stress & happiness.

Stress & happiness. Welcome to college. This has been a rough week in terms of stress and school, but some great things have happened too. I'll start with the stressful part of my life right now. I have a HUGE biology exam this weekend that I am extremely stressed for. I just spent half of my day in the library reading the textbook and taking notes. This professor is a great professor, but she is known for how hard her tests are. Many people, both on "rate my professor" and friends that previously took the class, have told me to not expect to get a high grade on the test- because no one does. However, I am desperate to get an A in this class, so that's just not acceptable for me. Hence the never-ending studying and stress. But everything will be okay. I hope so.

Now onto the good news....


I found out that I got hired as an EFY counselor!! Ever since first attending EFY as a 14 year old, it's been my dream job to be a counselor! I really was worried that I wasn't going to get the job because I didn't feel like my interview went super great, but apparently it did! I am SO excited for this summer- it's going to be a BLAST! I've already started planning some stuff- I even made an EFY binder (I should have been studying instead of doing that...) I think this summer will be just fun overall because like 3 people are getting married and  I am a bridesmaid for one and a maid-of-honor for another. Plus, some of my friends who have been on 2 year missions are getting home!!! I am even more excited for that! Anyways, I'm just ranting now, but I thought the blog needed an update.


Here's some pictures of what I've been up to recently...


The Provo City Center Temple opened! And so we went to the open house! (Millie was here too, but she was taking the pic)

 Me in front of the temple-- look at the stained glass!

My ward got to go on this special tour where we got to see the Bride's room and one of the biggest sealing rooms at the temple open house. They even showed us a special video that was different than the video that they normally use for the open house. It was the coolest experience!

For my friend Erin's Birthday, my friend Millie and I decided to try and make a rainbow cake. The batter looks kinda gross in this pic- but it was way good!

 Here's Erin and her cake!

 The mountains and the sky were so pretty when I was walking home after class.

XOXO
Mikayla

this is my year.

Happy New Year! I can't believe another year has come and gone. And what a year it's been. As I've been reflecting back, I'm amazed at all that has happened in a year. A year ago, I was at Snow College and had no idea what I was doing with my life. I had applied to BYU, but wasn't so sure I was going to get in. I'm not going to lie, this time of year last year was not pleasant for me. My life didn't really change until I found out that I had been accepted to BYU. I've never sobbed because I was so happy before, but I sure did that day. Once I made the move to BYU, 2015 became one of the best years of my life. I have met so many amazing people, had so many life-changing experiences, and become a better, happier person than I was before. I've done things like run a half marathon and hike to the summit of Mt. Timpangos. Things I never would have ever thought I would do. And that makes me even more excited for 2016. I have so many amazing things coming up. One of my best friends is getting married, some of my close friends are getting home from missions, I'm starting a new eating lifestyle, and I'm training for a marathon! But with a new year, comes new resolutions. So here are my 2016 New Years Resolutions...

1. Live a healthier lifestyle and lose weight along the way.
- Get a membership to the local yoga club and go every morning (except Sunday)
- Run every day and train for a marathon (except Sunday)
- Start eating clean (no more eating out)
- Drink a ton more water (at least 8 bottles a day)

2. Go to the temple once a week
- I'm used to living an hour and 30 minutes away from the temple and sometimes I forget that the temple is literally 2 minutes away from me now.

3. Say longer, more meaningful prayers
- I am really guilty of saying 2-3 minute prayers that are super repetitive. I want to actually have a conversation.

4. Have longer, more "feast-like" scripture study.
- Write things down, truly study & learn & ponder
- I'm going to start studying in the morning when my mind is more awake

5. Go to all 3 hours of church and keep the Sabbath Day holy.
- You know, I've never had a problem with going to all 3 hours of church until this last semester. For some reason, it became okay in my head to only go to sacrament and then leave. Yeah, that's not going to happen anymore.
- No more eating out on Sunday

6. Attend temple prep classes
- I've really been thinking about the temple lately and it has occurred to me that the next big thing I should be preparing for is my endowment. I don't know when I'm going to get it, it might be right before I'm married, but I really want to be prepared when I go so I'm going to start preparing now.

7. Work on social anxiety.
- Many of you don't know this about me, but I do have social anxiety. It is a newer thing and has become more apparent this last year and I'm trying to work on it. I have a hard time going to social events now, especially if I don't know many people there. I tend to shut my door and hide in my room, which is not like me at all. But I'm working on it and will continue to put more focus on improving this year.

8. No gossiping or judging.
- No more gossiping about people, no matter how juicy the gossip is. And same goes for judging people. Everyone has feelings and is going through their own thing, I should be supportive, not gossiping or judgmental.

