A Merry Christmas and Some Other Stuff.

Hey everyone! I realize that I updated my blog a couple weeks ago promising to post more...and it hasn't happened! So this is going to be one giant post covering the whole month of December, and then my New Year's resolution is going to be to post more. And also to get more followers. And to comment on other people's blogs more. Clearly I just need to make blogging my second job. I think I'd do it more if I got paid.

So anyway, did I ever post about Thanksgiving? I don't think so. I'll start there.

Thanksgiving

Not gonna lie. Thanksgiving last year was hard to top. It was so much fun. But Thanksgiving this year was still good. All my family was in town this year, so we all gathered at my grandma and grandpa's house for dinner around 5:30. We spent most of the day and the previous day cooking.

The previous day, actually, we were working on some desserts, and while I was making pumpkin pies we here this loud, obnoxious, continuous pounding on our front door. I was literally scared for my life; I thought someone was going to kill us.

Instead I just got kidnapped.

Turns out it was two of my friends "kidnapping" me to go see a movie that started in like half an hour. (Red Dawn -- crazy movie! Major unexpected twist at the end.) So the desserts got put on hold for a little while.

Thanksgiving day we made homemade rolls which were AMAZING. We went over to my grandparents' house and ate all the delicious food and then played a few rounds of pool. And then finally we went home where I had a couple hours before my friends came and picked me up for my first ever Black Friday experience.

Starting off Thanksgiving right with cinnamon muffins.

Our homemade rolls.

Food!

Black Friday

My friends picked me up around 9 because most of the stores were opening at midnight. We had a couple of friends who had been standing in line at Best Buy since like 4 to get some TVs (which they didn't even get). So we stopped to get them some food and then went and stood in our own lines. I waited at Kohl's (which was crazy long) with another friend.

We got soooo much stuff when the doors finally opened. It was crazy. My first destination was the shoe department to get some $75 boots that were marked down to $20. And I ended up getting two pairs because I didn't have time to decide which to get. Then I had to get some other stuff that my dad wanted me to pick up for my mom for Christmas. And it was very heavy stuff and they were out of carts.

Thankfully, everyone I ran into was really nice. A lot of people offered to help carry stuff. It was really cool. So my first Black Friday experience was quite pleasant.

Friday night, I went with a group of friends to see the "Parade of Lights" downtown. It's a fun parade with cars and stuff covered in lights and then after the parade, they light the big Christmas tree.

The line at Kohl's

One of the floats.

One of the 18 zillion fire trucks at the parade.

The weird looking downtown Christmas tree.

It's officially Christmas season! 

Holiday in the Park

Every year after Thanksgiving, Six Flags turns into a winter wonderland which they call Holiday in the Park. I'd never been and I heard it was really cool, so I really wanted to go. We went the Saturday after Thanksgiving, but I think we spent more time waiting to get in the park than we did actually at the park. Apparently, the park didn't open until 2 and we didn't know that and got there around 12. But we didn't have to wait in long lines for roller coasters. :)

That one doesn't count for Holiday in the Park though, because it really starts once it gets dark and we didn't stay that long. We went again this past Saturday, and it was a lot of fun. Especially the light show. It was so cool. It was about 30 or 40 minutes long and all the lights were programmed to music. I always think that's really awesome.

Pretty lights.

Half of the group.

:)

More pretty lights.

 I SO wish this picture wasn't blurry.

Christmas Eve and Christmas

Christmas Eve I had to do some last minute stocking stuffer shopping and you know what? It wasn't that bad. It was worse on the Saturday before Christmas. Anyway, in the evening we went to my grandparents' church for a candlelight service which was really cool. But I have to say, the candles make me nervous. Little children. Open flame. Carpeted floor. *Shivers*

Then we went over to my grandparents' house afterwards for some hors d'oeuvres and more pool playing. And I won a game, and almost won the next game. Except my cousin had a couple lucky shots and ended up winning, but it was close.

The next morning was Christmas. At 8, I opened presents with my family. Some things I got:

• A really soft Hello Kitty blanket
• A Hello Kitty flashdrive
• A purple apron with my name on it
• A new hair straightener
• A pretty scarf
• New boots
• $50 toward swimming with dolphins in Cozumel on our cruise next month (!!!!)
• The first two seasons of Friends on DVD, though those aren't here yet because they sent the wrong thing (Friends is my new favorite show, by the way, and I'm collecting the seasons now.)

