Ticking Ever So Slowly

Well, as the semester draws to an end, I just can't help but feel more and more impatient.  A number of things are on my to do list (yes, I have one) and I feel like they just aren't getting done.  Perhaps this is because finals are now just one week away?  I don't know.  What I do know is that I am ready to get the heck out of here. 

Now don't get me wrong, Hawaii is such a great place to be and I have some of the best friends that a person could ask for!  But the truth is, there is only so much one can accomplish without the wonderful presence of a car...  Being a college student, I am only so willing to pay bus fare just to get off campus for a few hours.  Mainly because the bus takes forever to get from point A to point B. 

We went on a hike.  Again.

And finals, ohh finals how I dread you.  Well, just my math and music finals.  Everything else will be easy pease.  I just wish that I can fast forward the next two weeks to avoid the stress and the innumerable knots that said stress will cause in my poor shoulders and neck.  Whooh so fun.  But I really really REALLY want these two weeks to fly by because that means that my little sister will be here for a week to chill with me!!

Makayla, I am sooo flipping excited.  You don't even know.  I seriously have been keeping a mental count down until you fly in.  15 days, say what?  We're gonna go to Sunset beach and have Ted's and we're gonna go to Kahuku Grill and you'll get to see the dorms (maybe).  I'm just gonna take you everywhere pretty much.  That is, of course, if Allie is okay with driving us around.  Ohh and we will be eating the delicious Acai bowls in Haula.  No biggie.  And of course we'll have to get you all tanned up for prom.  Duh.  I don't think you'll be beating me though, I'm rather brown.  But let's just say you're going to have a lot of fun!

Anyway, I can't wait to get out of the dorms. Seriously it has been sheer H-E double hockey sticks pretty much all semester.  It suffices to say that who you room with really impacts your life.  If you don't get along with your roommate, the dorm life is just full of tension and animosity.  I can't wait to be rid of it.  Hopefully rooming off campus will work out a lot better, right Alex?

It'll also be fantastic to cook dinner again.  I'll be doing that a lot when I get home.  Of course I'll be pairing it with sprint workouts over at Mountain View on a near daily basis!  I miss sprinting.  Actually, scratch that.  I miss pole vaulting.  I'm going to be paying Mountain View's track team many visits when I get back. Coach Sully, I promise I'm going to bring you an offering of chocolate covered caramel macadamia nuts!  I think you'll like them.  There isn't any coconut at all! And of course I get to see all the little vaulters all grown up.  That'll be nice.

I got some letters from my dear lovely Mesa boys!  I miss them all!  Hurry up and come back to me already, guys!  Summer isn't going to be the same without our river trips and Ocean Blue hangouts and Jones Nights and all the other fun stuff we did.  Like our all night after graduation?  That was the most fun thing ever.  I miss you boys!  But I do know that you all are doing the right thing.  And that you'll be manly men when you get home.  But until then, I shall continue to reminisce with Erin and Danielle about all the adventures we had. (Yes I realize they can't read this).


Alright, I'm done ranting.  Peace out.

The Rains Came Down and the Floods Came Up!

Hello all!  Well, today has been a gem!  Classes got cancelled!  However, I was unaware and trekked across campus to my music class and learned first hand! 

So let me start by saying that until this week, I thought that thunder and lightening were a myth here in Hawaii.  I was wrong.  Very wrong...

I was rudely awoken at about 6:45 this morning to a constant blare of thunder outside of my dorm.  Oh yeah, and the rain sounded like a thousand waterfalls too.  I mean I couldn't really see because A) it was dark and B) I can't see anything without my glasses or contacts-- but I could definitely hear it!  And then about fifteen minutes later I decided to go out and look at the torrents of rain crashing down on BYU-H.  I wasn't disappointed!  Then I realized that if the bottom floor of Hale 2 would be flooded, I would get Alex and her roommate in my room.  (Seeing as she is located directly below my room).  I guess that when the first floor is flooded, the residents move up to the room right above them.  So Alex, we very nearly were roommates for a little!  We would have had a lot of fun, I think.  Ohh well!

