9] throw a sweet party.

Monday night was my ward's summer term opening social. Kind of silly because it's the middle of summer and really almost everyone knows each other... but there are a few new faces sooo why not throw an opening social. Plus they are the easiest to plan... dinner and dessert for 140, location, 30 flyers, etc. No big deal, right? Well kinda, the last ward social we had there were some false communications going around ["Hey Katelyn, you only need to buy enough food for 100."] and the night did not end up how I would have liked. This time I decided everything was going to go perfectly. That being the goal, we had a lot of small details to remember. I even delegated this time! The evening arrived quickly and I was feeling pretty good as everyone started showing up. The short yet sweet night went along very nicely, everyone seemed to have a good time and there was enough delicious food to go around two or even three times. As the festivities came to an end, my man friend needed to leave for the mountains as usual... so I walked him to his manly jeep and he said, "You threw a sweet party tonight, Katelyn." He said that!! and I said something like, "That's on my list!! My list of stuff to do this summer!" So there you have it... apparently it turned out as planned. I even came out of it with a sweet prize for our Supa-Mega Cherry Pie for "Best Presentation!" Believe it or not but it was my first pie I had ever ever ever produced! (:  Anyways, thanks to my wonderful committee for all their help in making everything run well, you all deserve a high five and a Klondike bar.

It was in better shape during the judging, don't worry.

This is the remains of Michelle's fudge apple pie that took "Best Tasting." Our apartment is basically over-flowing with champions.

21] get a library card. . . 22] go to the library and use said card.

After my momentous gardening moment I had a splendid day cleaning and cooking with Marie. We organized all sorts of stuff and inherited a bunch of food from prior roommates. After a while we decided to take a break and that the library was where the party was at. Shortly after departing we discovered that my car had passed away during the night [I keep leaving those blasted lights on... the little guys that click on and off] and that we would have to walk the whole 10ish blocks. Luckily Alycen, our roommate, was heading out the door and let us hitch a ride. Once we got there a kind man with very little teeth and a beat up cane opened the door for us. We marched on in, determined to find adventure. After obtaining my card [check] we had a grand ol' time finding a whole lot of nothing, unless you count the three kid movies and season of Full House. (: Unfortunately, the library closes at 6pm so we nearly got kicked out soon after arriving [really it woulda been much cooler if we would've gotten locked in... the books would probably come to life]. On the walk back we were graced with the over tones of an ice cream truck. I am very familiar with the distant plinking tune of an ice cream truck... you see as a child it would always pass my house but I was never fast enough to catch it. As in I couldn't get to my coins on time... not I was chasing the truck like a fat kid. However, I could most definitely see that happening too. Anyways, last Saturday was special because I didn't have to chase down that truck. It basically rolled into the palm of my hand... and when it did a kind old man with a twirly mustache and twinkling eyes opened all his magical freezers and asked if we would like anything cold and sweet to tickle our fancy on such a hot day. What a pleasant moment....Oh wait... that didn't happen... we almost did have to chase down that blasted truck. With a little luck and Marie's speed walking skills we got there just in time, and when we did a middle-age Mexican man covered in tattoos leaned out the window and said, "You ever seen one of these before?" I think it was the same guy that Autumn dated way back when... hmmm [shoulder shrug]. The kind, yet scary, man told us about how he didn't go to college and such and we bought our blue raspberry screwball and skipped away towards safety. I returned home without a single book to read... and didn't get to the HBLL till Monday evening after 5 hours of class and 5 hours of work. However, it was a lovely reward to I trudge through the sunshine up to the fifth floor of the library where I found some just as lovely reading treasures. I only found about a fourth of my list so I'll for sure be back in exactly three weeks... when they are all due. Things I learned from this dainty little experience: 1) you CAN check out books from the sample collection on the 3rd floor. and 2) really, don't talk to strangers.If you have any reads you think I should check out please let me know. Party on.

3] plant a garden on my front porch.

Done and done! This one wasn't too difficult... you see, a couple of weeks ago I asked Todd if he could conjure me up some sort of garden for my porch [I live on the second floor of an apartment complex so it would have been a joke if he wasn't so clever]. The next morning I woke up to find two pots filled with miracle gro, just  hanging out w/ Berk right outside my front door! Thanks again T-dawg! I immediately wanted to run straight to Macey's and examine all the fun little seed packages on the rotating thingy until I found the perfect ones... unfortunately I have a job and spring term was just starting to get down and dirty with my schedule. It took crazy patience to leave the pots on the porch and wait till finals were over. Guess what... that was two weeks ago and spring term is now d-d-d-done!! [Which I am terribly overjoyed about.] Last night I had Todd in town so we ventured to the WalMart around midnight and picked up some plant friends. [Yes, WalMart's garden stuff IS open late!] I got two petunia buddies, one little pink guy and a huge purple fellow, a roma tomatoe plant named bonnie, and some magnolia seeds [only 20 cents!]. We also got some black spray paint to make the pots look nice... 'cause apparently I'm all about being classy. After leaving spray paint on the parking lot, as well as some rings on the porch, we called it quits and parted ways for the night. Then this morning, after sleeping over time by like 30 minutes, I rolled out of bed and built me a garden! We busted out all sorts of gardenee wisdom made some lovely arrangements. 

