Down But Not Defeated

 Remember the post Heart and Soul I talked about my determination to keep head strong in moving forward in my life?Well I've a few set backs that are making my heart ache. I just wanted to acknowledge to myself that it's okay to have a couple of bad days, it's okay to stand up for what you believe in even if a person you love is not willing to change, it's okay to miss someone so much it hurts, and it's okay to cry. One of my good  friends said it's important to not dwell on the things that are troubling me. Consider this me getting my worries off my chest and letting go...again.

I'm not giving up, I'm not giving in. I'm tired of losing, from now on I'm gunna win. ~ moi 

A few set backs are okay, it's what you do afterwards that counts. Are you going to let your set backs defeat  you or are you gunna get back up and try again?

The choice is yours!  

 

I randomly found this list. There are some things I would never do because it either goes against what I believe or it is just plain stupid!

Check out the ones I've done and see which ones you have done or would love to do!

150 things to do before you turn 30

The things I've already done!
The things that I'm dying to do!

01. Bought everyone in the bar a drink (umm nope)
02. Swam with dolphins
03. Climbed a mountain (does bear's hump count??)
04. Taken a Ferrari for a test drive
05. Been inside the Great Pyramid
06. Held a tarantula
07. Taken a candlelit bath with someone
08. Said “I love you” and meant it (only said it to close friends and family..)
09. Hugged a tree
10. Bungee jumped
11. Visited Paris
12. Watched a lightning storm at sea
13. Stayed up all night long and saw the sun rise
14. Seen the Northern Lights
15. Gone to a huge sports game
16. Walked the stairs to the top of the leaning Tower of Pisa
17. Grown and eaten your own vegetables
18. Touched an iceberg
19. Slept under the stars
20. Changed a baby’s diaper
21. Taken a trip in a hot air balloon
22. Watched a meteor shower
23. Wished on a shooting star
24. Given more than you can afford to charity
25. Looked up at the night sky through a telescope
26. Had an uncontrollable giggling fit at the worst possible moment
27. Had a food fight
28. Bet on a winning horse
29. Asked out a stranger
30. Had a snowball fight
31. Screamed as loudly as you possibly can
32. Held a lamb
33. Seen a total eclipse
34. Ridden a roller coaster
35. Hit a home run (never gunna happen)
36. Danced like a fool and didn’t care who was looking
37. Adopted an accent for an entire day
38. Actually felt happy about your life, even for just a moment
39. Had two hard drives for your computer
40. Visited all 50 states (this would be cool but I would rather visit other places in the world)
41. Taken care of someone who was drunk
42. Had amazing friends
43. Danced with a stranger in a foreign country
44. Watched whales
45. Stolen a sign
46. Backpacked in Europe
47. Taken a road-trip
48. Gone rock climbing
49. Taken a midnight walk on the beach
50. Gone sky diving
51. Visited Ireland
52. Been heartbroken longer than you were actually in love
53. In a restaurant, sat at a stranger’s table and had a meal with them
54. Visited Japan
55. Milked a cow
56. Alphabetized your CDs
57. Pretended to be a superhero
58. Sung karaoke
59. Lounged around in bed all day
60. Played touch football
61. Gone scuba diving
62. Kissed in the rain (wasn't the best experience but not because of the rain...)
63. Played in the mud
64. Played in the rain
65. Gone to a drive-in theatre
66. Visited the Great Wall of China
67. Started a business
68. Fallen in love and not had your heart broken
69. Toured ancient sites
70. Taken a martial arts class (only from the old pops)
71. Played D&D for more than 6 hours straight
72. Gotten married
73. Been in a movie
74. Crashed a party ( I kinda did but it wasn't a big deal)
75. Gotten divorced
76. Gone without food for 5 days
77. Made cookies from scratch (they weren't that great...)
78. Won first prize in a costume contest
79. Ridden a gondola in Venice
80. Gotten a tattoo (does a fake one count?)
81. Rafted the Snake River
82. Been on a television news program as an “expert”
83. Gotten flowers for no reason
84. Performed on stage
85. Been to Las Vegas
86. Recorded music
87. Eaten shark
88. Kissed on the first date
89. Gone to Thailand
90. Bought a house
91. Been in a combat zone
92. Buried one/both of your parents
93. Been on a cruise ship
94. Spoken more than one language fluently
95. Performed in Rocky Horror
96. Raised children
97. Followed your favorite band/singer on tour
98. Passed out cold
99. Taken an exotic bicycle tour in a foreign country
100. Picked up and moved to another city to just start over
101. Walked the Golden Gate Bridge
102. Sang loudly in the car, and didn’t stop when you knew someone was looking with the windows open
103. Had plastic surgery
104. Survived an accident that you shouldn’t have survived
105. Wrote articles for a large publication
106. Lost over 100 pounds
107. Held someone while they were having a flashback
108. Piloted an airplane
109. Touched a stingray
110. Broken someone’s heart
111. Helped an animal give birth
112. Won money on a TV game show
113. Broken a bone
114. Gone on an African photo safari
115. Had a facial part pierced other than your ears (my lip...I won't do it though...)
116. Fired a rifle, shotgun, or pistol
117. Eaten mushrooms that were gathered in the wild
118. Ridden a horse
119. Had major surgery
120. Had a snake as a pet
121. Hiked to the bottom of the Grand Canyon
122. Slept for 30 hours in a 48 hour period
123. Visited more foreign countries than U.S. States
124. Visited all 7 continents
125. Taken a canoe trip that lasted more than 2 days
126. Eaten kangaroo meat
127. Eaten sushi
128. Had your picture in the newspaper
129. Changed someone’s mind about something you care deeply about
130. Gone back to school
131. Parasailed
132. Touched a cockroach
133. Eaten fried green tomatoes
134. Read The Iliad and The Odyssey
135. Selected one “important” author who you missed in school, and read
136. Killed and prepared an animal for eating
137. Skipped all your school reunions
138. Communicated with someone without sharing a common spoken language
139. Been elected to public office
140. Written your own computer language
141. Thought to yourself that you’re living your dream
142. Had to put someone you love into hospice care
143. Built your own PC from parts
144. Sold your own artwork to someone who didn’t know you
145. Had a booth at a street fair
146. Dyed your hair
147. Been a DJ
148. Shaved your head
149. Caused a car accident
150. Save someone's life (not yet)

