It can only get better from here

I'm so glad that we have these great memories of over the top frilly floral dresses and overalls. Remember the days when planning what you wore for family pictures was a thing?

I forgot how much I love it

Today we went to a BYU Men's Rugby match and it. was. awesome. As soon we walked past the players warming up my heart leapt inside my chest. I could literally feel the joy spread through my body as I thought about everything rugby. I had this weird urge to scrum, ruck, tackle, and work in a way that is only possible in a rugby match. In that split second moment I missed the constantly sore muscles, the multicolored bruises that turned my legs and arms in to a colorful collage, the feel of cleats on my feet and knee length socks up my legs, but most of all, I missed playing with my team. You see, when you're life sort of depends on your teammates you get real close real fast. It's the battle, the physical struggle with your teammates by your side that makes it all worth it.

Since I'm feeling particularly nostalgic tonight...
See the excitement of winning a State Championship,
A little bit of the body damage
Recognize that we were a family
Feel my excitement,
See another win
And know that rugby gets pretty epic

To say that I loved playing rugby in high school would be an understatement. It was my life from January to mid-May. It occupied my thoughts, weekdays, weekends, and even dreams. It ended on a high note and I would not trade the memories I have from my experiences for anything. I'm glad that I will forever be a West Linn Renegade and I love that I can still enjoy rugby by watching others play. I'm already looking forward to the day that I get to tell my children I played rugby in high school. I cannot wait to see their faces.

For two other takes on the days festivities please view these two blogs. And yes, we are all in the library writing blogs instead of doing out homework. NBD. Amanda! and Alyssa! (and make Liss Biss send you an invite to her blog because she explains our daily activities way better than I do. I guess that's because she wants to be a teacher or something.)

Sort of gross but kind of awesome

This semester I'm in a microbiology lab that is pretty much a joke. It's scheduled for a 2 hour block every Thursday morning from 8-10 a.m. but I am literally out of the classroom by 8:35a.m. at the latest. Basically the class consists of us turning in our assignments from the previous week while the T.A. tells us in a monotone voice about the experiment we'll be doing, we do the experiment (which usually consists of swabbing something, spreading it on an agar plate and putting it in the cupboard so we can see the growth on it next week), write down what's on the board, and then leave.

I guess you could say they're trying to teach us that microbes are everywhere and after the nasty things I've seen in the past 10 weeks, I believe them. Thanks BYU for turning us all into germaphobes.
Here are the results from last week's lab...
This is the growth that shows from a swab of my own throat after one week.


It's sort of sick right? Well believe me, I can tell you about some pretty disgusting things. I kind of guess that's going to be the story of my life for the rest of my life/career as a nurse. At least that's what I tell myself so I'm not surprised when I see something particularly awful. And to tell you the truth, it doesn't really bother me.

Now everyone go wash your hands because they are filthy and full of microbes!

Date night with Harold

It's taken a while but Alyssa and I have finally figured out that to be together and to be productive on school work we need to be in library. We've made the Monday-night-until-midnight thing a weekly tradition and on the way home this Monday I suggested that we spend another night in the library to get even more school work completed. Because of various other activities and obligations we didn't get an opportunity to hang in the HBLL until Friday night after our ward talent show in the WILK. When that hour and a half of awkward talent sharing was over (side note: my roommate won the talent show because she made a peanut butter and jam sandwich on a pogo-stick! I promise you just read that right. We were all amazed and it was definitely the best, and most marketable talent) we walked into the most empty library I have EVER seen. I know I've only been here for two years but seriously it was SO empty. There were literally three other people on the whole third floor with Alyssa and me and that includes the man running the carpet cleaner. Of course I had to get some pictures.









After about two productive hours I lost my focus and things went downhill from there. By this point in the evening we were both freezing due to the blowing fans that were drying the carpets and losing our minds a little bit because we were the last two survivors in the whole wide world of academics.
We made a little video on Liss Biss's computer that may surface a some point but for now it's just fun for us to laugh at. I even did a little dancing! hahaha. I guess the moral of this story is that you shouldn't expect to get things done in an empty library without peers to pressure you into being quiet and productive. I crossed two of about a million school assignments off my list but I enjoyed myself and that's what really matters, right?

Another reason Thursday is my favorite

The day started with Lucky Charms...
and ended with green Rice Krispie Treats...with my two favorite roommates. Thank you St. Patrick for giving me a reason to celebrate.

Having second thoughts

Suddenly the late night walk home from the library seems like it could be a brush with death. Here's to hoping I don't get struck by lightening tonight.

Don't forget the Mexican spices

Mexican food is the most delicious food ever. I'm pretty sure I would eat it all day errr day if I didn't know how bad it was for my body. But don't worry friends, it doesn't keep me away from it too much. There is a very real possibility that I was born craving a quesedilla as rumor has it all my mother would eat while pregnant was Taco Bell, but I'm gonna go ahead and guess it is because of my positive association with everything Mexican. Here's just a little list of happy moments and Mexican food.

