eating half of it in one sitting after breaking the fast.

 Whoops.

So here's to almost being done with Tobi for.eh.ver.

And more studying

Because fall semester is almost complete. 

Cheers :)

Friday's Favorites

When stresses come our way, it's good to think of things that make us smile or laugh. Finals are coming up (in fact, I already had one), so I decided that a Friday's Favorites post would be good.

Favorite laughs:

I know, this video gets a little gross near the end, but I can't help but laugh hysterically! My family and everyone that I've shown it to usually goes red in the face and their cheeks puff up from trying to hold in laughter, but then the laughter bursts. It's great.:)

This is funny too:

(Which is why I can't see Breaking Dawn. I would probs laugh during the whole movie.)

Favorite recipe:

Truth is, I haven't been cooking that much lately. I usually come home every day after a long day of classes, work, and then the gym. However, even though it's not too special, I have enjoyed this tutorial on how to make the perfect brown rice. For some reason it tastes refreshing and it feels great to eat healthy food.

http://www.ourbestbites.com/2012/08/how-to-make-perfect-brown-rice/

Favorite smiles:

Alright, there's a few this time :)

This one is guaranteed to make you smile :)

I'll admit something..I love cute couples :) I'm not planning on getting married for a long while since I still have a ways to go, but I still love to hear about good date stories and engagements. I love sweet wedding pictures and couples that are just right for each other. I saw this post on Pinterest that I found adorable :) The quick summary of what happened: 
Up proposal -He sat her in a chair loaded with balloons and then gave her a personalized adventure book for the two of them. How sweet is that? :)

With Christmas coming up, I saw this as well. I don't care...I am planning on making Santa cookies. There. But, why not throw in some "tiny donuts" for his little elves?

Here are a few more smiles as well:

With finals coming up and pressures accumulating, sometimes a lot of us feel that this is the best thing to do. Well said, Michael. Well said...

Favorite quotes:

great perspective I often need to remember

-John Lennon

-the Princess Diaries

Giving Thanks

There is a lot to be thankful for. Thanksgiving is a special holiday to take time and think about who we are surrounded by and what we have. I feel so privileged to know such incredible people who have inspired and helped lift me.

First of all, I have an incredible family. We have held through tough times this year while facing a lot of changes. Changes will always happen, but we have kept our faith through the knowledge that families can be together and that in the end we have each other. My family has supported me throughout the hard times and offered encouragement when school and life in general has had its bumps in the road.

I'm grateful for the many friends I see each day and for the laughs shared, encouragement given, and their kindness. I have incredible roommates and am sad to see half of them leave. I have also been sad to see that many of my friends will be leaving on missions, but it helps me appreciate them even more when they are around. This leads to my gratitude has increased for how quickly the gospel is spreading. I have friends who help give pick-me-ups when we're all stuck in the math lab as well as friends who offer encouragement when I have been studying for a while and falling asleep at work while doing so. I have friends who are incredible examples in all that they do, and I am so grateful for them!

I am sooo thankful for good health. The days where I'm not able to breathe as easily help me appreciate the days where I fully can. The times where I can't eat as much because I ate the wrong things help me be even more thankful for the times I can eat more. Honestly, I feel a little too dramatic sometimes. I'll be wondering why I have a 90% PFT instead of a 96% or so, and I will see a post by a CFer that will be along the lines of "My PFTs went from a 50 to an 80-(something)!!! I am so blessed!!" Then I feel guilty, and remember that God has helped me all along. Yesterday was my clinic visit, and my oxygen level dropped a little and my PFTs stayed at a 91 FEV1, but I couldn't complain because it felt so good to be healthy! I feel so blessed to be able to hit the road to run several miles at a time with hardly any stops and go to the gym about every day to lift weights and take exercise classes.

Nothing beats reaching the top of a hill like this during a run and seeing such a sight :)

I am grateful to be a member of this church. I know I talk about my religion a lot, but it's because it helps me every. single day. and I never take it for granted. I am thankful to know that Christ knows how we feel at all times--every joy, pain, sadness, grief..every emotion because he suffered for each of us and knows us personally. I'm thankful to know that through this gospel, we can always come closer to knowing feeling pure joy by coming closer to our Heavenly Father, and that he is always there. He cares for and loves us for who we are, including our emotions, well-being, the activities we participate in, our interests, and so much more because we are his sons and daughters. I'm glad to know that this gospel brings people together to serve one another and lift each other up, for the leaders we have who help us, the sources we have to learn of believers who faced trials and kept their faith, and for the blessings that come if we do what's right. I'm thankful for the power of prayer to bring peace, comfort, and direction at all times.

There are many other things I'm thankful for, which include:

-Surrounding nature, as it helps me see how God's hand is in all things and that he provided such an earth because he loves us.
-A superb education and job.
-Food/Chick-Fil-A/ice cream
-Youtube videos that make me laugh nonstop uncontrollably
-Music
-Movies/Disney
-everything vintage
-technology
-sleep
-my hair straightener
and more

Thank you for being who you are, and many of you reading this have shaped my life in many positive ways. Thanks for everything!