Got any more to add?

What's something that you've been dying to do?

I've got 9 years left to get most of these done so I better get crackin'

Christmas Holidays Here I Come!

I'm almost done my last semester of university, just a week left of torture school then it's over!!! Procrastination accompanied with my inability to say no to people has resulted in me stressing out these past few weeks needing to finish my assignments. I made it through last week where I had a presentation, and 2 papers due one day after another. And now I only have a few assignments left so it's more manageable. I am so close to becoming a registered nurse it's unreal!
I'm looking forward to the Christmas break for several reasons:

1. I get to catch up on my knitting. I've made promises to several people and I need to get cracking.
2. I love watching Christmas movies!!! Looking forward to Elf, Home Alone, Jingle All The Way, How the Grinch Stole Christmas and many others :)
3. The Christmas Spirit makes everyone so happy and giving! It's great!
4. I get to drink hot chocolate and read by the fire place at my parent's house.
5. I have more time to spend with the family.
6. I can do Christmas baking with mum!
7. I love getting Christmas presents!
8. I will go sledding...probably only once because I'm not a huge fan of the cold
9. I'm going Christmas carolling twice this week!!
10. It's the time of the year to celebrate the birth of the Saviour. Without the Saviour and His Atonement we will not have the gift of the resurrection or the opportunity to gain eternal life in the presence of Heavenly Father if we keep the commandments.

Please take a least a moment this Christmas season to appreciate the Saviour and His willingness to come into the world and take upon Him the sins and afflictions of the world.

Remember the Christ in Christmas.

Merry Christmas everyone!

Heart and Soul...

There's been a lot of change in my life this past year and especially in the last couple of months. Change is needed though not always wanted. BUT it is necessary for growth.
I received an email that spoke to me from The Brave Girls Club so I'm going to share the email with you here...

Dear Devoted Girl,
Letting go of things that you have outgrown is painful and often brings on the same kind of grief that a death would cause in your life. Just because something feels painful, uncomfortable and awkward, it doesn't mean you made the wrong decision. ALWAYS go back to the point where you made a difficult decision, and remember the peace you felt when you knew it was the right choice. The most important decisions ofter included a great deal of sacrifice, which means you are giving up something good for something that is best for your life.
Often we have to grieve over the good thing that we had to give up to be able to get to the best thing. It will pass.
One way to make yourself very sad and miserable is to keep trying to keep the tip of a toe in the "good" old life, while trying to move forward into the "best" new life. Turn your whole body to where it needs to be and let yourself be there, heart and soul. Let the old stuff go that is not helping you to be your very best self, which in turn helps you to serve in your life in the very best way, and enjoy your life in the very way, and live your life in the very best way.
Let yourself grieve if you need to grieve, then let yourself move on.
It is time.
You are so very loved.
xoxo

It's time for me to move on "heart and soul".
I've made a plan, and I'm sticking to it.
I deserve my best life and to become my best self, and so do you.
Dream, Believe, then Do!
Have a great week!

