"Oh, this has gotta be the good life"

**Warning: This did get a little long, but there are pictures :)***

Well, I am officially out of the Riviera! I felt that the Riviera deserved a blog post. After all, I spent a little over three years living there. I had a lot of growing experiences there. What happened at the Riviera has made me stronger and better today. So, of course the Riviera deserves a post.

APT 10

Well, I first moved into the Riviera right after I graduated from High School. Just barely turned 18 and I headed out into the real world of the apartment complex. I remember my first night there. I was living with Deidre Bodily who also was a freshman from Naperville going to BYU for the summer. So, us two little freshmans and our mom's show up at the apartment. There is one of my roommates, Rebecca, she recently graduated from BYU and she had a whole bunch of guys over. It was terrifying and I suddenly felt super young. She didn't quite have the overly friendly reaction that I expected. Then I had another roommate who was 21, Aynsley, and was waiting for her missionary. Both girls were amazing, they just weren't 18 like me. But soon, I started to become friends with them. Still a little terrified of everyone there being so much older, it was harder for me to make friends. Luckily, Dawnee asked me to be part of the "Secret Cookie Club". We made cookies every Sunday and then we would drop them off with a little note for someone in the ward. I soon became best friends with these girls! It was a great Summer with them and I felt that I really learned how to live on my own those two months.

Thursday Night Roller Skating Night: Only One dollar to roller skate

May hikes up to Bridal Veils with these girls

My roommate Deidre and I at the Harry Potter Midnight showing

APT 42

I moved to the dorm after that first summer. Left the Riviera saying that I will never have to live there again...little did I know! Come spring time and I had decided to live in my grandparents house till I was going to go live with my sister in July. Well, I realized that it would be more of a social life if I lived in the apartments. Riviera was the only place that would let me move in at a random time and move out at a random time. So, once again, I found myself moving into the Riviera. This time, I was in a different ward then the time before. I had two roommates, Alyssa and Andrea. It was only a month but I had a great time there. We had many different adventures. I became really good friends with my visiting teaching companion! But then the time came for me to move out.

My roommates and I at the Manti Pageant

Adventures at the Riviera with Friends from the ward

Jenny and I

APT 5

Becky and I had already been planning on living at the Riviera our sophomore year. It was a good time to live there, most people were our age. So, after living in Texas, I cam back and moved into apartment 5 with Becky, Erica and Anisa. This was my first time living with someone who was not from the United States! And by the end of the year, she became my best friend! She taught me how to say I love you in Albanian and I truly love her! This year I went through some major struggles and at the end I wanted to get out of the Riviera more than ever. The riviera=the struggles in my mind. So, out went me and my stuff. Moved into Roman Gardens...and moved out a few weeks later. Once again, living at my grandparents till I could get my life figured out.

Anisa, Erica, Me and Becky.

Some friends from the ward.

Becky and I our second year being roommates

Erica, Anisa and I with our sweet Halloween Costumes

APT 16

That is when Mallory told me to move in with her for the Fall. I went and lived with my sister for a few weeks and then came back in July. I decided to move into the Riviera then. Rachael decided she was going to live with us in the Fall, so she moved in with my in the Summer. However, Rachael got engaged. So, I pretty much had no Roommate. But this was great for me, it forced me to continue to get out of my comfort shell and really go out to meet people. That summer rebuilt my confidence.

Since I had no roommates, these are the girls that I spent most my time with.

Fall came and Rachael moved out to get married, so Mallory, Guo and Katie moved in. I feel that we all had very different personalities but it was great! Gou was my second roommate not from the United States. I was able to learn a little bit about the Chinese culture from her. This was when I had my first kiss which then turned into my first boyfriend. And then my second kiss and boyfriend. I learned a lot from the relationships. I discovered what I can and cannot be with in a relationship. I know more what I want and what I am not willing to sacrifice in a relationship. Ginelle and I became really good friends by the end of this year and decided that we wanted to live with each other. We loved our ward so much, we decided to stay in the Riviera one more year.

My wonderful roommates

Tim and I

My wonderful friends

Troy and I going to a military ball

APT 15

So come spring, I moved in with Ginelle. Becky moved back in with us for the spring and Keri was there as well. This summer is what I like to call the "Perfect" summer. We went camping and hiking all the time. Went on many adventures, spent days at the pool and ran my first Half Marathon. Had crazy adventures and spent pretty much every minute I wasn't at work outside in the great outdoors!

Ginelle, Becky and I on our fourth of July weekend

Keri, Ginelle and I at Kassidy's wedding

Half Marathon

Adventures with good friends

APT 1

School started back up soon and Ginelle and I moved our stuff over to our new place. When we moved in, it was a mess and it smelled horrible. We found out that the cat had kind of been living in our apartment therefore causing me to sneeze... a lot! We fixed that problem and apartment one became a great apartment! Laci and Rebecca also were there but in October Rebecca left us randomly. I became great friends with Corey and Steve. Steve and Ginelle connected even more and now are ENGAGED!!! But here I was activities co-chair and planned lot of little parties.