So, the question is, what are you thankful for?

Treatments...Behind the Scenes

I made one of these posts before, but every once in a while I'll catch myself trying to keep myself at least a little entertained during treatments. In fact, I doubt my roommates know this is sometimes what I do while I shake for a couple of hours a day. Jk, I promise it's not all I do, but studying, reading, or Facebook and Pinterest can only last so long, ya know?

So, to any other CFers out there, what are some things you do to pass treatment time?

Trick and Treat

Here is a rambly and sort of random blog post about Halloween this year.

I went to a Halloween ward party dressed as Merida from Brave, but not many people showed up and people kept asking if I was people such as Annie, Daphne (from Scooby Doo), and more, but I thought my (brushed out) curly hair would give it away, but I guess not. Luckily my friends Chelsea and Jess were there, so we were able to dance the way we wanted to to music from decades up to 7th grade year while the lights were on.

A few days later, I promised myself I would not be distracted from the studying that needed to be done while at work. But then my awesome supervisor put a pumpkin on my desk. I jokingly said how I would love to carve it, and he said, "Sure, I have a knife in my office!" So there I was, feeling pretty awesome for carving a pumpkin at work. I started carving a pumpkin carving face I saw on Google, but wanted something not so scary and more funny. It ended up being created into an inside joke that a few people at work and I understand--long story short, we knew someone in the office who ate cat food on accident, and we all (including himself) were joking about it. His daughter got in on it, then we did too, so there's been a lot of blackmail material going back and forth from this whole thing (which is why on the pumpkin, he said he was going to "Zombify me" which is taking a picture to make me look like a zombie. Luckily we aren't Facebook friends so it doesn't matter.) It probably wasn't as funny as I thought it was, but oh well, it's Halloween which is supposed to be fun, right?

Anyways, that was about it for some-what traditional Halloween events.

But then when yesterday arrived, my roommate's mission call also arrived. We had many people crowd into our living room, waiting to hear where she was going to go. Although the mission age has changed, Dana still would have been able to turn her papers in since she is a little older than the rest of us. She has been one of the most prepared and excited people I have ever met to serve a mission. Turns out, she's going to Milan, Italy!! We are all so thrilled for her but will miss her!!

preparing to pig out on pasta, salad, and breadsticks at Olive Garden

I believe that this Halloween has opened my eyes as to how much we are all growing up. It was the first time that I wasn't too sad about not going Trick-or-Treating, but instead reminiscing on how great it was while being a kid. This year wasn't so full of Halloween parties, dressing up, or having time for scary movies, (but I had an I still ate junk food and candy yesterday.) Although I didn't participate in so much of the traditional Halloween events or atmospheres, (even atmospheres here in P-town can be very sketch for parties, dances, etc--I learned the hard way from one night that I have to be more careful), I couldn't have been happier to see my roomie open her call. It's weird how time flies, but it's exciting to see my fam and friends progress in their lives. :)

New Future Hobby

A few weeks ago my cousin Kara called up, asking if I wanted to help her redo an old table with chairs. They were classy in the 70s or 80s or who knows when, but they needed a touch up. I don't think Kara or her hubby Kasey believed me when I told them I was thrilled to help, because as geeky as it seems, I've wanted to learn how to redo furniture for a long time!

First Kara and I headed to Home Depot to buy some supplies: sandpaper (both medium and the heavy-duty--trust me when I say if you ever redo furniture, you will need the heavy duty), paintbrushes, turquoise paint, and plaster of Paris. (Funny story about the plaster of Paris--the worker there thought we were psychos for needing it to mix into paint for furniture, but he said "Hey, they used it in Paris and Rome, and their stuff lasted a long time.")

We started on the project once we reached the G home. We sanded down the inside squares and brushed off the dust with a broom (while wearing masks.) Kara and Kasey then took the fabric off the chairs.

You can't really see it here, but the wood had a purplish tint to it.

Kara then mixed a cup of plaster of paris with about 1/8 C water and turquoise paint to match the fabric she bought beforehand.

We then slabbed on the paint, ready to redo these classy chairs and table. The paint dried more quickly than normal since it contained plaster of paris, so it was tricky to smooth out the paint in nice streaks, but it was doable.

We then laid out the cushions on the fabric to measure and cut, leaving extra fabric to fold over to staple. Kara and Kasey stapled the fabric to the backs of chairs, and it was a little tricky keeping it tight enough while pulling and tucking it in, but they ended up looking so good!

The seats were screwed back on and a brown ribbon was glued on as a lining to cover the staples and screws.

Once a finishing gloss paint was on top, it was done!

I don't know why someone painted over the original wood--you can't really see it here, but the natural wood was a pretty, light peach-ish color.

We thought the project turned out to be well-done!! It was an all-day project, but it was only a day. It still stands in the their kitchen as I believe it receives a lot of compliments. We decided to celebrate that night by watching football and eating sushi, which was my first time, and it wasn't bad at all! I've decided that once I have my own home I would love to buy old dressers, benches, tables, etc, and touch them up a bit. ;)