21 and Invincible

There's one day a year a person can be self centred and pretty much 'high' on themself and no one can say otherwise.

You've guessed it...

Birthdays

 

Some of my friends may say I get too excited for my birthday but I attest that there is nothing wrong with being excited about a day filled with presents, party food, and attention!

 

Besides I turned 21 and apparently it's a HUGE milestone. The beginning of the end or just the beginning... depends which day you see me on.

 

Things I have to look forward to now that I'm 21...

• I am legal in all countries.
• I can drink in the States...not that I have a desire to...
• I am an official adult!
• I will be a Registered Nurse in less than a year!!!
• Another year to love, laugh and learn

 I've been wait for so long to sing this song on my birthday, so here it is for y'all!!!

Being Happy in the Meantime

These aren't my words but they are exactly what I needed to hear/read. My good friend Kara showed me this website called the 'Brave Girls Club'. They send emails with words of acknowledgement that life can be tough, and encouragement that we can make it through because we are truly amazing!
I hope for those who are struggling or will struggle, (which I'm sure you will coz let's face it that's life sometimes) will read this and find comfort and encouragement like I have. Don't give up and don't dare give in.

"Dear Authentic Girl,

It's ok to cry sometimes, you know. It's even ok to completely fall apart for a little while so you can put yourself back together in the way you are supposed to be together...sometimes the pieces of us get a little bit mixed up and we have to let ourselves fall apart so that we can get ourselves back in order.

And...it's ok to grieve over things that we've lost. It's ok to grieve over people that we've lost and it's ok to grieve over time that has been lost. It's ok to feel a bit of a hole in our hearts where loved things used to be.

HERE'S THE IMPORTANT THING, though. Remember, that you can still do the things that you want to do, and work toward the places that you want to do, and work toward the places that you want to be, and learn the things that you want to learn WHILE you are working through grief. You don't have to wait until all of the pain is gone to start living the life we want to have. The time to start living the life we want to have is RIGHT NOW...even if it's while we are holding hands with pain. They really can live next to each other...and then when it's time for the pain to go...you are not left alone trying to figure out what to do next...you are already there...just without the pain.

So...please stop waiting, lovely you. Please stand up and take some steps into the places that you want to be. It's ok if your pain comes with you...it really is. Someday it will feel like it's done it's job and it will be gone...it really will. YOUR JOB is to just keep moving, and you are the only one who can do it.

You know it's time...stand up, sweet sister...take a step.
You can do this.

Have a wonderful weekend
xoxo"

You can subscribe to these amazingly, uplifting emails at www.bravegirlsclub.com

"God invented the word coincidence so he could remain anonymous" (quote I found on pinterest) This email was send at this time in my life by 'coincidence'. I happened to need this email more than ever and it happened like it has many times before.

Be strong and carry on!

I'm a Sucka for Chick Flicks!

I'm the stereotypical girl when it comes to most movies.

I love comedies, romances, and of course romantic comedies.

I do enjoy the occasional action movie and yes I do love my classics (umm hello? Star Wars Saga anyone?). I love, love, love musicals, I wish I had time to watch more of them.

A new rom com is coming out so I naturally I want to see it. Many of you may have heard of it...

Crazy, Stupid, Love

BUT there are a few other reasons I want to see this:

1. Ryan Gosling anyone? 'nuf said.

2. Emma Stone. Ever since Easy A I have been an Emma Stone fan and I am so excited she is in this movie!

3. Steve Carell. He is super funny. I've seen a few The Office episodes and I think he's hilarious but I haven't jumped on that bandwagon and now he's gone so oh well. BUT in some of the movies I've watched of his, he's super funny.

4. Even though I don't believe in going to movies for dates unless you're actually 'dating' the person I would totally be ok with a guy taking me to this movie. (side note: dates are meant for the girl and guy to get to know each other better not simply sit and watch a movie...that's lame)

5. Rom coms ALWAYS have a happy ending.... call me cliché but I'm usually only satisfied if the movie has a happy ending. UNLESS it has a cool way the story is told and the conclusion could be reached no other way than to have it tragically end.