My wonderful friends

Sara and I

Roommates!

APT 6

One last move in the Riviera and I found myself in apt. 6. First with Michelle, Shelbi, and Christine. But then Shelbi got married, Michelle went home and Christine after two weeks went home as well. So, I lived alone for a few weeks. But then moved in another roommate and Christine just couldn't live without me so she moved back to Utah! :) And Michelle came back as well in August!

Me with Michelle and Christine

The usual crew from the summer

And then I was out of the Riviera...For good! I know some people call me crazy for living there as long as I did and for moving into all those different apartments that I did. But I honestly don't regret a single moment of it. I did go through some of my biggest trials there but without the trials I wouldn't be who I am today. They made a pretty awesome person!

But it was also time for me to leave. When I found myself older than most of the guys, I knew it was time. I was ready and I am excited for what this year has to hold for me! I am hoping for the best! I have an internship winter semester and then I graduate!!!

"I will Survive"

This is how I feel right now! I have to be out of the Riviera by 11:00am tomorrow. I have already packed up my clothes and I keep a lot of things in boxes already... but I still have SO MUCH STUFF!!! I can't believe how much stuff I have. Every time I moved from apartment to apartment in the Riviera, I threw out a lot of stuff as well. And yet, I still find myself in awe at the amount of stuff I still have! Then for some reason, when I can't sell a textbook back to the bookstore, I end up keeping the book. So, I have 15 textbooks in my apartment that I will never use again. So, I need to find a way to sell them today and or just get rid of them. Moving that many textbooks is just horrible!

To add to the stress, I have a couple wedding videos that I really need to finish, my independent study course that I definitely need to finish and a really good book that I want to finish but I need to have self control and get the things done that I really need to do! Then I can read! ( If you are looking for a good book to read, read The Help. It is amazing so far!)

I have no car at the moment because my car is the shop, my parents took the rental car leaving me with Shane and Sams car which has been breaking down. Yesterday on my way up to Salt Lake to film the Luncheon for Mikale's wedding it decided to overheat on me! Normally, it wouldn't matter that I don't have a vehicle except I really need to move all my stuff out of the Riviera. And walking back and forth between my brothers apartment and mine doesn't sound fun! And I am still in the process of figuring out how I am going to pay for everything, go to traffic school and get my back fixed.

All in all, these past few weeks have been a bit of a struggle! And I guess I just wanted to vent for a second! I really am a pretty happy person right now, just with a lot on my mind! And I know that trials will make us stronger, so I keep fighting through and I know in the end I will be a better and stronger person!

But I really like this picture! Stress I think is a great time to eat desserts though. Now, I have plenty. At Mikale's wedding, I was pretty much forced to bring a GIANT tray of cookies home! I have been giving plates of cookies to whoever stops by my place. So, if you want cookies, I suggest you take a little visit to Apt. 6 and if there are some left, you may have some!

Also, it has been fun to have the family here in town. Spending time with the family is always a great time! Mikales wedding was a wonderful event to attend. I filmed her wedding and I get to work on her wedding video now. Even though it is part of my stress, I am super excited to work on that! She looked absolutely stunning in her dress! And they both looked really happy!

Its a weird thought to think that tonight is my last night I will ever spend in the Riviera as a Riviera resident! A little over three years of my life has been spent in that apartment complex. Now it is time to move onto a new place, new people, new adventures! I am super excited about it too, I think Banbridge Square is going to be a great place to live!

Now turning the page the next chapter in my life: Banbridge Square!

I have good feelings about it!

"These Little Wonders Still Remain"

So, I have been thinking about this a lot over the past few weeks, about how it is the small moments in life that we really need to appreciate more. I feel we can pass them over really easily and get caught up in the big things that happen. Then after the events of this weekend, I realized just how important it is to find the small things in life.

In the end, it won't matter that I will be super poor after paying to get my car fixed. Or it won't matter if I didn't get the best grades in school or get the job I wanted. What does matter are the moments with friends and family; the little miracles along the way.

Its the small moments like a friend pulling me into a hug while I cried after my car accident. Or blowing up an air mattress and rafting onto bear lake through a swamp. Or dancing with my roommate Christine all over the apartment and when someone knocks on the door we just take the dance outside to them. Its doing Dancing with the Stars workout video with your bishopric. Its walking to two different 7/11s for free slurpee's and end up having to buy one because they are out because we have to celebrate my favorite date. Or getting soaked during bumper boats because you accidentally hit a little boy with water and he decided he wanted revenge! Making pazookies and all of the sudden you and all your friends turn into animals as you are determined to get as much pazookie as you can!

Dressing up for an 80's birthday party

Dancing with the Stars work out video

Soaked after the bumper boats

With our slurpees on 7/11

At bear lake after enjoying our rafting adventures

I love the talk by President Monson "Finding Joy in the Journey". He talks about how we can't let this life pass us by. If we keep collecting our tomorrows, then all we will have is a whole bunch of empty yesterdays.

