One year older and Wiser too!

Life is a funny thing, and everyday I find reasons and things that prove this fact. Often enough I find joy and reasons to smile, and then those days come when you find that life really has a sense of humor but you don't get it haha... and it feels like it's slapping you in the face. Yeah....life is good :) this past year I have come to realize that there is more to life and I am just beginning to brush the surface of what that means....."there's more to life"....such a phrase as this is enough to make me wonder if there's more to life then am I doing what I'm suppose to so that I can get there and qualify for whatever more is out there. College does funny things to you and since you are paying through the teeth to get there you might as well get out of it what you can and have a little fun while you attempt :) I don't think I have had more fun and been happier in my life, and also been through the hardest and most trying ordeals that I have ever faced, and I don't believe that they will ever stop, but I learned that you take the good with the bad and lean on the ones that love you when you can't support yourself. That's what love really is. Being independent was great, but still allowing people into my life to be there for me and to help me provided for some of my most cherished memories and life long friends I will ever make. But in a nutshell, I fell in love, made lasting friendships, danced my heart out, cooked, cleaned, froze, sang, picnics in the park, nerf gun wars, baking cookies everyday it seemed, the endless homework, projects, the testing center, working out, buying my own groceries, working, car problems, breakups, disappointments, church, doing nails, girls nights, forts made from the couches, swimming, trips to the tetons, jackson hole, movie nights, traveling to utah, in a nutshell this past year at college was where I found "there's more to life", and this is just the beginning............P.S. I made it through my first year without getting married ;)

My Love Hate Relationship with My Car.....the Ultimate Test of Being on My Own

Holy Schmoly! You know how we all despise tests, especially when we fail them, and I think it's because of that fear that we don't like them. If they were easy we truly wouldn't learn what we needed to. After saying that however, going through them is hard. Oh boy are they hard. Tonight me, a couple of my roommates, and some friends went to Idaho Falls to go shopping and go to the Temple. Everything was going very well. We went to JoAnn's and I have never seen guys actually enjoy themselves in a fabric store. It was the funniest, coolest thing! But then again if I had a girl making me footie pajamas that looked like a bear I would be excited too ;) That's just how awesome my roommate Cassie is ;) It brought back memories of hiding in the fabric from my mother, or having to touch every single piece of fabric......and I even still do that today! So we picked up what we needed and started to head for the temple. When we came to a stop light my car stopped working......Just to show you how nice people are.....Picture with me a girl in the driver's seat freak'n out because she can't go anywhere, the people behind honking their horns and the girl exclaiming, "I hear you but I can't go anywhere!" Haha now that I look back on it....I wish I could've been on the sidelines watching because it would've been hilarious!!!!! So we sat there for five minutes trying to figure out what to do, then we decided we needed to move the car...so the fine young man that was with us got out and pushed us, except I couldn't turn the wheel so we were stuck in the middle of the intersection, then we had other people jump out and help us (angels literally!) and we finally got off the road....Scariest moment of my life! I thought people were going to hit the people pushing.....I have never prayed so hard in my life....and I know God answers our prayers cuz He answered mine! Man I wanted to break down.....and I finally did when I talked to my mother......I am grateful for parents who raised me to just get up and back in the game, and I am so grateful for the wonderful friends and family I have! I ran into a cousin I hadn't seen in a long time at Carl's Jr of all places, one of my roommates had a way to come get my car, and my friend Jessica was there to comfort me and help me to remember to smile :) In the end it was all worth it to go to the temple......I needed to be there and something was trying to stop me from getting there......but I perservered and kept my chin up. I am a Peck and we don't let hard times put us down. Tough Times Don't Last but Tought People Do.......... I am grateful for this experience and know that the knowledge I gained from tonight will come in handy later :)

Firing Up the with Celtic Nights: An Irish Experience

You know how it's illegal to yell "Fire" in a movie theater? Not saying I've ever wanted to try it or that it's on my bucketlist of things to do in my life, but it would be pretty funny...Last night I went to a performance by Celtic Nights, a group from Ireland who is talented in and has perfected the art of singing, dancing, and fiddle playing: definitely the fiddle playing! I took my seat, and on one side I had a group of giggly girls, and on the other side a lovely dovey couple who couldn't keep their hands off each other (funniest thing!) It was a great place to people watch and it was nice to just go and sit by myself and observe the different social groups that make up the community. Finally the show was about to start and it started off with a bang! Literally! The fire alarms went off and you know that awkward moment when you all look at each other and think, "Should we get up and leave? Is this for real or is it an accident?" Definitely had that moment, but we all just sat there and let the techs figure out how to turn them off. The night was filled with a smoky atmosphere (someone was getting too happy using the smoke machine because it filled the entire auditorium!) that only intensified the senses. Was it perfect, no. One of the dancers fell, one of the singers missed a cue, but all of the rest of the moments definitely made up for them! The music was exhilerating, the dancing phenominal, and the singing was out of this world! Every eight minutes was a new emotion, a new feeling, it's like being on an emotional roller coaster with twists and turns that you don't expect. We got to sing along at one point and all I have to say is that Irish accents are HOT!  It's a night I will never forget and I hope I can experience again!

