Changed for the GOOD!

Coming back up to USU after thanksgiving break was such a relief! It was time to crack down and get ready for Christmas and finals! I feel like the Martha Stewart of our dorm, I love decorating so it feels like home (even though I'm hardly ever there!) We had stockings hung, a fake fire place (definitely didn't warm up our dorm, because I'm pretty darn sure we have THEE coldest dorm ever. If you walk outside into the snow its warmer.) and we had a 3ft Christmas tree! 

So when I lived back home my barn would go Christmas caroling to a horse property neighborhood, we would dress up the horses and ourselves and attempt to sing more than five carols. I was really sad I would miss it this year, but one of my new horse friends put together Christmas caroling so I was stoked! I don't have my own horse up here so we went on foot. It was a blast meeting new people and singing to random families! At one point in the night I ran to a front door, turned the corner and did a 360 flip onto the ice.... first thing i thought was "good gandhi I'm going to sue someone." haha just kidding but the hip pain was inconvenient! As we were singing, when in doubt of which song to sing next I just burst into Rudolph, it was completely necessary. It's just great spreading Christmas cheer to everyone and having horses to help:)

Something about a truck....

Many of the good times up here at college have happened in a truck. I learned how to drive stick shift int he church parking lot, I enjoyed it very much and I'm pretty sure I could be in fast and furious if I actually owned a stick car, but us less fortunate automatic drivers still exist and life goes on. Also when finals were about to make my brain implode through my skull my male friends took me to get pizza....however they are a little larger than me. We squeezed into Austin's little truck and of course I sat in the middle (aka party seat) between them. Somehow we ended up eating 2 boxes of little caesars, while listening to bagpipe music and Jonathan having the giggles etc. Let's just saw we bonded very "closely" that night, I'll keep them around but only cause they buy me pizza;)

Horsin' Around!

I was so blessed with Nicole. Not only are we practically the same person with the same future, but she lets me come ride her horses! We bundle up and go ride up the mountain the snow, sometimes we almost die and can't feel our toes but we push through:) I started to ride western, and I think I'm converted:)

Hit me with your best shot.

Learned how to shoot a gun! It's all about learning that self defense up here at college, just kidding Logan is VERY safe I just wanted to learn:) At first I was 100% sure I would shoot one of my friends and get put in jail and never go back to college. Lucky for them I shot nothing, not even the pigeons, but it was still a blast so we are doing it again. Holding that little shot gun and shooting milk cartons all i could think was, "how do they do kill shots in the movies and not fall over?" Those things have a kick and weigh more than my left thigh! Fun fact: Remember how I collect milk cartons, because I have a chocolate milk obsession? Well they came in handy, I'm now a trusty donator to the milk carton shooting club. Take that all those people who judged me for keeping them.

*No phones were harmed in the taking of this photo*

Learning to herd cattle with Erin and Jonathan was super fun, nothing better than sitting atop a horse and hanging out with friends (aka mom and dad)

For finals week we went down to temple square, my other friends went to do a session (since they are all return missionaries) Right now I can do baptisms for the dead (which means people who have already died can become a member of the church by me going in place of them and receiving their membership!) Sessions last about 2 hours, baptisms more like 20 minutes..... I got out of the temple and still had a solid 2 hours left before everyone else would be done. None of them could use their cell phones so i wondered downtown for a little bit and then turned around and did more names! I came out and still had about a hour and a half. I walked around with wet hair and it started to turn into ice, meanwhile some random guy grabbed my hand and asked if I wanted to tour the world with him. I removed my hand and said no thanks, that I would rather stay in college.... I almost got kidnapped in temple square!!! What has the world come to..... then the rest of my friends came out and it turned into a date! We looked at the lights and ate at blue lemon, it twas prime:)

My roomies' and I's best friend Edwin got baptized! Oh it was so great! Just being there to watch him change, being in the missionary discussions and seeing the power of missionary work makes me so excited to serve myself! Edwin, I know your life is going to be blessed tremendously because you have a loving Christ by your side always:)

Learning everyday!

I failed my first college class, biology. College is different than high school, you WORK for your grade, no slacking. I have already learned this the hard way, you aren't always going to be a straight A student. It's all though, taking bio a second time will be so much more beneficial because I can relearn everything better! So never be ashamed if you have to retake a class, there is a goos chance 20 other kids have had to do the same. You learn a lot about what study skills and lecture skills are best for you so the first semester is a little crazy! I feel a lot more confident in second semester:) 

Finals are psychotic. Start studying as early as you can, get a great study group and quiz each other like crazy! Any down time you have, study but make sure you give yourself breaks else your brain will just stop caring and just throw up any more knowledge! Luckily I have amazing friends who are killer students and did amazing on their finals! 

The people you met in college will be your best friends forever:)

KEEP SMILING:)

Love, 

Abbey

So much for consistency...