Here's the movie trailer so you can get super excited to see it too!

It comes out July 29!!!

How to Have a Lovely Day

So I'm just like many of my lady friends... I LOVE pinterest.

I find so many quotes that make me smile, laugh, cry, and even re-evaluate my life/attitude. This quote makes me re-evaluate my attitude towards how I deal with life every day.

Life hasn't been easy recently, you could even say it's been unkind but I'm doing fine...

So here it is:

How to Have a Lovely Day

in 10 easy steps

1. Smile at strangers

2. Slow down

3. Say thank you

4. Give lots of compliments

5. Dress nicely

6. Wear perfume

7. Observe and listen

8. Be charming

9. Laugh

10. Wish people a lovely day

And I'm proud to say I've done all of the above so far today! Just need to do it EVERY DAY and I'm sure I will see amazing results in my attitude towards those around me, and how I feel about myself.

Here's my challenge to you: complete this list every day and see how it changes your life.

Till next time friends...



This is the link where the 10 steps came from:
http://icanread.tumblr.com/post/1070331264

Graffiti Shoes

I don't believe in vandalizing other people's property so I vandalize my own. Back in high school I used to write all over my notebook or binder who I was crushing on that week.

side note: In England high school starts at year (grade) 7 so I was 11 when I started high school so I feel that justifies my writing I <3 (fill in the blank) all over my notebook. (I may still do that from time to time...don't judge)

I <3...

I'M NOT TELLING!!!!!

Anyways, I jazzed up a pair of white shoes and wrote some of my fave quotes/lyrics. A friend told me (something to this effect) that lyrics lead his life. I feel the same way. I love reading the booklet at the front while I listen to a new CD for the first time. Many of my friends/coworkers can back me up in saying that I'm always singing. I'm kind of a music nerd coz many times I would think of (or sing) a song that reminds me of the certain situation that I'm currently in or something a friend says. I used random patterns and quotes from lyrics or people I admire to decorate my plain jane shoes.

Here's the BEFORE:

AFTER:

"Come what may, and love it" Joseph B. Wirthlin

This was an amazing talk at conference and I try to live my life according to this talk.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tVNYhcYEwIE

On the left shoe is says 'no fear'. At times I fear I'm not good enough or that I'm too afraid to leap into the unknown. You can't see it too well on the photo but in the yellow it says "all you need is love". Even though The Beatles were high while writing the majority of their songs I do enjoy the lyrics and the music truly moves me.

"Run Don't Walk" is a song by Hey Monday...I saw them at warped tour last year.

I relate to that title because we can't go through the motions in life we have to feel the breeze as we run. It helps me feel alive!!! On the left shoe it says "Get off your feet and make this count" ~ Do You Feel by The Rocket Summer. One of my fave artists!!!!! I also saw him at warped. I met him and he crowd surfed right over me...I almost died!!! Anywho I love this lyric coz it's about feet....so it makes sense to have it on my shoes and the whole song talks about even though we have are busy lives it's still important to make a difference in the world around us and with those we have a influence on. Our life here on this Earth is a short time compared to the rest of eternity so we have to make every day count.

"Always love, hate will get you every time" ~ Nada Surf. The most powerful things can come from the simplest of words. If you don't know Nada Surf please check out this song. Then check out the rest of the album "The Weight is a Gift". It will change your life even if you're not super into music.

I love these two photos...

I just realized that I was wearing a 'recycling recommended' t-shirt! How fitting coz I recycled an old pair of shoes into art! teehee

Photos taken by Jared Etches.... good job lil' bro :)

British Stereotypes...REVEALED!

Ok so here's the thing... Yes I am British and yes I live in Canada so I figured I'd have to finally clear a few things up for my Canadian/American friends.

The following stereotypes will either be confirmed or denied based on my own life and according to my own wit and judgement:

1) Because I am from the Manchester area I know your grandma, your cousin, or even your friend you met over the internet...

FALSE

As rockin' as I'm sure your grandma is chances are I've never met her considering there are approx. 2.6 million in the Greater Manchester area...just sayin' so please stop asking if i know someone from the motherland coz i don't know them.

2) I watched the royal wedding of the century...

TRUE

Yes I went to bed at midnight woke up at 3am and stayed up to watch 3 hrs of the wedding coverage..LIVE! C'mon it's Prince William and Kate! They are the most promising royal couple I've ever seen! P.s. Will is gunna be the next king you  wait and see!