"Send that note to the friend you’ve been neglecting; give your child a hug; give your parents a hug; say “I love you” more; always express your thanks. Never let a problem to be solved become more important than a person to be loved. Friends move away, children grow up, loved ones pass on. It’s so easy to take others for granted, until that day when they’re gone from our lives and we are left with feelings of “what if” and “if only.” Said author Harriet Beecher Stowe, “The bitterest tears shed over graves are for words left unsaid and deeds left undone '"

I don't want this to happen to me, to be upset because I didn't fully appreciate the times I had with friends and family. So, I have the goal to be better about holding onto those moments and not pushing them away because I have problems that may seem big at the time. I never want my problems to be more important than the people around me.

our lives are made in these small hours

these little wonders,

these twists & turns of fate time falls away,

but these small hours,

these small hours still remain

Its the small moments that make me who I am. They make me stronger, happier and better. And those memories should be the ones that we try to remember and appreciate. I am glad I have this blog becuase it makes me look for those small moments in my life that I could blog about and my goal is to blog more about those moments!

"Let us relish life as we live it, find joy in the journey, and share our love with friends and family. One day each of us will run out of tomorrows." President Monson

"Twinkle Twinkle Little Star"

I love my nieces and nephews! They are all pretty dang adorable! I am lucky enough to have spent time with McKay's kids last month and Rachelle's kids this past week! I find that whenever we are all in the car together, I am somehow in the back with all the kids. And of course, out comes my phone to take pictures of the little cuties! A lot of times, its the funny faces that we make but here are some cute smiling pictures of them!

Rustin and Ryder

Riley and Kaiya

Kyndall

Kaydence

Sadie

Logan and Sadie

Max and Renee

Kassidy

Jealous? Yeah, you should be!

"This Land is my land, this land is your land"

I have always loved the fourth of July! Its a great time to celebrate our country, friendships, and family. This fourth of July received the name "Epic Fourth of July" and rightfully so. We started our celebration on Saturday with the Stadium of Fire. Sadly, I didn't get to go to the Stadium of Fire, but the Riviera is right next to the Stadium.

So, we all sat on Brooke and Kristen's balcony and watched as the sky divers dove into the stadium. Few minutes later, the Jets flew across as well. We were able to watch and hear David Archueleta sing from the big screen. Then later that night we watched the Fireworks! Stadium of Fire has some of the best Fireworks in my opinion. And because we live at the Riviera, we had front row seating for them! It was awesome!

Sunday, we watched Independence Day, a great way to get us in the spirit for America's Birthday! What is more patriotic than Will Smith and Aliens... nothing!

Monday started early. When I was a kid, I remembered going to the Balloon Festival with my Grandparents. They have tons of Hot Air Balloons that all Inflate around the same time and fly off into the sky. I hadn't gone to this festival at all during my college years, understandable... who wants to get up at 6 on the one day you can sleep in?

However, since this could possibly be my last 4th in Utah, I decided we had to do it. So Brooke, Collin, Tyler, Garrett and I all woke up bright and early and took off to the Hot Air Balloon Festival. Sadly, the weather didn't quite agree with the Hot Air Balloons so they weren't going to take off that day. They did still inflate the balloons so we were able to walk around and see them up close. Hot Air Balloons are HUGE!!!! They got a new balloon to the festival, Darth Vader! We were able to get one picture of us with the Balloons in the Background before the huge gust of wind knocked all the balloons down.

After, we came home and made a delicious chocolate chip pancake and egg breakfast before we had to run to the parade. I'm not the biggest fan of parades. You just watch floats and bands walk by and they never seem to end. But, it was Epic Fourth of July and it can't be epic unless you have the Parade in there. We got to sit next to Ginelle and Steve so that was good to see them. (They just got engaged!)

After the parade, we hiked Bridal Veil's Falls. We hike right up the waterfall, took a break for lunch and then went on an adventure past the waterfall. Every time I have done that hike, I just get to the top of the waterfall and then I venture back down. But I loved exploring past the waterfall. We now have a goal to go even farther than we went before the next time we do the hike!

We went for a drive to a really pretty look out and then made our way back to the Riviera. We managed to fit in a little swim before I had to get the BBQ ready. Tommy and I are the "Grandparents" in our ward. We are in charge of the FHE program. Since Fourth of July is a Monday, we made it a ward FHE BBQ! We ate some burgers and then played games with the water balloons. And even had some time for Swedish twister.

After the BBQ, we took off to the Malt Shoppe. Another memory from my childhood. Whenever we came to Utah for the Fourth of July, we would watch Fireworks with my mom's side of the family in the Field that is right by the Malt Shop. Then we would get some shakes from the Malt shop as we waited for the firework show to begin. Well, that Field is gone, so I don't know where my family watches the fireworks, but the Malt Shop still stands! So, I had to continue tradition!

We finished Independence day because we weren't able to watch it all the night before and then drove to Lehi to watch the fireworks at Thanksgiving Point. They weren't as good as stadium of fire and we had to deal with the horrible traffic after but still enjoyable.

All in all, it was a great fourth of July, probably one of the best! We probably spent about 18 hours straight with each other but every minute was a blast!