To Thee Best Mom in the World! (aka: my best friend)

I have really lucked out here on this earth. I got the best mom in the world! She was the best even before I came to this earth! She (and my dad) opened every door for Heavenly Father to send me to them. It took a while, but I finally came and I have not regretted coming ever. She loved me and took care of me from the start! I remember going everywhere with her before I was old enough to go to school, and even after I was in school I would go everywhere with her after school. I just loved hanging out with her!

Then I grew up and became a teenager and oddly enough, still loved hanging out with my mom. She became my very best friend. When other friends would come and go, depending only on if you were in a class with them, my mom was a constant friend. High school came and went and she was still my best friend. I would tell her absolutely everything. Every time I would like a new guy, she'd know. Every time I decided to skip class, she would know, because I would tell her. I had no secrets from my mom.

Then I grew up some more and went to college, moving out. Good thing we had choir together everyday! I liked living on my own, but I missed having my mom there to just talk to whenever we both happen to be sitting at the kitchen table. That year we ended up having lunch together every Monday and Friday right before choir. It was my favorite thing! We were able to just catch up and I was able to talk to her and tell her what was going on in my life and even vent to her sometimes.


This last year I moved back home to save money and I could not have picked a better time. My parents got their time to be "empty nesters" and I had had my time to be "on my own" but I was glad to be back home. My mom and I are still best friends and are even closer now that we live under the same roof. We even took some real classes together this year and had fun with that.

My dad just got put in as the new Branch President for the singles branch I attend, meaning my mom will be in there every Sunday with me. I'm very excited to share this new adventure with them this next year.

My mom is so talented and always so willing to serve and help in anyway she possibly can. I hope I grow up to be half the mom she is.

Mom- I love you so much! Thanks for everything!

Graduation!!

So guess what everyone!

I'M GRADUATING FROM EAC IN 2 YEARS with an Associate of Arts (Music)!!!!
(It takes most people 3 years)

Awesome, RIGHT?! I'm so proud of myself. I told myself I would do it and I did it. Graduation is next Friday, May 14, and I can hardly wait! It seems like it was just last year, if even that, that I graduated from high school. Crazy that I already have another graduation so soon. But so exciting at the same time.

I wish I could say along with that great news that I would be moving on with my life and going to a fabulous University where I would be continuing my education and getting my Bachelor of Music Education and graduating with that in 2 or 3 more years, but I cannot.

I told myself all my life that I would not be one of those people that end up at EAC for eternity or 3 years, but yet, here I am... I will be back next year, but at least I'll already have my associates! My plans originally (like since before I graduated high school) was to spend 2 years at EAC and then go on to get my bachelors at NAU like my sister Angela. Well apparently that isn't what was supposed to happen, at least not right now. I was accepted into NAU but not into their School of Music (which, not to toot my own horn, but shocked me and everyone who knows me).

I thought and thought about what I was going to do next year because I didn't apply to any other school because I didn't want to go to any other school. I mean, I have already put $400 into NAU alone and didn't get in, I didn't want to have to spend that kind of money on other schools that I didn't even want to get accepted into. So as I contemplated and talked with my parents, the only answer that came clear was to come back to EAC for one more year and stay with music and institute. So that is what I will be doing. Taking choir, orchestra, and a few institute classes, all the while preparing for a mission! I will also be auditioning for the BYU School of Music (a VERY VERY hard music school to get into, but I figure why not try??)

Who knows what will happen in the next year, but whatever is in store for me, I know that it is the Lord's plan and that all will work out the way it is supposed to.

Go Dodgers!!!

Ok... So I've never really been a super fan of baseball. Like it was the only sport I understood so I liked it, but I never went to a game or anything. Well I got to go to a spring training game a couple weeks ago between the Dodgers and the Angels. I had no idea who to cheer for so I decided to cheer for the Dodgers because we were sitting on their side. Turns out... THEY WON!! 4-0! It was so much fun and I would love to go to more baseball games! I'm an official fan now. :)

The Crew!

Seeeesters!... basically!

Snow!

So let me just start this post by saying that I am loving having my nephews from Florida here. They are adorable and are so much fun and most of all sooo entertaining. Well we took them up the mountain yesterday for them to see snow for the first time in their short little lives and let me tell you... they LOVED it!! If it hadn't started raining/hailing/snowing on us at the end, I am convinced they would have stayed out there longer. Here are some pictures and short video of them and their first snow adventures. And yes, I AM bragging!

They had so much fun making snow angels!

They also were very proud of their snowman!!!

I promise my nephews really do love me! They were just scared from the thunder that was starting. It was the end of the day and it had started raining/snowing/hailing on us.

Celeb

So for all of you who are following me and actually reading my blog, I thank you! I have decided to keep my blog and what better way to start back up than with some GREAT news?!

So I live in the small community and we have this contest called "Gila Valley Idol" - it's kinda like American Idol... but much more selective and soooooooo much harder to get in the finals. OK.. So I may be exagerating just a tad, but still it's kind of a big deal around these parts. Actually it isn't kind of a big deal... it IS a big deal! Well They've been doing it for like 5 or 6 years and I've done it the past 3. I never made it past the preliminaries because of dumb reasons... until this year. Last night actually! I was first to sing and first to get called as a finalist!! I was like freaking out and soo sooo happy. If you want to hear me sing my song you can go HERE. I was in the Pollocks Western Outfitters preliminaries. Just thought I'd share the good news. :)

Have a wonderful day everyone.

Calling All Readers

Ok... Here's the deal everyone. This blog is kind of pointless if I have no readers. I am a faithful reader to all of you so if you read my blog at all please comment on this post. If I don't get any response, say goodbye to this young blog. I will miss it, but really, I only do it for the comments, which seem to be in short supply ALWAYS.

That is all.

Infants

I feel so terrible! I have left my little infant blog alone for quite sometime. It's not healthy! It needs me. So here I am, back to feed it with my posts. :)

First of all - Merry Christmas to everyone and a Happy New Year! I hope everyone got what they wanted for Christmas. I sure did... and then some! I'm a music nerd and so I asked for a keyboard midi to hook up to my computer for a music notation program, Finale. I got it. It made me very happy. But also I've got THEE coolest parents ever! They got each of their kids their very own ice cream maker!!! It can be either electric or crank and looks kinda old fashioned. It's a 6 quart so it will make plenty of ice cream. :) I will make some ice cream this week and it will be delicious and it will all be because my parents are just rad like that! I searched and searched for a picture of it online so I could show you all, but alas, I don't know where they got it and none on google like quite as cool as mine, so I will be sure to take a picture of it for all of you to see while it's in action making me either some lemon or strawberry ice cream. I'm very excited.

Not much else is going on here. Saturday was a big Christmas party for my mom's family. It was crazy and fun, but what else would I expect for the Goodmans? My sister set up a studio type thing in one of the rooms of the church for silly pictures for all my cousins. It was a HIT! I was naturally the assistant and even got some pictures of my own. So fun. When I get them I'll post them for all of you to laugh at. And you will laugh.

So I'll try to take better care of my infant blog from now on.

Merry Christmas!