Then we had a couple hours of cooking and cleaning for my dad's family to come over for a Christmas brunch. It was yummy! Then we opened presents, and as my family was leaving....

IT STARTED TO SNOW.

I live in Texas, y'all. It doesn't snow. Especially not on Christmas.

Now, I hate snow. But because it's a rare occasion, I did take a few pictures (below).

In the evening my mom's side of the family came over for dinner and presents. It had stopped snowing by then, but it was definitely still cold and the snow stayed for the next two days.

 Christmas Eve was the one year anniversary of getting Nemo.

Dolphin coupon :)

My new [purple] straightener.

My new pretty scarf :)

Modeling my apron!

Fun in the snow with the dog who thinks I'm trying to steal her bone...

 SNOW!

Overall, pretty good Christmas. Not the best (like last year's) but definitely a good one. Hope everyone else had a good Christmas, too.

So now I have my New Year's Eve party to finish planning, and then after that, I only have about a week until our cruise. So many exciting things are happening soon! And I PROMISE, I will post about them in a timely manner. Pinky promise.

Happy New Year, everyone.

Not Dead.

Contrary to what I'm sure is popular belief, I'm actually not dead.

I've just been super busy with like...finals...and working on two plays...and...you know, watching Friends reruns...

I promise I will blog more regularly over the break (which, by the way, I am officially declaring started as of now). But until then, some snippets:

• I finished my first semester of college with a 3.5 GPA. Not bad for the first semester, so I've heard.
• I was in a musical this weekend at church, which went really well. My mom also directed a play at my old high school this weekend (that I helped with), which also went really well.
• I went black Friday shopping for the first time ever! It was a successful shopping trip. Got everything I wanted. Except for one pair of boots that I had to get in a bigger size because they didn't have mine. And they're too big, so I have to exchange them. And when I went to Kohl's to do so, they still didn't have my size. So I need to go check a different store.
• I am SO IN THE CHRISTMAS SPIRIT. Christmas is in, like, a week, y'all. YAY.
• I'm almost done with Christmas shopping. Just a couple more people to go. I'm so excited to see everyone open their gifts (I'm really rocking the gift giving thing this year, if I do say so myself).
• I started this new training thing at work this morning which requires me to get up at 5:30 EVERY MONDAY MORNING. Therefore, I'm tired.
• New Year's Eve party = so happening. Invitations have been sent, but plans have not been made...I'll work on that later.
• I'm going to Holiday in the Park at Six Flags on Saturday! Woohoo!
• I won Bingo at my company's Christmas party and got a $30 gift card to BJ's, where I have never been. Cool. (I never win stuff, so it's exciting).
• I made Christmas cookies and gingerbread men and they were a hit! I will be making them again. 
• You can see pictures of all these things if you follow me on Instagram, @kholiday25. Do it!

I think that's it for now. I have a gazillion unpublished drafts I've been working on, so maybe I'll post one or all of those in the near future...we'll see.

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

Christmaschristmaschristmas.

 Christmas, somewhere around 1996.

Thursday is Thanksgiving, which means that Friday is officially the day that it's socially acceptable to start celebrating Christmas. YAY.

Here's why I'm looking forward to the holiday season. Alphabetically, of course, cuz I have a thing for alphabetical lists.

Baking

Candy canes

Christmas

Christmas music  

Christmas parties

Christmas shopping

Christmas trees

Decorating

Elves

Family

Food

Gingerbread

Giving gifts

Green

Holiday in the Park at Six Flags

Hot chocolate

Lights

New Year's Eve

No school

Receiving gifts

Red

Reindeer

Santa Claus 

Stockings

Sweaters

I kinda wish I could have made that in the shape of a Christmas tree....

I kinda go back and forth about being excited for Christmas, but this year I am SO FLIPPING EXCITED. I'm going to bring a little Christmas tree to work to put on my desk. I am going to be SO festive this year.

And I discovered last year that I love giving gifts. It's actually a lot of fun when you put thought into it rather than just, you know, buying a gift card on Christmas Eve. I've already got some fantastic ideas for my friends/family.

I'm also excited to do some fun things this year that I've never done before, like:

1) Going to Holiday in the Park at Six Flags

2) Going Black Friday shopping

3) Going to the "Parade of Lights" downtown, where they light up the giant Christmas tree for the first time

4) Throwing a New Year's Eve party

At least, I think all those things will be happening. Nothing's been set in stone yet but...I will make them happen. 