-The first day of school trips to Garcia's in Tempe
-Exploding a bag of Taco Bell hot sauce in my eye on the way home from Garcia's
-Numerous trips to Mexico-The best meal ever when Mom and Dad were out of town
-Jazz choir trips where we ate Mexican food because I insisted.-Jose and Maria making us the most delicious food in Rocky Point-STREET MEAT!-Quesedilla parties in the dorms-And the continuing tradition of Chevy's chips and salsa.

That's it. Hands down, Mexican food is delicious and it and it makes me happy. Now, I'm gonna go make myself a quesedilla.

Eye of the tiger

You know that point in a movie when the inspirational song starts to play and the main character goes through some major change/makes a giant step toward their ultimate goal? Think Girls Just Want to Have Fun, Legally Blonde, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, Nacho Libre, Rocky, Step Up 1, 2, and 3, and pretty much any sports movie where a girl has something to prove.

Anyway, that was my life yesterday. Not that I really had anything to prove to anyone but there were a million things that needed to be done and I made it happen. I left the house by 6:45 a.m., studied in the library for an hour, went to 5 hours of work, spent two more hours in the library, then two and a half hours in class, went to the MOA to analyze a piece of art, took a test, and then made my way home for a quick dinner around 8:30 p.m. By 9:15 p.m. Alyssa and I were on our way back up to the library where we stayed until the music played us out at 11:45 p.m. At home, I started my nursing assignment, got ready for bed and pulled the covers up to my chin knowing that I had accomplished everything I needed to for the day to be over.

Moral of the story:
If my life had a soundtrack, it would be awesome.

Thinking of Thanksgiving

I know it's not November or anything but sometimes I just want to be grateful. Well actually, I can't really help but be grateful for about a million different things right now.

1. It has not snowed in the past week.

2. I have an awesome job where I can do homework while "working"

3. I have enough money to pay the bills

4. I am lucky enough to be in a nursing program that I love

5. I have legs that work (Which is a really big one for me because as I sort of slipped out of the shower this morning and had this image of me falling on the edge of the tub and breaking my femur. Weird thing is that I regularly having visions of me falling and breaking a limb. I think I'm paranoid that I won't be able to get around with a bum leg) Long story short, I'm glad I can walk.

The list goes on and on but there's just a little teaser for now. Life is great.

One Split Second

Today in nursing lab we got to play with those doppler machines to listen to pulses, more specifically the brachial, popliteal, and pedal pulses. Pure amazement is what I felt when I heard that whooshing sound of my blood running through my arteries. For a split second it made me think about someday hearing the heartbeat of a baby in-utero be it mine or someonelse's. It sort of creeped me out.

Does this make me a quarter Asian?

I've had my fair share of awful roommates but this year has been the exception. It was with some nervousness that Alyssa and I signed contracts to live with each other last Winter. We had been good friends through high school but never the best of friends. I'm pretty sure that it all started with our Senior Jazz Choir trip to Seattle and things just got better from there. Our friendship is an odd blend of ridiculously silly and deadly serious. She helps me stay up a little later and I help her go to bed before the sun comes up. She tells me what sort of things I say in my sleep and I tell her that Heavenly Father doesn't care if she can make a puppet. First semester was full of grand adventures including, but not limited to, helping me make coasters, Halloween, midnight Harry Potter, cookie dough freezer balls, eating at least one bag of tortilla chips a week, getting scared by Criminal minds, late night library nights once or twice, making new friends: Kameron, Captain Von Trap, Weasel Face, Ge-off, Just Kevin, Spanky Buttars, Trevor!, and Prince Eric, and of course some delightful chats that take place while we should be doing homework.

She is the Japanese woman that lives in my closet
She is my best friend.
Love you Liss Biss!

I'm sort of weird on Friday

-I'm beginning to think Beyonce has a closet full of leotards. See videos Single Ladies, Ego, Halo, Sweet Dreams, and Upgrade You respectively.
-That being said, if I had a body like that I'd run around in a swim suit all day too.
-I continue to believe that if I could meet one person dead or alive I would meet Beyonce. There's not a doubt in my mind that it would be the right decision.
-Three day weekend of laying around = my spring break
-I made my own refried beans in the crockpot yesterday and they are delicious.
-I'm made my own 7-layer bean dip for lunch/dinner. Thanks for the inspiration Natalie.
-The Miniature Tigers are coming to Salt Lake in April and I will be attending. (EXCITEMENT!!!)
-Amanda and I have decided that we want to be on the Amazing Race. She will be the map reader/navigator and I will be the driver since I will know how to drive a manual.
-I am going up to Salt Lake this weekend to hang out with my Grandma. All I want to do is sit in the hot tub and watch movies on that awful TV.
-Corn starch is a lazy girl's life saver.
-Three months from today is my birthday!
-Only my left bum cheek hurts from pilates on Wednesday...I don't understand!
-Today I am wearing the Kazakhstan shirt Natalie gave me for being the first to name all 195 countries. It is, to this day, one of my proudest accomplishments.
-Just played the game again and got 190/195. I've still got it.