Look I Found Nemo! The New member of Our Family: Tomi Greane

Statistics say that if you can keep a pet alive for year that you will be successful in marriage, but then again it is a statistic so it's not saying much! ;) Either way we decided to put this to the test, placing bets (not real ones) on how long we could keep a fish alive. Welcome to Nauvoo apartments Tomi Greane!

Day 1: The day we brought Tomi home!
                        The night we brought home Tomi Greane is truly a miraculous miracle in it of itself, and I hope is not foreshadowing the first day of my marriage! Brittany rented a car per say, and crammed 6 people in a 5 passenger car, luckily we are all very fit and skinny, we snuggled up nice and close :) Heading to Walmart was going normal, just a bunch of college kids singing at the top of their lungs and dancing in the car. We arrived at our destination and the excitement began to build that we couldn't help ourselves that we ran inside, probably because it was freezing outside but we'll just say it was from the excitement and anticipation we all felt. We found the home of the fishies, and there swimming so cutely in a small little fish tank was our boy, Tomi Greane! Oh he was so cute! (I wonder if this is how people talk when they bring children into the world?) But we couldn't get him out! We looked everywhere for someone to help us, then finally someone did and I think he thought we were nuts, but we didn't care! We bought all the necessities that we needed and headed for the register, careful not to shake the bag like Darla from Finding Nemo because obviously that kills them. The guy at the register said that this was the 40th fish he had sold that day! Isn't that crazy! So we carried our special cargo to the car, got in and the car wouldn't start! Luckily we had a priesthood holder with us who knew how to jumpstart a car, and so we found another very nice young man, because there seems to be a lot of them around, who came and helped us. (I hope this also is not foreshadowing of my first day as a married woman, but if it was at least I would know how to jumpstart the car) We eventually got it to work, and went to Kiwi Loco to celebrate the new member of our family (girls will make any excuse to get ice cream so we did!). Don't worry we didn't leave Tomi Greane out in the car, that would just be irresponsible! After a refreshing bowl of ice cream we headed back so we could introduce Tomi to his new home, and all I have to say is that at first he was trying to kill himself! He would get stuck in between the marbles and couldn't get out......luckily tho he finally figured out it wasn't so bad and has been quite content since!

Day2: Tomi Greane is still alive
Day3: Tomi Greane is still very alive!

Bets on How Long Tomi will Live:

Mandy: 6 months
Brittany: whole semester
Adell: To Midterms
Quinci: 6 weeks
Cameron: 4 weeks
Jen: 2 weeks
Cassie: 3 days

If you would like to bet on how long Tomi Greane will live, please post you're bet as a comment :) But I can guarantee that he will live for a year ;)

Chapter 3: Beginning college! Talent Show, Dances, School, Temple, and all that JAZZ!

College.........the big bad, exciting, unknown feeling.....the word we've been hearing since we were just beginning to learn to walk! The pressure in high school to do well so we can make something of ourselves in the great beyond...It feels as if our entire lives are preparing us for that moment when our parents wave good bye, hoping they've taught us enough so we won't mess up some of the most important and big decisions of our lives.... Ok that's getting a little carried away but college is a big deal and I've made it there, and I can finally see whatever one is talking about :) To all of you high school students out there who think that life is all about high school......wake up and smell the dandelions my friends....college is ten times more stressful, fun, exciting, and full of responsibility. My first week of college goes something like this......

Once upon a time.......there was a girl....me! The first day I arrive at my apartment and I love it! Free laundry the best room mates on the entire planet! What more could I ask for! Then came the moment where my pocket book was about to get very small.....I watched as my hardwork from the past 8 months slowly began to drain into tuition, rent, books, food (which is muy importante), and school supplies. I am so grateful for the jobs and opportunities that I had these past months so I didn't have to take out loans...I am debt free :) I then decided to go out on a limb and try out for the new student talent show. I was soooo nervous because I have not danced in over six months, but I did anyway and I made it! The flying red outfit with ribbons came to life and burned up the dance floor up here in the cold and wintery atmosphere of BYU-Idaho, I've made amazing new friends because of it and grateful for the talents that Heavenly Father has given me. So far I've attended dances, forums, devotionals, studying parties, and so many other things! Wally ball, volleyball, working out, oh and cooking for myself is definitely a new experience. I love being so close to the temple and the peace it brings into my life and the lives of the students who take the time to go there. I can honestly say that I couldn't be happier and I know that God has prepared me for this time in my life pretty much since the day I was born :) I'm so excited to see where this new chapter in my life takes me and the wonderful adventures and items I will have to add to my bucketlist :)