So, to sum up this post...Christmas, I'm ready for you and all the sugar-coated joys and holly jolly happiness you bring. Sooooo ready. And if it was socially acceptable to celebrate before Black Friday...I would have been celebrating since July. 

Friday cannot come fast enough. 

30 Days of Thankfulness.

Lately my Facebook and Instagram feeds have been filled with posts detailing things that various people are thankful for. One thing that you're thankful for, once a day, for the entire month of November. Not sure where it started, but I kind of think it might be the female alternative to Movember/No Shave November.

November: The month of thankfulness and beards.*

*Important note: not to be confused with thankfulness FOR beards. No woman I know enjoys the barbaric appearance of the male gender during the month of November. Or any month. Keep that in mind, guys.

Anyway, I wanted to be thankful, too. But instead of posting one thing every day and adding yet another thing to read on your Facebook feed, I'm going to post all 30 at one time. Right here, where you can choose to read it now or later or not at all. And so, without further ado, 30 things I am thankful for.

1. The Lord Jesus Christ and everything that comes with believing in Him. I am a sinner. I deserve nothing more than death. Yet my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ decided that I (and everyone else on Earth) was worth a second chance. He came down here and died so I could live. He saved my life, and He saved yours too. As if that isn't great enough, all He asked in return is that I live my life for Him. And though sometimes I fail, he continues to be merciful and forgiving. I am so not worthy, yet He loves me anyway. And for that, I am eternally thankful.

2. My family. No matter how loud, crazy, weird, annoying, imperfect, and embarrassing they might be sometimes, I wouldn't trade them for anything.

3. My friends. I'm an only child. Because of this, my friends have always meant so much to me. My friends have acted as siblings to me my whole life, and I'm thankful that they love me and don't mind being in public with me even though they know how weird and crazy I am.

4. My church. My church is awesome, y'all. The sermons are always applicable and they're like, super good stuff. Everyone is welcoming and they make serving fun. I have created so many healthy relationships and am consistently furthering my walk with God through my church. I'm also grateful that I have a church to go to, because so many people in other countries don't. 'Merica.

5. America. Even though the president that I believe would have been best for this country lost the election, I am still grateful, because it could be a lot worse. The fact that there's really no country that would be better to go to says a lot. I'm proud to be an American.

That concludes the serious/main/long items. The next 25 will be much shorter and random.

6. This weather. High is 82 today. Right now it's 68. I'm currently (I probably won't be when I actually post this) sitting outside on my college campus because I had a bunch of time to kill after taking a test. The grass is green, the trees are changing color, the sky is clear, and the breeze is just right. I could stay here all day, but I have to go to work in about 45 minutes...

 Imagine sitting in the shade of a tree, in 70 degree weather, and this bliss surrounding you.

7. Work. My job. I have an awesome job at a fantastic company with great people. I love it. And though it's not what I ultimately want to end up doing with my life, having a job -- especially one that you love -- is such a great privilege these days and I'm going to hold on to it as long as I can.

8. The guy who is currently studying in the next tree over from me, because he provided me great entertainment for me as I watched him greatly struggle to climb the tree. I actually think he got stuck. Poor guy, but it did brighten my day.

9. The bee that has been buzzing around me for the past 20 minutes. He hasn't stung me yet. Thanks, little guy.

10. Ice cream. And sweets in general. My sweet tooth would seriously suffer if these things had never been invented.

11. My bed. If you have never laid on my bed...you're missing out. Everyone who has agrees that it is the most comfortable thing since yoga pants.

12. Yoga pants. Who invented these?! I must meet this genius.

13. The inventors of CLEP, DSSTs, and online college courses who are helping me obtain my college degree in just one year.

14. Thomas Edison State College, who accepts unlimited transfers and allows you to take online courses. Without TESC, I wouldn't be able to graduate this summer and/or have to move to New Jersey for a semester.

15. Sunsets and sunrises. Not only are they fun to watch, they're a great reminder of the Supreme Artist. God is so creative.

16. Summer. A break from school is always much needed after a long semester. And I do love warm weather.

17. Fall. Usually by the end of summer I'm ready for slightly cooler weather and fall clothes. And of course, Starbucks' salted caramel hot chocolate.

18. Music. Without music...I think I might die. I'm always listening to it. ALWAYS. I'm listening to it right now. I don't really know why I like music so much...I just do. It's a huge part of my life. And I'm thankful for it.

19. Children. Little kids have a tendency to make my day, no matter how bad it's been. I think they're cute and hilarious and I just love them.