3) I've met the Queen

FALSE

Don't be silly! As if I've met her! I wish though coz that would be kinda cool. I'd much rather meet Prince William, he's amazing! He will do great things! (hahaha I always manage to quote She's The Man)

4) I eat crumpets...

TRUE

I love crumpets!!! For those who do not know what they are "They have a characteristic flat top with many small pores and a half-chewy half-spongy texture. They may be cooked until ready to eat warm from the pan, but are frequently left slightly undercooked so that they may be cooled and stored before being eaten freshly toasted" (thanks Wikipedia).

Crumpets taste the best with butter and honey! YUM!

5) Along with my crumpets I also drink tea at...wait for it...tea time!

FALSE

I tried drinking the herbal stuff but it's not really my cup of tea. hahaha get it? well that lame joke leads to my next stereotype.

6) British 'Dry' Humour is the only humour I find humoureous.

FALSE

Apparently I'm the only one that's thinks I'm funny. That's okay I like laughing at my jokes. I do enjoy some good British humour like Monty Python or Mr. Bean but I like other humourous things too.

Just a side note...don't tell a joke that no one will understand and defienatley don't blurt it out so your friends stop what they are doing and stare at you in confusion then laugh at you. That may or may not have happened to me this past week. For those that were there all I'm sayin is: garlic. bread.

7) All Brits have bad teeth.

FALSE/TRUE

Well this applies to me. I have never had braces and I have super straight/white teeth. I admit I DO whiten them but hey why not? I have a confession though...I have sooo many fillings so I guess that makes my teeth 'bad'. P.s. that's my new neice, Victoria! she's cute right?!

8) All Brits are chavs (this one's for Nolan, who probably doesn't even read my blog)

FALSE

I am NOT a chav. I do not own any Burberry or big gold hoops or chains. I do not wear track suits as my 'uniform'. I do not tuck my socks into my track suit bottoms. I do not have a kid at home or live off welfare. I do not talk or look like Vicky Pollard from Little Britain....yeah but no but.

9) I've played cricket, netball, and rounds.

TRUE

Yeah I played those sports and they were so much fun! I was actually pretty decent at them but I was 14 when I moved to Canada so I might have gotten a lot worse who knows.

10) I'm very patriotic!

       TRUE

I thought I would educate my fellow Canadian friends. To be honest I didn't know there was a Union Jack flag before the one we have today that did not include Ireland, so I learned something new as well. I love my country but I also love Canada and all the blessings and opporunities that I have by being in Southern Alberta.



Jimmy Eat World Concert...the stuff dreams are made of

I guess you could call this a concert review. If I had to describe the Jimmy Eat World concert in one word it would be 'incredible'. But y'all (hahaha inside joke from the concert, don't worry bout it) know I like to talk so I'm gunna do more than write one word.

We waited in line for about 4 hours but it paid off for 2 reasons:

1. We got front row!!! fo reals!!!

         I'm front stage left!!!

                       

I didn't even have to zoom in!

2. I made friends with the people that were in front of us and it turned out I met one of the girls before. We had a blast and we wasted our time taking photos!

Yes this was my idea...and I like it! (mine are the cool red shoes btw)

Their set list was to die for! My friend Kyle got a good photo of the set list:

They played all my favourites songs like:
23 (when I turn 23 I will listen to this EVERY day...but probs not every day)
Hear You Me (get's me every time!)
Bleed America (They opened with this and was it ever amazing)
Work (the first J.E.W. song I ever heard...I know what you're thinking "wow she's a late bloomer" but really that's from the album 'Futures' that came out in 2004 so it's really not that late)
Sweetness (they ended the concert with this one...what a great way to finish!)
The Middle (call me cliché but this is my FAVOURITE one of all time!!!)

To be completely honest Jimmy Eat World was never my go-to band but I still really like them. Now after the concert I truly LOVE this band!

Jimmy Eat rocks my World!!!