This first guy is Bonnie... he will make tomatoes for my sandwiches.

Here are the shy magnolias.

The pink ones are hardly noticeable but still overall very pretty.

p.s. they're hanging out just northwest of my apt by the stairs... they get sun there, which is probably a good thing.

This summer term

... is going to be epic. I am going to work hard and play hard... all the while resting up like crazy for fall semester. My only restrictions will be the law and my public speaking class twice a week. So [in no specific order] here is what's goin' down:

1] keep running.
2] run 'Barry's Drive-In Supa Mega Half-Marathon' on July 17th.
3] plant a garden on my front porch.
4] go to Dairy Keen w/ my favorite boy.
5] defeat the Fudrucker's Challenge, then some (yeah right).
6] be awfully original and hike timp in the middle of the night just in time for the sunrise.
7] find those blasted falls up Hobble Creek.
8] get my picture on sammy's wall.
9] throw a sweet party.
10] go on a bike ride up to Bridal Veil... tandum??
11] practice the piano.
12] fix family search index and get back in the habit.
13] visit the wildlife at Hogle Zoo
14] successfully have a fire party at Utah Lake.
15] tie-dye t-shirts... or socks.
16] finish reading Princess Bride.
17] make homemade ice cream... and share it with my roommates.
18] get an A++ in my TMA 150 class.
19] learn how to break it down.
20] try not to be a wimp when I get pressured into climbing up a waterfall.
21] get a library card.
22] go to the library and use said card.
23] thirty minutes of scriptureness everyday.
24] make somethings delicious out of a plantain.
25] get a bike... for free or terribly cheap.
26] swing off a rope into Mona Lake.
27] make banana pancakes.
28] wake up early on a Saturday and get all-you-can-eat waffles.
29] go to an Owlz game.
30] go to The Chocolate and sit in a little booth.
31] take a trip to the sliding rock... and slide on it.
32] make a natty-bowl at color-me-mine.
33] hit up the farmer's market at Pioneer Park.
34] take a visit to the aquarium in Sandy.
35] go see INCEPTION and understand the whole thing.
36] experience the fine dining of Joe Bandido's Fiestaraunt.
37]

This list is subject to change and will most likely grow significantly as the summer rolls along.

Taking the Stairs

About a year ago I declared my major at Brigham Young University. After a lengthy process and far too many options I settled on the major of Exercise and Wellness. No, it's not exercise science... I don't want to be a doctor, I just want to make a difference. I want to work with fat people. I want to work with young adults that lack self-confidence, mothers that can't keep up with their children, and grandparents that want to live longer and healthier lives. With this major I'll gain the knowledge that I need to work with these individuals where ever they are, whether in hospitals or health centers. As for people I don't want to work with... the self-absorbed. You know those people that can't seem to get buff enough, tan enough, thin enough... I'm avoiding that like the plague. I want the people I influence and work with to need and appreciate me. I want to help them find a brighter light in themselves. About a month ago I was informed by someone very dear to me that I had a little self-confidence issue. This took me aback and I realized, "woah, I don't think very highly of myself." My guess is that these fat people don't think very highly of themselves either, if they did they would treat themselves better, right? Yeah are those fat'n'jolly people around... but are they really happy with themselves? Anyways, since I was told that I needed some more confidence I have put in quite the effort to improve. A few things I did was make sure I was 1) studying and praying daily and 2) exercising and eating healthy. Earlier this week one of my favorite people asked me, "Why are you so wonderful??"... then it hit me [after I got over the "oh he's terribly cute" moment]... "Why would I want to be anything else?" I want everyone to feel wonderful about themselves, I want to help those lacking in confidence to see and reach their full potential. So how am I going to do this? Well first off I'll stick with my major, secondly--as a short term goal--I'm going to do well in my nutrition 200 class. So far it's doing a fairly good job at kicking my behind, but I'm going to keep at it... the knowledge this class can give me will be essential once I am graduated and in the real fat world. Other goals and such that I'm going to do... 1) find an internship. 2) continue building confidence [maybe someday it'll leak onto someone who needs it]. and 3) I'm going to take the stairs.

I'm not dead yet...

It's been quite some time since I last posted... Tuesday's just haven't been the same, have they? Well fear not, I'm back and ready for action. Spring term gets out in one week!! and I cannot wait to finally start enjoying my summer w/o school constantly on my shoulder. I did start a silly sitcom blog over winter semester while I was gone from all you dedicated readers [baha] but I'll for sure be posting on this guy much more.

Buckle your seat-belts kids, I'm about to have a beautiful summer.