20. My car. I would have problems getting places without it because my school is 30 minutes away from my house, and I go straight from work to school...and both my parents work, and there's really no one else who could take me. Also, I got a really nice car for a very affordable price. Also something to be thankful for.

21. Food. Mainly because I'm hungry right now.

22. Graphing calculators. Because as confusing as they are to me...I would not have passed calculus without one. (Though I might have done better if I knew what all the buttons did...)

23. Animals. I just love animals. Big, small, cute, ugly, indoor, outdoor, red fish, blue fish...you get the point. I would be lost without my pets. They mean the world to me.

24. Flexible professors, church leaders, and bosses who are willing to work with my busy schedule.

25. Laughter. I love laughing. I think it's the greatest thing since milkshakes. (Though I think laughing came first, so never mind). Imagine how much more boring the world would be without laughter.

26. Writing. Writing is my outlet. I turn to writing when I'm happy, sad, angry, embarrassed, nervous, scared, or excited. Imagine all that emotion bottled up inside me if I couldn't write...I would explode.

27. A house. This is in no particular order by the way. Because I'm definitely more grateful for a house than graphing calculators. But yeah. Really thankful I'm not living in a box on the street.

28. Crossword puzzles. A much more productive way to kill time than watching TV or staring at Facebook, because you learn things, too. It's a mini brain workout, and it's fun! Win-win.

29. Pop Tarts. One of the only ways I will eat breakfast, is if we have Pop Tarts. And my stomach greatly appreciates when we do.

30. Life. You know...I couldn't experience any of this if I didn't have life. If Jesus hadn't died for me, if my parents hadn't wanted me, if I was in a country where Christians are persecuted...yet here I am, alive. So many of us take it for granted when really it's probably the greatest privilege we're given. Go life.

And thus concludes my one day of 30 days of thankfulness.

What are you thankful for?

And Then the Clouds Came Out.

My day was...stressful, mostly. Let me start at 7:00 this morning.

I had a speech today in speech class. A speech I was freaking out about. Especially since I had a dream the other night that I was COMPLETELY unprepared for it.

We had a lot of stuff to bring for it: an outline, a reference page, a visual aid, and a memory card so she could record us. I double checked last night to make sure I had everything I needed. And I checked again this morning.

Anyway, I got up early because I had to make sure I looked okay and everything, you know, cuz the whole class would be staring at me. My car was also out of gas, so I needed to stop at a gas station so that my car didn't break down or anything on my way to school.

So I leave earlier than normal to get gas and get there in plenty of time to prepare for my speech. It's 7:15 and I'm probably about 10 minutes away from my house when I remember a dream I had last night.

In my dream, it was speech day, and I didn't have my memory card. Thankfully, in my dream, the teacher had extra cards so it wasn't a big deal. But that got me thinking...did I pack my card? I didn't double check this morning to make sure I had it...did I pack it last night? I couldn't remember. So as I'm driving I have one hand in my bag digging around for it. And I can't find it. So I take the next exit, pull into a gas station, and do a thorough search of my bag. Nothing.

So now I'm starting to panic. I'm going to have to go home and get it. But what if it's not there? Then I would have just wasted about 20 minutes. So I decide to call my mom to have her check and see if it's still sitting on my desk. I call her twice, and there's no answer. So I start driving back. I decide to call my dad, even though I know he's at the airport dropping off my grandpa, just in case he's back already. But he's not. So, it's about 7:25 now and I run inside (leaving my car on because I don't have time to turn it off, and praying that no one steals it). Thankfully, it's still on my desk so I grab it and run. I'm in and out in about 30 seconds. Record time.

Anyway, I made it to school barely on time. I walked in right at 8, as opposed to about 7:30 when I would have gotten there had this little setback not happened. As you can imagine, I was a little frazzled the rest of the morning. And imagining everything that could go wrong. And feeling like I was going to throw up on the person in front of me (except no one sits in front of me, so I guess that's a plus).

But I think my speech went pretty well. Everything worked and I didn't forget anything and I stayed (barely) within the time limits. So, now I just have to wait for my evaluation.

By the way, I think the dream I had, and the fact that I remembered it before I was too far from home, was totally a God thing. Because He's awesome like that.

The next stressful thing that happened was one of my professors scheduled a test on a day that I'm not going to be in class...so now I have to talk to him and see if I can take it another time and then figure out a time I can take it which is going to be difficult because I have approximately 15 minutes of free time between the hours of 8 and 4 on weekdays. And I doubt he'll let me take the test at home.