My Hale wasn't flooded, but I have been informed that Hale 5 was flooded!  I saw a short video of girls trying to bail out the water with their trash cans from this morning..it was entertaining, but I do feel very bad for the girls that lost their rooms for the time being..  Sorry guys!   I'm sure that there have been more flooded Hales, like 3, 4, and 6, but I haven't heard yet.  I am so thankful I live on the second floor!

Anyway, so I guess that this entire weekend is going to be very very rain filled.  Which means no beach and no hiking.  Therefore this weekend will likely be another movie-filled weekend.  I think that makes it the third in a row? 

Guys, it has been raining ever since Sunday.  Sometimes it has just been a light misting and other times a torrential down pour... you would think coming from Arizona the rain would be the best thing ever?  I totally love the rain, it's awesome!  But there are only so many days that one can handle soaked shoes and chilly air.  My quota has filled.  But I digress, the rain is so fun and I can't help but hope that we get more.  Maybe since it's the weekend I'll actually go out and play in it?  I think so.  Also, as long as the caf has hot chocolate, then I am totally fine with the never ending sheets of rain.  Welcome to a Hawaii winter.  It's sorta like an Arizona winter, but increase the temperature by twenty degrees and increase the rain ten fold. 

Oh rain, how I love you, if I had boots with me, I would love you that (---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------) much more.  I still love you a lot though, since I am a rain deprived desert dweller, after all. 

Mom, Dad, Siblings, if I come home pale again, you'll know that the weather did not permit me access to the beach.  I shall do my best to regain the lost color, I promise!

Also, Erin Timothy, I miss you dearest best friend!  I'm coming to Rexburg to visit you, promise!  I just need to make some money first..and then I'll come to you!  Because we've been separated for wayyy too long.  And I want to review our list haha. 

Dad Turns Thirty. Again.

Today, my dear readers, is my father's birthday, February 27th.  My how time flies, right?  Well, I have an amazing father who loves his family very very much and since I am in Hawaii and he is far away in the distant land of Arizona, I am going to tell you why he is so great in thirty reasons.  I can't do anymore because then you'll know how old he really is...

With his lovely wifey!  Looking good!

I know I resemble a lobster, but this isn't about me!

Look at that!  Thirty and still a total hottie!

1.  He is a Biiig strong guy
2.  But he loves our family anyway
3.  He loves taking his loovely children snowboarding
4.  He loves winning against his lovely children when we race whilst snowboarding
5.  He is the provider of the family and does a great job with it!
6.  He loves his little girls and little boy
7.  He loves his wife, (AKA mom) dearly and always wants her to be happy
8.  He wants mom's birthday to be perfect, which shows what a great husband he is
9.  He secretly loves our two dogs
10. Dad was quite the stud in high school
11. Star football player and ladies man back in the day!
12. He loves getting us kids into sports
13. He loves experimenting in the kitchen..and we always benefit from in because it's gooood!
14. Dad likes to be as he would call it "facetious" with us
15. He's saved my butt in math too many times to count!  (Thanks Dad!)
16. He's still a total babe even at age "30"!
17. He always motivates us to clean the house
18. He's great at making a valid argument (Lawyers, huh?)
19. Dad scares the boys who hang around the Clouse House.  It's great fun to watch!
20. But then the boys end up loving him because he is the best!
21. He is the best father a girl could ask for!
22. His testimony of the church is unwavering
23. Was the coolest Stake Sunday School President ever!
24.  He can sing "Roxanne" like no other..
25. Can whip up contracts for future boyfriends like no other!
26. He let me leave home to come out to the BYU-H (Thank you Dad!)
28. He's a boss at road cycling!
29. His eyes turned from brown to green..not fair Dad, not fair
30. He's kept our family centered on Christ and has helped us to form our own testimonies

Well, there you have it!  Thirty reasons why my Dad is the best dad ever!  I hope that he was treated like a king today by the rest of the family!  Have fun eating delicious BBQ without me..I'll be eating fake Mexican food stuff.  I checked..