The Romantic Gesture

When I was home at Christmas I had the opportunity to go through Mom's stash of old jewelry. While pilfering through piles of vintage treasures we came across a simple silver bracelet with the best origin story ever. According to her, while dancing with my Dad at a Stake dance, he slipped the bracelet onto her wrist without her ever noticing. When she finally realized there was a foreign bracelet on her wrist, she opened it up to find this little note.
Something about this story, and thinking about my 15 year old mother and 16 year old father in-like with each other makes my heart melt a little bit. It makes me feel lucky to have parents that have cared about each other for so long.

This morning as I rushed out the door to work, I noticed rose petals scattered all in front of my neighbor's door. I can only assume that it was for the one that's engaged from her soon to be husband. It made the long walk to work go by quickly as I smiled about the simple gesture that will mean a lot to that lucky lady. I guess what I'm trying to say it that whether it's giving a toaster to a girl that likes to complain about burning her toast in the oven, or spreading rose petals for your fiance it is always appreciated and it makes me smile. Happy Valentines Day friends.

In unrelated news, I cannot get this song out of my head so I thought maybe I'd get it stuck in yours too.

Rest

Tonight I've been laying around editing photos and updating my blog. I hope you enjoy it. For me, I'm rather enjoying this lazy evening spent mostly in my bed. I never realize how busy the week has been until it's over. Happy weekend!

My life in bullet points

-Utah winter has not only decided to dry out my skin but my eyeballs as well.
-Received a 93% on my first nursing test yesterday. I don't think I have EVER walked home from the testing center in such a good mood.
-Have so enjoyed the hilarity that comes from Alyssa Aramaki (aka Liss Biss)
-Slipped down the stairs in the SWKT the other day. Luckily I mostly caught myself before experiencing too much embarrassment.
-Excited by the thought of making Valentines Day cookies all weekend long.
-Just realized that I will be living in an apartment next fall that does not have air conditioning
-Been contemplating chopping off my hair, or maybe just cutting it. Having long static charged hair stuck to your neck is not the funnest thing in the world.
-Decided on my next craft project. SPOILER ALERT: it is Harry Potter related.
-Planning the endless amount of craft projects I want to do with Mom this summer.
-Working hard at school and sort of loving the payoff
-Finally realizing why people love college so much.
-Self timer roommate picture!

Almost 20 going on 60

I think we can safely attribute my love of all things crafty to the fact that I grew up with Mom sewing doll clothes, decorating and redecorating our house, and encouraging handmade creations. When you add my love of crafts to my "old soul" personality, it makes my real age about 60. For those of you that don't follow

Love of crafts + "old soul" = Mallory is really an old lady at heart

And you know what? I'm okay with it. A ton of people have no idea what to do with a needle and thread and it makes me sad. There are few things that satisfy me more than sitting down to make and create something and then having it completed to my liking. To add to the theory that I'm an old lady is the fact that I love hand sewing. I'm just lucky my hereditary arthritis hasn't kicked in yet.

Lately I'm obsessed with cross-stitch. It's kind of embarrassing how much time I've spent looking at cross-stitch patterns on Etsy in the last few weeks but I can't help myself. These two will be hanging on my wall next Fall.
In the tradition of our family I've started to sew felt Christmas ornaments. I think it all started with the Harry Potter set I made Kendall in 2009.

It's been snowballing ever since and this holiday season I finished two more Harry Potter's and a total of eight owls.

Next year I want to move into the world of robots and dinosaurs. I can't wait. In the end I guess what I'm trying to say is that your should all embrace your inner old lady...anything could happen.

Here's to the future

"There is no substitute under the heavens for productive labor. It is the process by which dreams become realities. It is the process by which idle visions become dynamic achievements"
-President Gordon B. Hinckley

Alyssa and I are working hard to make some dynamic achievements. It's been a little challenging this week but the payoff has been great.

Sunday surprise

Sometimes we have dinner parties.




And then we're too tired to clean up our rooms after we're done.


It's going to be a crazy week.

Start of something new

Another new semester at BYU and I can't help but feel that this is the semester that will change the rest of my life. I keep thinking that at this point last year I had no idea what I wanted to do with my life. I'd been so sure that I wanted to study dietetics but after about four weeks in my intro to nursing class I knew that I wanted to be a nurse. I continue to be grateful for every prompting, decision, and event that has led me to this point. I am thrilled to have such an amazing opportunity. So without further adieu here are some pictures of the one and only time I'll wear my uniform this semester.


Above is the group of us in the Tuesday, 9:00am Nursing 294 lab. Call me if you want your blood pressure taken. Also, my newly established 5'8" status has officially put me in the "tall ones in back" category.

At the end of a long week

I've started and stopped a lot of blogs in the past few days. Life has been pretty scattered this week due to finals, lack of sleep, and a crazy work schedule but I've finally made it to the end. Finals are finished and I can feel the weight of school lifting from my shoulders. My boarding pass is printed and I'll be on a flight home tomorrow morning. At the end of a week like this I think I'm mostly grateful to learn that I can do the things that seem impossible. I'm so thankful for the heavenly help I've had this week.