Welcome!

Welcome to my blog!  I have never done something like this before so bare with me while I figure out how to do everything exactly.  I decided to create this blog because I am not always able to keep in touch with all of the people I want to share everything with and I feel like a blog would at least allow people who are interested to read about the FABULOUS things that are happening in my life.

So, lets catch you up to speed.  I moved to Provo, Utah at the beginning of August for a variety of reasons, although I sometimes find myself wondering those reasons are good enough to leave the amazing place that is Orange County, California.  Reason number one for moving to Provo was for school.  I  am a Communications major (with an emphasis in Public Relations) at Utah Valley University (UVU) in Orem, which is the little city right next to Provo.  I absolutely love this school!  The teachers are all great and the school offers a lot of opportunities that I hope to be able to take advantage of in the future, such as studying abroad in Spain and the National Student Exchange Program, which allows you to study at various colleges in the United States, Canada, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, and Guam.  They also have an amazing dance program at the school, including the Dancing with the Stars College Champion Ballroom dance team.  I am actually taking a Latin Ballroom dance class this semester and I love it so much that I signed up for the intermediate level of Latin Ballroom Dance and the beginning level of International Dance next semester.  I hope to be able to audition for the various levels of ballroom dance teams that the school has next fall.  

Another reason for moving here was, honestly, a commandment.  In the fall of 2009 I had a feeling I should look into moving to Utah.  I mentioned it to my Grandma and she thought it would be a good idea to escape California after the events of that summer and start over somewhere else.  I dismissed the idea because I felt California was where I belonged, where I had roots and Utah was definitely not somewhere that I was ever interested in living, especially because of the snow (yuck).  In the spring of this year, I received another feeling, stronger this time, that I should really consider moving to Utah for school.  I decided to look into the schools in the Provo/Salt Lake area and took an interest in UVU as it seems to be a more liberal school then BYU, which I felt would fit me better.  So I paid the $35 application fee because I figured if I decided against moving to Utah, it was only $35.  Slowly, the idea of moving to Utah started to grow on me.  I prayed about it and got an overwhelming sense of peace and tranquility (which, if you know me well enough, rarely happens).  I wasn't worried about leaving my full-time job with health benefits at Disneyland or the fact that I was going to be paying out of state tuition for the first year of college.  I knew that Utah was where Heavenly Father wanted me to be.  So, I took a giant leap of faith and, with my three amazing friends, a mini van, and a Toyota Camry, moved to Utah. 

A fun little side story that truly proves that Heavenly Father knows the needs of each of his children.  So, I arrived in Provo at around 10:30pm on a Saturday night.  I went to church the next day, feeling a little bit nervous and trying really hard to not question the huge decision I had just made.  I was sitting in Relief Society (a "Sunday School" class only for women) by myself and was trying hard to not start crying, as I was a little emotional that my friends had left that morning and it was starting to sink in that I was really in Utah... alone.  As I was thinking this I looked up and saw a poster with Joshua 1:9 printed on it, which reads "Have I not commanded thee?  Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the Lord thy God is with thee whithersoever thou goest".  I was overwhelmed with gratitude that my Heavenly Father loved me enough to comfort me in my time of need.  That will forever be one of my favorite scriptures. 

So, the following Monday, I woke up early and headed out the door in search of a job.  At that point, I would have worked at McDonalds.  I just wanted a job.  I knew that if I did everything in my power, Heavenly Father would provide.  Lynne, the family friend who graciously allowed to stay in her home for the fall semester (messy room and all... sorry Lynne!), works at  the Target in Orem part-time and suggested that I go apply there.  So, Target was my first stop.  I then went to several other retail locations and by the end of the day, I had two job interviews lined up for the next day, including Target.  I continued to apply for things constantly as I didn't want to rest on a job opportunity that was not concrete and continued to schedule interviews on a daily basis for about a week.  I was offered a job at Target a week after I moved to Utah and accepted it, as I love shopping at Target (it's been extremely difficult to not spend my whole paycheck there, especially because I work in the softlines department which includes clothing, shoes, purses, and accessories), they are willing to work around my school schedule, and above all, it just felt right. 

School-wise, I was also blessed.  I had to take placement tests for Math and English so I could be placed into the appropriate classes based on my skills.  After taking the test, you have to go to a counselor who approves the scores and allows you to sign up for classes.  When I met with my counselor, two great things happened.  First, I learned that they accepted my transfer credits, however, none of those classes counted towards my college G.P.A. which means I was given a clean slate and have the opportunity to become a 4.0 student if I so desire.  In order for you to understand how great the second thing is, let me give you some background information.  The "Utah Valley" (as the locals call it), is, in general, a conservative LDS (Mormon) area.  This is part of the reason I didn't want to move here.  I am not used to being surrounded by people of the same faith as me and I would like to say that I'm more liberal than conservative.  I was concerned that everyone was going to be ultra conservative and that I was going to stick out like a sore thumb.  So, back to my counselor, Vegor.  Vegor is a burly man from Valencia, California, with a long ponytail and an earring.  After I finished my meeting with him, and after reading an article in the student newspaper that included a small discussion about "nipple tassels" I was sure that I was going to fit in just fine.   