9. Go to more social events and put myself out there.
-Meet new people, have more fun, be more social

10. Get a 4.0 this semester

11. Spend more time in the library
- Not socializing, studying. Spend my spare time in the library.

12. Stay on campus!!!
- This is a horrible habit I have developed. After every class, I would walk home. In order to meet people and get things done, I need to stay on campus. I am going to pack and lunch/snacks and stay on campus until my last class is done for the day. Otherwise I get nothing done.

I'm so excited for this new year and the new me. I keep telling myself "this is my year". And yes, I'm going to make this year my year to become the person that I want to be.

XOXO
Mikayla

living frugally.

Earlier this summer, I made the decision to register for a family finance class for this fall semester. Not only did it fulfill my "Quanitative Reasoning" GE requirement, but it also contained concepts that I always have desired to learn- concepts that I can implement with my own future family. Recently, we have discussed how to live frugally and my professor has given us suggestions that I am excited to implement and that will really help me to save money (and who doesn't love that?). If you are currently struggling with living within your means, there are two possible things that you can do: increase your income or decrease your expenses. However, it is much easier to decrease your expenses than it is to increase your income. Unless you decide to become an Uber driver or a dog-sitter on the side, but I personally don't want to do either of those things. You may be thinking "decreasing my expenses is harder than you think". The truth is that it really is not. There are little things you can do that can end up saving you a lot of money in the long run. Today I am going to focus on how to save money specifically on food. My professor's ideas are so smart that I am going to list them out for you.

So, you want to save money on food and live a healthier lifestyle? This is what you can do: 

1. Make a weekly menu and write a shopping list for the things that you need to buy for those menu items. When you go to the store, you should only buy the items that are on your list- as that is all you will need to fulfill your menu for that week. 

2. Take advantages of "loss leaders". Some of you may not know what a "loss leader" is. A loss leader is an item that certain grocery stores price a lot lower than usual. For example, the store I work at has specific weekly ads for donuts or soup or may other things. The reason stores do this is to draw you into their store. Then once you are there to buy that one item, you are most likely going to stay at that store to do the rest of your shopping. My professor's advice is to not do this. What you should do is go collect all the loss leader items that you need at various stores and then continue shopping at your normal store. 

3. Buy store brands. This is most grocery store's best kept secret. When you go to Wal-Mart, buy the "Great Value" brands. Those are the brands that the store makes. The only difference between store brands and other brands is the packaging. And they end up charging you more. The food tastes the same, the only thing you are missing out on is the cool packaging. 

4. Bring a homemade lunch to work. It is so easy to eat out every day, or even twice a week, at work. However, you end up spending a ton more money and it is actually really unhealthy for you. By packing your lunch, you can save $1,000s of dollars a year. 

5. Share a meal with someone at dinner if you do eat out. The portions at most restaurants are HUGE and end up being so filling that you normally can't finish your plate. By splitting a meal with someone, you are not only splitting the cost, but you are splitting the number of calories that you eat as well. 

Though these small acts don't seem like they would do very much, a little bit goes a long wall. I always think of the saying "by small and simple things are great things brought to pass." You can save so much money per week, per month, and definitely per year just by making these small adjustments to your lifestyle. 

That's my rant for the week. Go out and start saving! 

XOXO

Mikayla 

back in p-town.

I am back in P-town and I can hardly believe it. It seems like summer was unusually short this year. Nevertheless, I am way excited to be back in one of my favorite cities at my most favorite schools. Life has been crazy lately. I got here Wednesday, spent Thursday at my grandparents, moved in Friday and Saturday, and then school started today (Monday). Friday was the busiest, most stressful day by far. I started a new job and so I had to go to that in the morning, then I had a hair appointment, and then around 3pm is when I could finally move in. I had forgotten how much stuff I had- it took forever and, finally, we decided to finish packing the next day because we were so exhausted. But I am in LOVE with my apartment and my roommates are so nice. My ward is HUGE and everyone is so so friendly and nice. I'm grateful that I have the opportunity to be here at this time and I am SO excited for this semester.


Here are some pics of my new apartment!!

cougars, the big apple, and good ole missoura

It's definitely been a while since I've posted and so much has changed since then. As mentioned in previous blog posts, I was accepted to BYU-Provo and so I went there immediately after spring semester at Snow ended (literally I had to take my finals a week early). Really I need like 10 blog posts to talk about how much fun I had during my semester at BYU, but I don't have time for that. So for now, just now that I had so much fun and can't wait to head back there in a few weeks.