Momma Etches

I know you've all heard the cliche "my mum is the best mum in the whole world" well unless your mum was Mother Theresa or Mother Mary or  someone as cool/righteous as them sorry to say your mum is probably not as good as mine! Just sayin'
There's so much to say about my mum that I'm only going to able to cover a few of my favourite things about her:

1. she is the biggest donny osmond fan. you may think that your mum or some other lady you know is the biggest donny fan, but alas you would be wrong, again lol.
2. she makes THE best batispms cakes ever! she makes them look like golden plates! i wish i had a photo to show you all how cool they look...i'm so gunna use that idea for when my future children get baptised, for reals!
3. so many people say i'm a spitting image of my mum and i'm pretty awesome so therefore my mum is awesome!  my nickname is mini-ME (ME is my mum's initials...clever i know!)
4. she is so loving and will do anything for us as a family and at times (ok a lot of the time) us as children take that for granted.
5. she is a super mum! she works so hard and always makes time to spend time with us.
6. she always is willing to serve others.
7. we have such a laugh when we chat and i can honestly talk to her about everything. she is such a goof and i blame/thank her for my quirky-ness
8. this woman knows how to party when given the opportunity! it's so funny that when she was my age she was organizing huge dances and activities and that's the kinda stuff i love doing too! whenever i have parties she loves to help out which i love her for!
9. 99.9% she's right about things when it comes to advice about guys and friends (yes i still chat to my momma about that kind of stuff)
and finally 10. i know that she was meant to be my mum and to help me and the rest of my siblings learn and grow.

I love you mum!

Oh and another thing a love doing with my mum...singing to classic songs. This one's our fave!! ENJOY!

Ketchup + Awkward Eye Contact = Huge Ego Booster

Ever have those days where you didn’t expect something to happen that makes you smile and it just makes you smile even more? Yeah that happened to me this week. I was hanging out with my sister and a few of my close friends doing errands and we got hungry...it happens lol. So we went to 5 Guys, Burgers and Fries.
For those who do not know, I love ketchup...actually LOVE it! There wasn’t enough ketchup at the table for the amount of fries there was to eat, so naturally I go and get some more from the dispenser up front. So I’m minding my own business getting my ketchup and this guy comes up beside me and uses the other ketchup dispenser. He looked in his mid-twenties, tall, a little stubble, and of course pretty dang cute. We make quick eye contact and I look away (eye contact makes me SUPER nervous and I freak out on the inside). Then I noticed he missed dispensing the ketchup into his container and he says “oops, I guess I wasn’t paying attention” while he was looking at me. Guess what I said?! “It’s all good” and I walked away. Who says that when a guy is trying to make small talk? Clearly this girl does! So we’re eating away and I turned around and there was the same guy sitting behind me, so I flashed him my pearly whites and he showed me his (that’s probably sounds dirtier than intended so get your mind out of the gutter for goodness sake!) Oh and he had a little toddler with him too! Good thing I love kids!! I totally thought of a pickup line...something like "Hey, so I like kids" or something like that lol. So to keep it short I got giddy while I ate then when we finished we got up to leave. We walked by his table and I smiled at him and he smiles back but again I can’t keep eye contact for much longer than a second. My sister said that as we walked away she saw that he kept his eyes on me smiling.
So I’ll probably never see him again or if the one in a million chance that it happens I may or may not remember his face... oh well. It wasn’t a huge deal except the fact that it made my day and I looked so scruffy that day (baggy-but-cute shirt, hair in a pony and minimal make up). Gotta love things like that, total boost to the ego! And in honour of speaking of egos and my close friends that I was with that day here’s a little Beyoncé...Promise me you dance to this while you watch it. (and for those who are super sensitive I'm sorry if this is too hawt for you to handle lol)

LOVE is a many splendor thing...

"The greatest thing you'll ever learn is just to love and be loved in return." ~ Moulin Rouge! 
Sure the movie is about prostitution, lies and deceit but there is a much more predominate theme...LOVE