And THEN to top it all off, I went to McDonald's for lunch and ordered my usual cheeseburger, plain and dry. PLAIN AND DRY. I go to eat my burger after I leave and it has ketchup, pickles, mustard, and onions on it. Not the definition of plain and dry.

So I had to wait until I got to work to eat it so I could scrape off all the gross stuff because it's hard to do that in the car. But by then, it was getting cold and the cheese was gross and the ketchup and mustard had absorbed into the bread. So, being the clever person that I am, I cut off the parts of the bread that I couldn't eat. And it still tasted terrible, and I almost threw up once (that's twice today, folks), but at least I wasn't hungry.

And then, as if it knew exactly how my day was going,  the sun disappeared and a billion clouds came out of nowhere and made the sky all gray and dark. I even took off my sunglasses. Y'all, I once wore my sunglasses while watching fireworks because they were too bright for my sensitive eyes. This is a big deal.

I kept thinking today was Tuesday, because normally these things happen to me on Tuesdays. (Tuesdays hate me, if you haven't heard). But thankfully, it is Thursday, tomorrow is Friday (Friday, Friday, gotta get down on Friday...haha. Now it's in your head.) and then it's the WEEKEND. My favorite word. (After euphemism, of course).

On the bright side, I was totally having a great hair day. It was all soft and everything.

So Sentimental.

Okay, I have a confession to make.

I......I miss high school.

There. I said it. The thing that I was so glad was over. I want it back.

Here's why: I don't like change.

I despise change. And college? College is change to the max. I don't like it. I want to go back.

I miss my little high school routine. School on Monday, Wednesday, Friday. Work on Tuesday and Thursday. Church on Wednesday night and Sunday. Kandu meetings every other week. Football games. Basketball games. Volleyball games. Plays. National honor society meetings. Knowing everyone in my entire school, and being best friends with everyone in my class.

I have not met anyone at UTA. Okay, I've met a couple people. But no new friends. Just acquaintances.

All I do is work and school. Work and school, school and work. Then I do some more school, go to bed, and start all over the next day. The highlight of my week is growth group on Tuesday nights. And church, of course.

So I've been feeling really sentimental lately. Looking back three years on my facebook profile, going through old pictures and videos, and really just wishing I had all that back...

And then the other day it hit me: just about when I'm going to be getting used to college life (next year), I'll be GRADUATING college, and then I once again have to dive into the deep abyss of the unknown.

I don't know what I'm going to do with myself.

I guess I just feel like a huge part of me is missing. You know, I was in high school for four years. I was super involved in my school and in my youth group, and now that's all been taken away from me. I hate being uninvolved...but I'm not going to be at UTA long enough to really get involved there. And we don't have a college group at church. So like...I'm just like a nobody right now.

Okay, I'm not really a nobody. I'm still involved in church, just not to the extent that I was in my youth group. I was a leader there, and now I'm back at the bottom of the totem pole.

I don't know how to explain why I'm struggling with this so much. I'm not type A, I don't like being in the middle of the things, I don't even really like leading. I guess it's just a big adjustment to make and, well, let's just say adaptability is not one of my top strengths. :)

Anyway, please join me in my sentimentality by looking at these pictures. (Disclaimer: There are A LOT. We're talking 4 years' worth.)

Decorating the tree. December 2008.

National History Day competition. February 2009.

Spring Retreat. March 2009.

 

 Missions garage sale. April 2009.

 Spring play. May 2009. (Yes I played an old lady.)

Thailand Mission Trip. June/July 2009.

 

 Spirit Week. October 2009.

 Volleyball. October 2009.

 

  Life Impact. January 2010.

Pine Cove. February 2010.

Spring Play. May 2010.

 Freshman Kidnap. June 2010.

 

California Mission Trip. July 2010.

 

Volleyball. October 2010. 

 Canada Mission Trip. June/July 2011. (As you can see, my junior year is poorly documented).

 

Women's Retreat. November 2011.

National Honor Society. December 2011.

 

HSM Band. Some point in 2011//2012.

Senior Progressive Dinner. February 2012.

 

 Prom. April 2012.

Spring Play. May 2012.

 

Speaking at church. May 2011.

 Senior Class. I miss these guys. May 2012.

Graduation. May 2012.

 Senior Trip. June 2012.

 

HEART. June 2012.

  

I would love to relive any one of these moments right now. You don't know what you've got until it's gone -- never have truer words been spoken.

