Month: May 2014

Memorial Day Weekend

May 27, 2014 — 1 Comment

I’ve been to the cemetery before. I’m not sure why it was a little different this time. Memorial Day always holds a trip to Salt Lake to see my great-grandparents that I don’t really remember. My grandparents laugh at memories, and my mom always tells me that I’m so much like my Grandma and that we would’ve loved each other, and that she always had candy in her house. It was fun to go with my younger cousins and share with them the stories I’ve heard for years, about people I hardly knew. This time everything was more poignant, probably because I’ve gotten more sentimental in the past few years. But I’m really glad I have, and I’m glad I got to go spend some time with family this weekend.

Love them all so much!!
The rest of my Memorial Day weekend included cake for my sister’s birthday that’s coming up TOMORROW (more on that later!), games with my fam bam, seeing cousins and second cousins and great aunts and uncles, an extensive hike at Red Butte Gardens complete with Australian and British accents and a nice-roast for my sister, lunch at the most amazing pizza place in Utah, Nickel City with some of my besties, a meteor shower and all the puns that go along with that, bonfires and s’mores, pool time in the rain, some excellent shopping finds, fishing in Payson which was WAY too much fun, eating said fish, and a ward ultimate frisbee game to round it all out. All in all, a very satisfying weekend. 
This is prosciutto a pear with pistachios, basil, and mozzarella cheese. YUM.
Love these cute sisters of mine!
And this is a more accurate depiction of us.
Basically all of summer was wrapped up into four days and I can’t wait to do it again!

What I wish I could tell me 15 year old self

May 23, 2014 — 2 Comments

I recently did a segment on The Matt Townsend Show about helping teenagers. My specific section was about what I wish I had known when I was 15.

People told me this….my parents, friends, family members, and other people I looked up to. I didn’t really listen like most teenagers. But these are the things I wish I had listened to and acted on when I was 15.
–Laugh more. The crazy things that are happening to you right now will be the best stories. Stop taking yourself so seriously.

–Don’t try to be perfect. You won’t get there. So be the best you in the world, and that’s perfect enough.

–Be nice to everyone. It will come back to haunt you when you were rude to the quiet girl or the odd guy. Just be nice to everyone you meet.
–Don’t gossip. When you gossip with your friends, they gossip about you. Just don’t be that girl. Be known as the girl who never has a rude thing to say about other people.
–Get a short memory. It doesn’t matter what happened last week, what matters is today! Do your best today!

–Be nicer to your mom. Your mom has been through this, and she wants to help you from making the same mistakes. Sure, you won’t agree on everything, and that’s ok. But remember, she’s getting older too. She hasn’t gone through this specific point in her life yet either. Both of you are in new territory and it’s hard…don’t make it harder on her.
–The boys aren’t always worth it. Girls will go crazy trying to be something they think the boys want. Just be yourself and forget about them! Seriously. They’re fun to have as friends, but only when you can be yourself around them.
–Being smart isn’t stupid. In fact, being smart is the very best thing you can be. Don’t be ashamed of your intelligence!
–Eat FOOD. Food is wonderful. I’m all for being healthy, but for heaven’s sake EAT a little! Be active and maybe don’t eat out for every meal or eat 3 bowls of ice cream a day, but we are way too obsessed with how we look. Be happy instead of trying to be hot.

–The media is mostly wrong. That’s not real life. Look for real people to look up to…it’ll make you happier in the long run.

–Spend more time with your family. I’m all about being social and hanging out with friends, but I love the times I spent with my family laughing and playing crazy games, and just talking.
–Put down your phone sometimes. Now I didn’t have a cell phone with texting when I was a teenager, but I did rush to Facebook and instant messaging every chance I could. Those friends will probably not be a part of your life in a few months. The best ones will stick around, but they’re not the ones you talk to 24/7.

–It’s about quality, not quantity when it comes to friends. You don’t need a certain number of friends, just a number of friends you can be certain of. I’m still figuring this one out.

–To go with the previous one…be a good friends. Listen to others, try and help them, be there for them. You have no idea when they might need you the most.

–Be happy. People aren’t going to always like you. In fact, you could be perfect and people won’t like you. So stop trying to be someone else. Just be YOU and be happy with YOU.

If you are a teenager or you know one…share this info. She probably won’t listen…but there’s a chance she might. And that’s worth it.

Also, happy Friday everyone! My Memorial Day weekend has officially begun!!!

Domesticate-cha

May 20, 2014 — Leave a comment
Heading to Miracle Bowl and pretending you’re practicing for a league game is always a good idea.

Look at that delicious food. I can be domestic:)
This is seared chicken and sausage with a bit of SandP and Mrs. Dash, asparagus roasted in the oven for ten minutes, mashed potatoes with a hint of garlic salt, and gravy made from said chicken and sausage. Delllicoussssss
Lesson I’ve learned this week? Forgiving is good.
Happy Tuesday everyone!

Mama’s Day

May 15, 2014 — Leave a comment

WHOA I have been MIA lately. I’m sorry dearest friends. Give me about a month and I’ll be a lot less busy.

So Mother’s Day happened while I was so distant and bad at blogging.

It was great:)

My angel mom is the best person that I know and I feel very lucky to be her daughter.

In Church on Sunday we talked about a concept I want to share with you.

Our teacher shared a story about a woman who felt guilty for not making heart cookies on Valentine’s Day and not hand crafting all the kids Valentines, for not throwing a party and having a pink and red dinner. Later that night, she and her kids had a dance party. It was then she realized that she wasn’t crafty mom or chef mom…she was crazy dance party mom. And that was what her kids needed.

This idea struck me. Your kids need YOU as their mom. They don’t need anybody else or the things that anybody else does. They need your best effort and that is IT.