For a while now I've been contemplating this whole topic; love. This is nothing new in the whole of YSA where really the main purpose is to find someone and get married (don't get me wrong it is so important because really marriage and families is central to the whole plan of happiness our Heavenly father has put in place). So many of you are feeling the same as me...everyone round you is getting hitched and you're left in the dust. Well guess what? I learned something that has stuck with me. Let me back track to why I thought of this topic. Elder Richard G. Scott came to town, really righteous I know! We all thought he was gunna ream on us about getting married and STAYING married coz there's so many that are getting divorced these days. Well he did talk about marriage but he did it in such a way that it (for me at least, in such an inspiring way) that I hope all the guys and gals actually start doing as he told us. He talked about putting a stop to hanging out and start dating. That was quite discouraging to me coz it's hard to sit at home on a friday night coz a guy hasn't ask me out on a date. (i can't say this has happened too often coz if i don't get asked out i find something to do rather than mope at home - that's lame). BUT Elder Scott goes on to address the ladies about what to do while waiting for the guys to get their act together. he said, "Live it up...in a righteous way" and that's what i've decided to focus on, living it up righteously.
don't get me wrong, it's still hard at times to watch all the cute girls get asked to dance as you're stuck awkwardly in the middle of the dance floor and everyone else is slow dancing around you. ever tried getting to the edge while people are dancing around you? you kinda have to weave between them...not my idea of a great time, but hey sometimes it beats the awkward small talk where you have to yell in the guy's ear to say either "I'm livin on the west side but i'm from england originally" or "yeah i'm going to school, i'm in my 3rd year of nursing" or my favourite small talk for slow songs "yeah...i love this song too...".
That went on a slight bitter curve... My point is that us girls need to have fun, get an education and basically just live life instead of waiting for prince charming to come rushing in to sweep you off your feet. Many people have told me that he comes in the mean time...meaning that he comes when you least expect it.
Well in the mean time i'm gunna have fun!! And this is a side note for all the gals reading this... there's nothing wrong with asking a guy out on a date... I did last week! We had fun and here's to hoping that he'll ask me out... but i'm not gunna keep looking at my phone to see if i missed his call as much as i REALLY want to.  For those gals who are brave enough it is important to remember about making the first move: there's a fine line between confidence and in-your-face-i-want-to-date-you kinda thing. Be confident but not over-bearing.
All i'm saying is don't give up (I tell this myself every day)
Focus on being the best version of yourself and have fun.
The Lord is mindful of everyone's needs and knows us individually, I know this to be true! I feel my Saviour's love for me everyday and it gives me strength to do my best.

Albums to Look for in 2011

So if you didn't already know I <3 music. Having said that there have been a few albums out so far this year that I love and many more I am looking forward to. Hope this inspires you to try out a new band or get you excited for the release of a long waited album to come out. Either way ENJOY!

Albums already out so far this year:
Panic! At The Disco - Vice & Virtues
Yellowcard - When You're Through With Thinking Say Yes
The Strokes - Angles
Adele - 21
Go Radio - Lucky Street
Laura Jansen - Bells
Travis Barker - Give The Drummer Some
The Get Up Kids - There Are Rules
Iron & Wine - Kiss Each Other Clean
Sum 41 - Scream Bloody Murder
Cage The Elephant - Thank You, Happy Birthday
Bayside - Killing Time
Noah & The Whale - Last Night On Earth
Funeral For A Friend - Welcome Home Armageddon

So the least famous out of all these artists is Laura Jansen but she is still AMAZING!!!! So i figured i'd add a video of one of her songs. i saw her in concert when she was an opening act for Joshua Radin...she's freakin' hilarious too!!!

Albums to look out for in the rest of the year:

Owl City - All Things Bright & Beautiful - May 17th

Manchester Orchestra - Simple Math - May 10th

These bands have not yet released dates for their albums...

All Time Low - Dirty Work

New Found Glory

The Cab

Red Hot Chili Peppers

Blink 182

Fun. --> this band i just listened to last night and they are so good!!!!

Got anymore albums to add that you're excited comment :)

Cartier Pushups, Gold Medals, and One Big Black Eye

This definition has a purpose promise!
Hooker:
1) Prostitute
2) A large drink of liquor
3) A player in rugby who hooks the ball in front line of scrummage

I am a hooker...well the 3rd one, coz i'm not a large drink of liquor and i'm most definitely not a prostitute (sorry for anyone that's disappointed...i will accept dates from kind gents though!) My parents would get a kick out of telling people that their daughter is a hooker just to see their reaction to hearing that. then they would explain that it's a position in rugby. not gunna lie, i like to do that to. it's quite funny coz you can totally predict what the person is thinking!

Playing rugby for LCI was so much fun. I got to meet up with my old rugby coach, Cartier, for dinner at BP's this week. So this got me thinking back to the good old days of Cartier push ups, rugby miles, and burpies gallor!!! that and alaya french working us super hard...i was actually scared of her!! now we're tight NBD!

My first memory of rugby was day one of practice when Cartier sorted us noobs into 2 groups, forwards and backs. I started to see a pattern...all the skinny, fast girls when to one side and and the rest of us went to other side. This is not to say that us forwards were not as good as the backs, heck we do most of the work!!! OOPS! did i really just type that? lol.