My Immune System is Cruel.

I know it's only been a couple months since the last time I was sick, but I forgot how much I hate it.

The sleepless nights. The not being able to breathe. The constant dilemma of "Am I hot...or am I cold?"

It ain't fun, y'all.

I've worked at my job for a little over two years now, and never once have I called in sick or left early. And I've probably been sick like 50 times since I started working there.

I just...I have this thing. I don't like to miss things just because of a stupid virus or whatever. Life's not gonna pause just because I have a little cold. Which means I'm going to miss out...I'm going to get behind in my classes and in work and everywhere. So, you know, when I'm sick, I go about life as normal. I go to school, I go to work, I go to church, etc.

But today was different. So many people at work are sick right now and everyone was practically yelling (nicely, of course) at me to go home so that I don't get the rest of them home. I was kinda brushing it off until about an hour in I started feeling really, really bad. I think I may have had a fever.

Anyway, I left. I left. This is unheard of from me, and my perfect-attendance-while-sick record has officially been shattered.

But in all seriousness guys, I feel miserable. Normally I don't describe it that way, but normally when I have a cold, I don't feel this bad. The only other time of felt this bad was two sicknesses ago, back in March.

Man, I always get sick at the worst times.

In March, I got sick right before a play at school. I had a fever and everything. I skipped school that day but I still had to do the play. My fever conveniently broke right after the play ended.

Then, the last time I was sick was at HEART. During the third week, when we were all ready for the thing to be over and go home and sleep in our own beds and just be by ourselves for a couple hours. So like, I had already crashed and burned from the previous two weeks, and then my body was all "Hey! Let's kick her while she's down!" and gave me a cold as well.

And now? I have a test tomorrow. I'm babysitting Friday and Saturday. And I'm singing in church on Sunday. Now, I will probably (hopefully) be better by Sunday, but band rehearsal is tomorrow night.

Guys...my singing voice right now sounds somewhere in between an old bass-toned man and a screeching, tone-deaf cat who has just been mauled by a bear. Not a pleasant sound.

So hopefully that little situation will have resolved itself by Sunday, because tomorrow's not quite as important....but yeah. This was not a good week to get sick.


So yeah...ugh.

I feel bad.

I'm gonna go sleep or take a hot bath or...something that will make me feel better that doesn't involve doctors or drugs. Because I'm against those.

[Update: I published this and then found a million typos for which I blame my sick brain. They have been left here for your entertainment. In case you were wondering.]

Things Are Changing!

I know I'm a day late, but it's October! :D

Even though personally I think September is better, October's pretty cool too. We are already experiencing some cooler weather here in Texas! (Which means 70s and 80s for those of you who already have snow).

In other news...

Les Miserables was fantastic! It's technically the only musical I've ever seen live (I've seen the movies of Chicago and Phantom of the Opera), but I think it's the best! Okay, wait...I saw a high school version of Oklahoma...but I was referring to the professional ones at like...the Bass Hall...or Broadway...haha.

Anyway, we went to the Cheesecake Factory afterward for dinner and, well, cheesecake. Pictures anyone?

 We were waaaay up high.

 Yay! Les Miserables!

Lemon Raspberry Cream Cheesecake. They decorated the plate for my birthday. :D

 

My mom's giant chocolate cake. My dad's face wins.

These may or may not be blood relatives of mine. I'll let you decide.

Guess what guys? I get to cross off #9 on my bucket list! Which technically says see Les Mis on "Broadway"...but what I really meant is a professional performance that does not include Anne Hathaway (who is playing Fantine in the upcoming movie, and I'm not sure she can pull it off).

I have also recently accomplished #37 and #41. Though the cinnamon rolls didn't turn out very well. Those were made at HEART, and it was my first time using yeast...I did it wrong, and the dough didn't rise. They still tasted good, there just weren't as many and they were kinda more like cookies, haha. BUT IT COUNTS. I don't care what you say. I'm gonna try again someday anyway, so what does it matter if I cross it off now?

Check out my list if you haven't yet and let me know if you can help me out with any of them! Ex: Your father owns an airport and your mother owns a hotel chain and you can get me free transportation, room, and board for that trip to Europe/visit to every continent. Or you know, your uncle is Steven Spielberg and he happens to be directing a new movie with Alex Pettyfer and Taylor Lautner and just so happens to need a 19-year-old girl about my size to be an extra...

It could happen.

And if it does...TELL ME. Pleaseandthankyou.

Happy October!