Kids want their moms to be happy. We appreciate your sacrifices more than we can possibly explain, but we also want you to have fun sometimes. We want to help you put yourself first sometimes. So let us, and help us know what you need from us. We hate feeling like a burden on you…we hate thinking that you can’t do or be something because you have to be our mom. Live your life and let us be a part of it. Let us help you just like you’ve helped us for our whole lives.

I love you mom! I’m the luckiest daughter alive because I got intelligent-funny-beautiful-creative-witty-sarcastic-selfless-tender-spiritual-andamillionotherthings mom.

Lastly…a small rant from me. All around me I see people who are pretending. Pretending to be something they aren’t. The best decision I ever made was to stop caring what other people think. To love being alone with myself…and to let more of my real self show. To be authentic. To go with my first instinct. To be Maddy…no apologies, no shame, no regret. I make mistakes, it’s true. And some people still don’t like me. But I am so happy that I like myself. People aren’t always going to like you…no matter what you act like or who you try to be. So why not be yourself, and like that person?

Basically what I’m trying to say, is that it’s easy to be self-absorbed…to only care about ourselves and the image we give off. I’m trying to be less selfish…and being myself has helped me do that. I don’t have to worry about acting like this or that…I am just me. And that gives me a lot of time  to focus on other people. It might be worth trying for you too.

Because this was an extra long wordy and ranting post…I’d like to give you all a little treat to end it:)

https://youtube.googleapis.com/v/BfIehCrO4Zs&source=uds

Mother’s Day and Cosmo

May 9, 2014 — Leave a comment

Dear friends:

I feel like I gripe about how busy I am all the time…but I am BUSY! Life is great though:)

I’m a bit jealous of all my friends around the world on their study abroads and such, but I’m having a blast reporting for 11 News and working for BYU Radio. It’s fun to meet all kinds of people and learn new things every single day!

I also enjoy baseball games with Cosmo and my friends.

My cute Matt Townsend team with our fairy rings. Matt is lame as you can see, and Jess is leaving me alone with the boys:( Miss you Jess!

Cosmo sweeps me off my feet sometimes.
Mother’s Day is coming up my dear friends! So here are my recommendations on what you should do for your sweet amazing, angel mother:
Put your phone away. Spend the day with your mom free from distractions. Sure, she’ll love the flowers and the poem or the necklace, but she’ll love even more that you set down the phone to talk with her, to be a part of the family. That’s the greatest gift you can give her this year.
Happy Friday everyone!

Summer Time

May 4, 2014 — 6 Comments

Guys, summer break is here.

Well for me it’s not a break, I’m still in school. But there’s something wonderful about waking up early in the morning to the sun, to walking around on campus without a jacket, and to getting into your car with the steering wheel a little too hot to touch.

I have a long list of things I want to do this summer, as well as a BYU bucket list for things I want to do with my last year here at the Y. I figure if I post it on my blog, I’ll be more likely to stick to it! So here we go:)

1. Rooftop Concert

2. Drive in movie
3. Float the Provo river
4. Baseball games
5. Visit Utah Lake or Great Salt Lake
6. Bonfire
7. Swim at Cherry Hill or Seven Peaks
8. Rope swing in Mona 
9. Camping
10. Pie shake
11. Roast mallows at the bell tower
12. Picnic

There you have it folks, my summer 2k14. Now keep in mind, I’ll be going to school until June and then doing my internship from June to August. There would be lots more activities on my list if I wasn’t so darn busy!

Here is my BYU Bucket List (which has some duplicates, but that’s ok)

1. Creamery Ice Cream

2. Picture with Cosmo
3. Football Game
4. Baseball Game
5. Basketball Game
6. Rugby Game
7. Gymnastics meet
8. Squaw Peak Kiss
9. Eat a Pie Shake
10. Rooftop concert
11. Drive in movie
12. Float the Provo river
13. Visit Utah Lake
14. International Cinema
15. Hike the Y
16. Rope swing in Mona
17. J Dawgs
18. Leave a note in the testing center
19. Stay in the library as late as possible
20. Eat at the Canon center
21. Go camping
22. Walk into every BYU Building
23. Volunteer at the MTC
24. Roast marshmallows at the Bell Tower
25. Picnic
26. Hide and Seek at BYU buildings

Never fear, I have already done some of these things, I just want to do them all again before I leave BYU! Part of the experience right?;)

If you have other ideas for either my summer or BYU Bucket List, let me know!

Also really quick, this is what’s been up with me:)

This cute sister of mine took 2nd in the Hurdles at the BYU invitational meet. SO proud of her! My brother is awesome and has a job with a law firm for the summer before Harvard, and cute Bethany just finished up being Kim in Bye Bye Birdie, and is on to lacrosse! My siblings are so talented. 

Sometimes after Fast Sunday you need a grilled PB and J.
Happy Sunday everyone!

The times they are a changin’

May 1, 2014 — 1 Comment

Friends, life is always so busy.

Spring semester began this week, and I’m a crazy busy girl now.

I go to school ALL DAY on Monday and Wednesday, have some classes on Friday, and on my “off days” I go in to work, do homework, and go out for my reporting class to get interviews and footage. Basically, I’m on the go all the time. It’s ok, it’s just for six weeks right?

This little blog will probably be somewhat neglected, so here’s my apology in advance.

I just have to say how much I love my job/major. I picked something that was perfect for me. I LOVE talking to people and getting to know lots of different people. That, plus writing, means I’m in heaven.

Do what you love and you’ll never work a day in your life! Sometimes I do feel like I’m working, and working way more than I anticipated, but 99% of the time I love what I’m doing.

Just a few photos for you to see what’s been up besides school and work!

Madeline and Olivia, just like me and my sister! Now we just need a Bethany book!

Cutest baby duckies EVER
Happy Thursday everyone!