Have an amazing birthday and I hope you get everything that you wanted!  Also, remember, I love you, Dad! 

HAPPY BIRTHDAY PAPA CLOUSE!

Halfway Point

Wait, what?  That cannot be right!  It's hit the seven week mark of the winter semester here at BYU-H campus, which in turn, means that there are only seven weeks remaining until I return home to the desert of Arizona!  Well, the very least that I can say is that it has been a very very oh so very busy semester!  Hence the lack of updates... Well, also, sometimes I just dred going over all the things I've done and writing them.  I think it sort of causes the blog to lose it's purpose.  Yeah a blog is a device that could be used to just talk about everything someone has done, but I think that there should be a bit more to it, yeah?

So from here on out, I will try to include events, thoughts and the sort in this blog of mine!  Ookay, where to begin?  Well, lets see..

I broke the law... You see, dear readers, there is a hike on the lovely Hawaiian island of Oahu called "Stairway to Heaven".  It consists of an extremely steep, devestatingly long, and terrifyingly narrow set of metal stairs that lead to the top of a mountain surrounded by other mountains and a heck of a lot of green.  Coming from Arizona, this new "green" concept is entirely alien to me.  It is beautiful, I'll admit that, but I do find myself missing the varying shades of brown, yellow and tan from my homestate.

This is beside the point!  So seeing as this is an illegal hike, there is a security guard that sits at the foot of the stairs.  So how do people get around this guard?  Well, there is a three hour gap in time where there is no guard in position, and since he is not present, that is typically when the rebellious hikers start trekking up the stairs.  The catch is that that three hour gap happens to be in the middle of the night. 

My group was delayed in getting to Stairway, but we managed to get there about half an hour before our little guard-y friend got to his post! 

This is Emma and I trying to look good in the middle of the night halfway through our killer hike up Stairway

Can I say that it was one of the hardest things I've ever done?  Imagine, if you will, stairs, and then make them about three or four times steeper.  In fact, in a few areas, the stairs morphed into a ladder..  So I kept my mind off of the strain of keeping up with all the fast hikers by talking to the people directly in front of me.  Namely my friend Daniel and later Kevin.  Daniel described the hike to me in three segments.  The first portion is the most difficult, and I for one certainly agree with him.  The second part was the most dangerous and the third was the homestretch.  By the time we reached the second part, the clouds decided to be our friends by covering the steep drop offs on either side of the stairs. 

About two hours later, we made it to the windy top and found shelter in a concrete building.  We were sweaty, we were cold, we were tired.  But we made it!  I'm going to describe the inside of this shelter to you:  grimy, slimy dirt covered floors with piles of trash in the corner, metal supports and graffitied walls.  It was awful, but hey, we were sheltered from the freezing wind and clouds.  The group decided to stay until sunrise before decending the staircase.  That was really fun!  Emma, Eric and I became cuddle buddies to keep ourselves warm.  Seeing as I am the shortest of the trio by far, I got to be in the center.  It was awesome.  And then everyone else in our hiking party joined in.  If you can imagine a bunch of sweaty, smelly, damp young adults group hugging in a dank bunker, you've just visualized us. 

So eventually when it got light outside, we realized that it the clouds were covering everything and so coming down to the bottom was freezing and miserable for the most part.

It suffices to say that the rest of the day, I was exhausted and sleep deprived.  An entertaining combination.

The descent!

Don't we look good with all that green?

This is about halfway down.  Lots of stairs in both directions

We made it!  Emma, Preston, Eric and yours truly

The Stairway crew plus our guard who was actually friendly.  He's the one in the blue jumpsuit..

Meet my friend Morris! 

We like to play in the rain.  Oh and Eric likes my watch I guess

Moving on to the next week!  Me and most of the "Hawaiian Family" hopped on a bus to hike up a perfectly legal hike called the Crouching Lion.  This was a heck of a lot easier and just as much fun!  I love my ohana dearly.  I wish we really were all related because life would be a ball all the time!  It also suffices to say that we took many awesome posing pictures. 

Crouching Lion hike!

Aww cute Emma!

Josh and I make attractive shadows.  But that's it.