Since I moved here, some great things have happened as well as some not so great things.  Shortly after being here, I met a really "great" guy who I quickly become smitten with a we began spending time together on a daily basis.  This concerned my grandma a great deal, but I assured her that I would not be getting married quickly like a lot of couples do here.  And when I say quickly I do mean quickly.  Some people get engaged after a couple of weeks of dating and then have the standard, LDS three-month engagement.  Lynne, however, was elated and had decided that this was my soul mate for a variety of reasons.  I was just grateful to had finally found a nice guy, who was LDS and aspired to go to the temple because honestly, I never felt like going to the temple was an attainable goal for me.  I never thought that I would find an LDS guy who could understand my life and accept me for the mistakes I've made.  I felt as if this guy was an answer to my prayers.  I gave thanks to Heavenly Father for showing me that there was at least one guy who accepted me for me and liked me regardless of my crazy (and I say that in the most loving way) family and my crazy life.  He and I became close pretty fast and I was a little taken aback by how much I was willing to share with him, as I had a thick wall up that I was determined to never let anyone over without working very hard.  I decided to go home to Orange County for "fall break" and invited him to come with me.  He accepted the invitation and in the middle of October we went gallivanting across Southern California, going to Disneyland, SeaWorld (where we swam with dolphins), Knotts Berry Farm, Los Angeles, and various other places.  I've learned through traveling with my dear (and can I say extremely patient) friend, Andrea, that you learn a lot about someone when you are stuck with them for four or five days at a time and I figured this would be the time to learn if he could be around me 24/7 for five days, as I am definitely a handful.  We had such an amazing time together and was so excited for our next trip to SoCal, which was planned for February, as my friend, Caitlin, is getting married that month.  Sadly, after that trip, things did not work out the way I thought they would, although the reasons have nothing to to with the trip... I think.  I still see him around and it is somewhat difficult as I had high hopes for that relationship as I truly thought I found a "great" guy that I could be with for a long time.  It still kind of hurts, but I try to see the bright side of things.  Before I met him, I had extremely low expectations for men and never really thought I would get to the temple.  After our short-lived relationship, I have come to realize that going to the temple is definitely something I want and that I am not going to settle for someone who cannot take me there, which, if that's the only reason he came into my life, I find that to be a pretty good reason.  I found a quote that I feel described the relationship between the "great" guy and I... "Some people are meant to be in your life forever, others are just meant to make an appearance".  Thanks "great" guy for making an appearance.  You definitely left an impact!

What else.. I am moving out of Lynne's house on the 17th and moving into a house right next to UVU, which means I can walk to class and not have to use gas in my car!  It's also right next to the freeway, which is convenient for me as I just started a second job as a customer service representative at a company in Lehi, which is about twenty minutes away... maybe less from my new house.  The new house also comes with a theater room (they are all the rage in Utah) and four female roommates.  I am excited to be starting a new chapter in that aspect of my life, but I am eternally grateful for Lynne and her husband, Neil, for their hospitality. 

I have also become the manager of a band called Ultraviolet Catastrophe, whose members include my friend, Brandon, who I have decided is a pretty legit guy and a great friend.  While I don't have any work experience in that field, I do have a few contacts in the music industry and that one of the directions I would love to take my degree, so I am learning.  We have some great ideas and some great contacts and I have confidence that these guys can go far.  I'm so excited for this opportunity and I can't wait to share all the great things we are going to be doing soon!  

I do have something funny to share.  Utah is a place with a lot of areas that are undeveloped (for California standards, anyways), which allows for a lot of wildlife to roam...wild.  I have learned that I am not a fan of deer.  In fact, I am a little bit scared of them, especially while driving.  I have a habit of stopping if I see a deer while driving, which is terrible because I could cause an accident (luckily I have only seen them late at night with no one behind me), but I am honestly terrified I am going to hit the deer and a) kill the deer, which will be on my conscious forever and, b) messing up the front of my car, which has already happened once since being here ( I love it when people stop abruptly to watch a car accident when everyone behind them is still moving...).  I have come to learn in the short time I have been in Utah that I am most definitely a city girl and wildlife can stay far away from me because you never know when a raccoon will attack you with their ferociousness or a dear will kick you to death.  I feel like that would be something that would happen to me.  

Since  moving here, I have had the opportunity to become close to people I don't think I would ever become close to living in California.  My cousin, Charity, and I spend a lot of time together.  For a while I think we saw each other once a week, which is pretty good seeing as she lives about 45 minutes away in a little town called Midway (about thirty minutes from Park City).  My cousin, David Mansfield (son of my "Aunt Vicki", who is actually my mothers cousin), and I have spent more time together since I moved here then I think we ever spent in the 22 years we've known of each other.  I also have spent a lot of time with Melanie Carey and her adorable kids, Blake and Sydney.  I don't see Shane as often as I do the rest of the family, but every once and a while he makes an appearance, giving me words of wisdom about men (thanks Shane!).  I have also had the opportunity to spend some time with Charity's brother, David Thomas, and his wife, who just welcomed a little baby into the world named Jane!  

I think that covers the important things that I have done since I moved here.  I am a very blessed girl and I hope I have expressed that in this blog.  I would not have been able to do all of this without the support of my close friends and family and without some guidance from Heavenly Father.  I promise not all of my blogs with be this religious, but there were a lot of great things that happened to me that I feel would not have happened if it were for a divine intervention. 


Until next time, 


xoxo