Turns out I'm not a stay at home mom who can blog when I'm bored, I actually go and do things with my life....SHOCKER. So I'm going to have to bring it all the way back to September when I went to SHEEP DAY!!! Honestly best day ever. Woke up at 5am to hop on a bus to Wyoming for the day. The first van I hopped into was full of veterans, people who had gone to sheep day multiple times and they were all 10 years older than me....my excitement was starting to fade. However some of my friends I made in my connections class were on another bus and made me come over and ride with them. Little did I know these kids would soon be my best friends:) After the long drive we made it up with Keven (aka our amazing driver) we began with the "wool"ey fun stuff. We did physical check ups, collected sperm, and other personally things.They had all 400 male sheep in a shoot and would let them out one by one, and all we had to do was just snatch one hahahah they're sheep.....you can't really just grab one. They definitely have a mind of their own and they don't see you as an obstacle AT ALL. They see you as a sack of potatoes that they can just ransack and skip away like its their birthday! There was one time when I thought, "I'm totally gonna get this one." Then the guy next to me called it, so I thought to myself again, "Well that man's got it, I'll wait till the next one!" The shoot opens quickly the ram comes out and WAHIIFHIDHIDSO goes the sheep and the guy goes for it....very weakly and misses it. My first instinct is, "Well someone has to get it!" I ran and tackled that sheep, thing is the sheep kept running but I was still attached...... I went skiing like it was the 2002 Winter Olympics in Park City!Another time I grabbed the ram by the horns, but he decided to take another route and stop and I flipped over him right into the nice pavement:) Whhaattaa ride! Overall, I was sore and SO happy the next day:)

Fun Fact. Got a cow onesie. I use it for:

1) Cooking Hamburgers

2) Drinking Chocolate Milk

3) Setting off the fire alarm

I found a new fiery passion. Swing dance. Its the only way I have met people, specifically men. It's just so fun getting thrown in the air not knowing if this man is strong enough to catch you. Honestly every Monday and Wednesday night the fun park is the place to be! Sometimes you get some REAL weirdos, but then you get the good ones and you spin around till you can't see straight! I don't know how many times I've done the dang airplane move, but it's a crowd favorite;) I don't really have another pictures of swing....maybe the next post, if it ever exists....

Over fall break my roommate Josee and I went to Moab! The first day I woke up to my tent full of random girls I didn't know, but I had a nice big bloody nose and i was dripping everywhere! I was thinking, "Oh please please don't wake up!" I got out safe. Phew! First day we went rock climbing, I lost about 7% of skin from the rocks, but I had so much fun! It was such a thrill to be hanging  over the edge! Second day we went river rafting, I was in the kayak with Josee the entire way down the Colorado river. Singing my little heart out as we went. We gathered around the campfire that night and told first kiss and bad date stories....oh i had quite the stories to tell;) 

Now I'm going to rush through some stuff to get to the good stuff.

 1) Did Cotopaxi, it's a 24 hour scavenger hunt. We went all around Logan, up to Bear Lake and Idaho. We had to do a bunch of challenges to get points, like sleep in a car, "true aggie" (it was fake I promise! haha), hike to the wind caves in the dark, stalk a car from Alaska (jk we needed their license plate.) Just all sorts of crazy, exhausting shindigs. Just do it and you will understand. 

Went to the HOWL, Halloween Dance. Never go unless you enjoy your personal bubble being popped aggressively. Buy a ticket and then sell it for more money on the Incoming Freshman Facebook page, its well worth it. 

Oh kinda went Skydiving on Halloween. FANTASTIC. I wasn't even nervous, I just jumped out of that dang plane and flew like a bird. Once the parachute was pulled out #blessed we did some flips and cartwheels. I HIGHLY suggest skydiving to those thinking about it:)

Ran Ragnar, a 200 mile relay race. With 12 teammates we each had 3 legs that we ran day or night! Love love love Ragnar! Vegas was pretty dang fun, but the Utah one is better:) I loved seeing all my old teammates though!

Competed in my first college horse show! It was crazy! Drove 7ish hours up to Montana in the 5 degree weather. Once we got to the show you just pull a random number out and that is the horse you ride! You have never met this horse before and you get a short description on what they are like. Once your class is about to start you hop on and can't touch anything and then you get led into the arena and go! You start jumping your random new friend! One of the rounds i had a pony named Lucky, we were doing amazing and then he came to a jump and refused three times so I was eliminated. I just shook it off and said "hey it's my first college show I'm good!" Turns out I was given a re-ride! The next horse questioned the same jump and I was like, "uh uh! You are jumping this and I smacked his butt and he launched himself over." I may have taken last, but I learned a lot from that ride and gained a whole new confidence as a rider that I could ,with motivation, make a horse understand my motives. At dinner a drunk guy came up and started talking to us and he was very impressed we "rode our horses all the way from Utah to Montana" and he kept asking us what Utah was.... a lot of inside jokes were made that night:) Our waiter was flirting with us a ton and served a desserts while saying, "You ladies ready for some hot loving?"

Now to the good stuff;)

1) I have the most amazing friends up here. Actually cried when I went home cause I missed them so much. Just some brief experiences, I won't say any names so no one gets left out cause I love you all!

Just the tender mercies of study buddies, best friends who buy you pizza consistently and give you a wake up call everyday so you make it to your 7:30 am class, swing friends, hockey squad, and all around blessed with the best roommates who have to put up with me:) I'm just surrounded by the best friends and they are great examples:)

Now for the learning part.... I've been working on my mission papers and I have the bestest friend that has helped me a ton. When I doubted whether it was for me or not they were there to cheer me up and i remembered that I REALLY wanted to go. I have seen through my life here at USU when I listen to cheerful music, I think of others before myself, and visit the temple I can see my life becoming so much more fulfilling! Coming up to college is hard to go from a straight A student to a B student, but I've learned that college is hard and I'm paying to further my education. I may spend a bunch of years up here, but I love to learn. Even if I fail a class and retake it, I'm fine because it's all about the new experiences and really learning something, not rushing through it for the grade. I have seen when I look at my life through God's eyes I can see that everything happens for a reason. When something goes wrong, it doesn't bother me because I know something better is coming. We are all human so why do we judge each other when I'm pretty sure we are all in the same boat trying to stay afloat:)

Till next time, Happy Holidays!