I finished my semester at BYU mid-June so the first half of my summer was spent still in school. That didn't really bother me though. BYU has always been my dream school so I was just happy to be there. After BYU, I went back home for 1.5 days and then repacked my suitcases and headed to the Big Apple. Why?  My sister got accepted into a ballet dance intensive at one of the big ballet school in NYC, so that was pretty dang cool. I think that I never really wrapped my head around the fact that I was actually in New York because everything happened so fast. Nevertheless, I was still so ecstatic to be there- it was definitely a dream come true! 

We got home from New York mid-July so that took up another big chunk of my summer (in a good way) :) Luckily BYU starts pretty late in comparison to other schools so I still have a little time before I have to go back. Even though I miss Provo like crazy, I am definitely glad to be home. While at home, I have been able to get a job as a receptionist at my Dad's work, catch up with a bunch of old friends, and spend some quality time with my family (including my dog Stanley). 

I've been lucky to have had such a fun and busy summer. I've made a lot of fun, unforgettable memories and I am lucky to have so many great family members and friends. Before long, I'll be on my way back to school to start another great year. This year is going to be an exciting year- even with  a half marathon in store. :) Keeping up my blog weekly is one of my goals for this coming school year, so hopefully plenty of updates are coming your way. 

XOXO

Mikayla 

Spring Break 2015: Part 2

This is a long past due blog post, but life has been super crazy up until now. I was taking finals early, transferring schools, moving, my family was in town, and basically life was insane. But I am now done with the stressful part of life so I can enjoy life now :)


The second half of Spring Break consisted of me packing for the big move. I was the only one at the dorms still (since most college kids are cool and actually go somewhere for spring break), but it was actually quite enjoyable. I did do some fun things still though. On Tuesday, I went up to Orem to go on a short Razr trip with my roommates Emma and Albanee and our good friend Jenny. We went up a small little trail in the middle of nowhere- I honestly couldn't tell you where we were, but it was pretty. All of us brought different food items and we had a little picnic lunch on the trail. It was so gorgeous, but I was expecting it to be a lot warmer than it was. We actually ran into some pretty deep snow the further we got up the trail, so we had to turn around so we wouldn't get stuck.

Then, my friend Sam scored us tickets to the General Women's Broadcast up in SLC, so we took the train up to Salt Lake and made a day trip out of it. I absolutely LOVE being in Salt Lake during Conference weekend- it's so much fun and so spiritual. Plus I just love Salt Lake in general. 

Overall, I had a really enjoyable and relaxing Spring Break. I got to get most of my packing done- which I was SO glad I did because the following weeks became hectic- and I got to still do some fun things as well. 

XOXO 

Mikayla 

Spring Break 2015: Part 1

I cannot believe it's almost April. Seriously, this year has flown by. So this week is my spring break and, even though I didn't get to go back home, I've gotten to do a lot of other fun things and take a much needed break.

On Friday, I packed a weekend bag and headed up North to see my Grandpa and my cousin, Ali, who was visiting from Kentucky. She and I are only a week apart in age and have always been pretty close. She's getting ready to leave on a mission to Ukraine and so she was out here shopping for mission clothes. It was fun to get to see her, especially since that was the last time I will get to see her for a year and a half.

On Friday night, my Grandpa took us out to Teppanyaki (sp?), which is where they cook your food in front of you. It was really good food and we even ordered sushi! And for the first time ever I finally caught the shrimp they throw at you in my mouth! 

On Sunday, Ali and I asked if we could drive my Grandpa's Razor around the neighborhood and he let us. :) We even picked up a cute little girl (with permission from her parents) along the way. 

 The day before, we met Ali's uncles and cousins in Heber for a picnic. It was a beautiful day, so it was fun to be outside and enjoy the weather and good company.

Of course, you can't go to Grandpa's house and not go to "Scheels". I love that place. Ali and I went on the ferris wheel, messed around in the photo booths, and had some really good gelato. 

Later that day, we went to this newly built Aquarium. It was so cool- it wasn't just an aquarium, they had a ton of different themed exhibits. In case you don't know, my cousin Zach is serving a mission in Brazil right now, so that's why the picture says "visiting Zach". :) 

More Scheel's photo booth fun. 

 

Bear hug!

Tuesday morning I woke up to Ali leaving at 5:30am and later on that morning I left to head back home. But first, my roommates and my friend Jenni had planned a Razor trip up in the mountains. It was super fun. We all took turns driving, but ended up having to turn around because we almost got stuck in the snow! I definitely wasn't expecting it to be that cold. 

 

A group picture- Albanee is sitting next to me, but we couldn't get her in the picture haha

We then found a good spot to stop and have lunch. We made it a potluck lunch, so everyone was in charge of bringing a different category of food. I was in charge of drinks. We definitely didn't take too long to eat though because we were all freezing to death. 

Overall, spring break has been pretty fun so far. More to come! :)


XOXO

Mikayla