defining life: May 2011

Tuesday, May 31, 2011

top ten things i'm looking forward to this summer

1. camp. camp. camp. camp. camp. camp. camp. It is so surreal that I'm going. that i'll finally be a tecumseh counselor. that i'll be there for ten weeks of amazing campness.

2. being tan. i love being tan. not enough to go sit in a tanning bed, but i just love the glow of summer.

3. being at tecumseh with michelle maggie and sarah ALL AT THE SAME TIME! it'll be awesome. even better than our roadtrip at the beginning of this year.

4. michelle being a CILT. yeah this isn't me, but i am seriously so excited for her to be a CILT. that's one of the things i've spent the most time regretting not being able to do, and i'm glad that she gets the chance to do that and go to YL camp too.

5. yvette is sending me a care package at camp. i'm already excited. care packages are so spectacular because, well, people care about you.

6. going swimming everyday. I really like swimming. I’m excited to meet new friends and campers at the pool and lake and be a CT lifeguard

7. taylor swift concert. This could be the greatest thing. I think it will be. i love so much of what she stands for and i'm excited to see her in person, especially after a bunch of people in des moines saw her just the other day. so jealous.

8. i'm excited about the number of people who want my summer address and who want to come visit me. i don't really know how visitors work out, but i do love me some mail. i like that people still want to be friends, even though i won't be around peoria to be friends. i like my friends.

9. missing out on family reunion drama. no matter what side of the family, something always goes down when everyone gets together. i really wish that since we're family, everyone could work a little harder to get along, but that never happens, so i'm glad that i won't have to witness or deal with that.

10. giving out friendship bracelets. it's always just so much more fun in the summer. friendship and summer just go together.

Friday, May 27, 2011

i'm not very good at staying on topic. sorry.

Bad things really suck when they happen to you, but I've experienced lately that it's almost harder to watch bad things happen to someone else. You just feel so weak and powerless as you watch someone else's world get rocked by something they never wanted to happen. I always just think of a little kid asking why bad things happen, and the worst part is that nobody knows. When I see my friends hurting, all I want is to sit and cry with them. I know it doesn't make anything better, but I just hate seeing them suffering alone. I struggle with this because a lot of times, people just want to be alone. They don't want help of sympathy from people, they just want answers. I want to try to be more intentional about caring for others. I want my friends to know that I'm always always there for them, even if they don't feel like they want anyone. I want it to be natural and like second nature for me to go see a friend without them asking. I want to not hesitate. I want to not think twice. I want to be there.
I don't have best friends, but I do love all of my friends more than they probably know. If I'm friends with someone, we're really friends. I really hate it when girls are friends with someone, but as soon as the friend leaves the room, the girl talks to the rest of her friends about how annoying and clingy and weird she is. I love my friends and try my hardest to stick up for them.
It's weird how different friendships are different.
I really like being home with my sister. And the rest of my family too. But especially Michelle. I wish she wasn't still in school so we could legit hang out, and not just sit around and study for her chemistry test. I'm excited to spend this weekend with her with our extended family. These are usually the times where we talk to each other the most, because we both get tired of being around everyone else. I like her and she says funny things and I like her outlook on things. She's presh mcgesh.

Wednesday, May 18, 2011

prom.

Prom.
Oh prom.
I have so many mixed feelings about prom.
I have no memories of being the little girl wishing to dress up all pretty in big cinderella dresses. I never really felt like I needed to be one of the pretty prom girls all dressed up and out for dinner at Olive Garden. I don't know why, because it seems like everyone was like that. As a high school junior, yeah, I wanted to go to prom like some of my friends who went, but it wasn't a big deal, because I still had senior year, nbd. Then senior year came around, and a lot of long stories short, I didn't go because evidently it was more important for sophomores to go. Oh well. Neither Natalie nor I went, so we made lemonade from lemons. We hit every one of our friends' picture places, made it into a few group shots looking prom-perfect,

took a tour of Peoria,

had dinner, ate ice cream, laughed a lot, made cupcakes, watched a movie, and hung out with our friends after they were back from the dance. We had way more fun than they did. I loved this night with Natalie and loved that we didn't have to buy $300 dresses and prom tickets in order to have a blast.

This year, I obviously did not go to prom. But I definitely still made it to pictures. My senior and junior friends were all hyped up about prom and all understandably excited.

I got to hang out with Alyssa as she was getting ready and chat and catch up on life. It's so strange to think that she's nearly finished with her senior year and will be in college come fall. I loved her dress and the fact that she knew exactly how many bobby pins made her hair so gorgeous.

I've missed seeing and talking to Ali. She's such a beautiful girl, inside and out, and I'm so thankful that I got the chance to be friends with her, thanks to RHS tennis. I love that we're the same that we both get really nervous about things, and then they turn out perfectly fine. I loved her hair and wish I really knew how to curl mine.

It was fabulous to see Maureen. It was weird to see her play doubles with someone else this tennis season, but I'm glad we still stayed in contact and maintained our friendship while I was at Drake. Her dress was so classy and I love the one-shoulder style. Plus I got to see Maggie too.

I loved seeing Caitlin and that she was just as excited to see me as I was to see her. This girl and I were so tight last year, and I really hate that our friendship fell apart this year just because I was four hours away. We have a lot to catch up on, but I'm hoping that our friendship will stay strong this year, even if it takes some hard work. Caitlin would make any dress gorgeous, but I loved her choice.

All of these girls were the definition of classy and fabulous for prom. I will never wish to go back to high school, but I'm glad I could be there to share this special day with my high school girls.