Another great memory was a game in my gr 12 year against fort mcleod. Just to keep the story short coz, well, i'm not always the best at telling stories..just ask my siblings, i ended up colliding with another player and i got a HUGE black eye as a result... you should see the other girl!! I'm pretty sure she was fine, which makes me extremely bitter! I wanted to play the rest of the half and i refused to get off the pitch even though i couldn't see out of one eye! I'm sure that was my concussion talking...the other girls weren't too impressed with my persistence to carry on playing coz being the hooker requires me to see when the ball comes into the scrum. OOPS!

Needless to say this occurred a measly week and a half before grad. i kid you not!!!! i had a black eye for graduation! FML!!! i got over it...kinda.

Here's the before's and after

BEFORE: aka 10 mins after it happened....don't i look fabulous?!

A few days after...

So i couldn't open my eye for a few days...i got the nickname Quasimodo by some real FRIENDS! (*cough* the Kyle sisters and Andrew Wagner *cough cough*) great! i'm pretty sure they forgot about that name and i kindly reminded them through this blog lol.

Here's the day of grad at convocation: you can still kinda see it but wait till you see the next pic.

AFTER: No black eye!!! i still had a red eye from the busted blood vessels in my eye but i was very clever in the way i position my head so they were not caught on camera!

Now that you've seen me at my best and worst... Time to share another fond memory from rugby. South Zone Finals 2008. LCI vs. Raymond!!!! This game was super intense lemme tell ya!

Needless to say we won!! but it was really close!! It felt AMAZING to beat Raymond!! Serious!

Just look how happy/exciting we were to walk off the pitch after that glorious win!!! beautiful isn't it?
We went onto play in provincials and we WON GOLD!!!! BEST TIME EVER!!!

For all you rugby players or rugby lovers out there that have favourite memories or comments feel free to share!

Next on my fab blog...most anticipated albums of 2011 (according to me!)

peace out yo!

My love for Mixtapes

So I went to see 'No Strings Attached' this weekend, highly inappropriate but really funny (I'm not justifying going to see but whatever). Anywho I love Natalie Portman with all my heart and Ashton Kutcher isn't so bad on the eyes either. Well in the movie Adam makes Emma a 'period mixtape'...SERIOUSLY!!! It was really a mix CD but it sounds more legit when said as a mixtape. I thought it was the funniest/sweetest thing ever! The most memorable song on the mixtape was "Bleeding Love" by Leona Lewis. I will never listen to that song in the same way again!
I've had mixtapes given to me before as going away presents and such but I've only ever had one mixtape given to me before by a guy... It was an answer to me asking him to preference and it was pretty much the best thing EVER!!! This is a side for for any guy reading this (which is slim to none but o well) I <3 mixtapes!!! LOVE them!!! I find them so thoughtful when they put songs that make them think of you, or songs you should check...stuff like that. I find guys don't try hard enough these days, but that's just my bitter opinion lol!
Here's one of my fave bands ever (Jack's Mannequin) singing about mixtapes, the song is called: The Mixed Tape (shocker I know!) It's also got one of my fave actress' in the music video...Hilarie Burton aka Peyton Sawyer from One Tree Hill (Also one of my fave tv shows)
ENJOY!

P.S. I found out today that Jimmy Eat World is going to Calgary in May! Pretty much the best news EVER!

Till next people!!

Me, Myself, and I

Hey y'all!
I've been thinking about starting a blog for a while now and I've finally got down to it! Well what to say? I'm excited! I get into these cycles of writing in my journal for a while then I just get bored of my life so I stop writing in it. Then I try to catch up on what I've missed and update my journal on everything and it's exhausting. Then I had a thought! I'm already on the computer a lot and why not do a journal-like thing... like a blog! So here it is! For you and me! Let's get started!!!
Here's a few things you should know about me:

1) If you didn't already know I'm British

2) I LOVE music!! seriously love it! I went to warped tour for the first time last year and I met of one my favourite bands...The Rocket Summer!!

3) I love to dance and sing in my bedroom when no one is around...and yes I use my hairbrush as a microphone! One of my favourite feel good songs has to be Jimmy Eat World's 'The Middle'.

4) I'm in my 3rd year of post secondary school...I'm going to be a Registered Nurse before I'm 22! Not too shabby I know! My plan is to work in Pediatrics or in Public Health.

5) I LOVE shopping...a little too much! My favourite store ever...Forever 21

I also love thrift store shopping...I love it when i find something super cute and that's cheap!

So that's a little about me to get ya started...

Have a great week!