Middle of the hike pose!



The top!  You can't see, but we're up at the top, I think..

So there is this one place in the hike that has trees that look like olive trees a little bit and because of that I dubbed it Jerusalem.  We ate lunch in Jerusalem.  PB and J.  And Gushers, and goldfish and wheat thins and ritz chips.  Mmmm healthy.  Not.  But it was all good!

Valentine's Day was not Valentine's day for me this year.   In honor of Arizona's 100th birthday, I celebrated that instead!  Yeahh it was a good day.  Me and my ohana went to Tito's for a delicious Valentine's dinner with complimentary chocolate cake!  We got real spoiled there.  It's safe to say that we're going back again soon.. So after we got back from our music blasting, rain soaked escapade, we returned to campus and parted until 8:45.  Until that time came to pass, I recieved a Valentine's package from my lovely family filled with goodies and a J. Crew shirt!  Best.Stuff.Ever.  Thanks mama and family!  This was delivered via my Lovely cousin Allie Jones and her awesome friend!  We chatted for a bit and then I was on my way to the GCB to watch You Again with the Ohana.  While we were waiting for Emma to bring the stuff, Eric and I did sommersaults and looked at a map for a long time.  Then we watched the movie and I fell asleep until the end.  Oh well, it was a good day!  And I'm still very happy single.  Sorry all!  No marriage in this bright horizon anytime soon!

Guys, so much more has happened but I just don't want to bore you with a novel of the things that I've done!  I'll just hit a few more points and then it can be picture time!

Fast forward to this past weekend.  That was quite eventful.  So Friday is typically beach day once we finish with school and lunch.  Tori, Austin David and I headed to Hukilau and played in the water for a good two hours.  Tori and I got towed around by our ankles and were assaulted by sand courtesy of Daveed and Austin.  But we still had fun!  The day has only just begun however, because we still had a concert to go to!

After our failed attempt to play raquetball, Austin, David, Tori and I parted ways to shower and meet everyone else for dindin before the Jon Schmidt and Steven Sharp concert.  I got my ticket for freeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!

Okay so the concert was fantastic!  I love the cello even more now and those guys were just so entertaining to watch!  And once the concert was over, there was a steamy hot dance in good ol' Hale 2!  And by hot and steamy I literally mean there was steam coming from the windows from the main lounge.  It was an exciting dance though..even if I got called a limp noodle.  You know who you are. 

So Saturday Emma, David, DJ, Tori, Austin and I headed out to the Ala Moana Mall and Wal mart for some much needed supplies.  We were thoroughly entertained on the way back because of a silly man who was jamming out to his music rather enthusiastically. 

Sunday was a big, big, big day!  (Hunger Games reference for you HG nerds like me).  Since school was out for Monday, we, meaning the Ohaha, celebrated Beau and Brooke's birthdays by camping out in the Turtle Bay area.  We had fire and in insufficient amount of blankets for the night.  And a severe lack of umbrellas, but that wasn't too bad.  There was a toasty fire and s'mores with plenty of s'more puns:  "please sir, I want s'more!"  And DJ used a creepy voice a lot.  Petri and Ralph were new additions to the party.  It so happens that DJ, Emma, Eric and I set up our little island of sheets amidst the other groupings on the beach.  Plus side of the camping trip, it was really fun and full of entertainment and I had my own personal heater for the night (thanks brother!).  Negatives to the trip was the fact that I took a nap early that day and couldn't sleep very well and the cold rain in the morning.  To those of you who slept like rocks ( Austin, David, Beau, Aroha and who ever else is crazy and could actually sleep), I am very envious of you all.  Very envious.  I suppose I am willing to do this again though.  Provided we cook breakfast on the beach of course!  

 After we got back from the camp out, Alex and I got breakfast and did our laundry.  The rest of the day was uneventful save for the card playing at night!  Tori and I are the champs, yeahh buddy!

Morning after the campout.  I like my blankie a lot, okay?

I mustache you a question..

Green Jeans

I've finally finally finally joined the colored jeans trend with a pair of my very own green jeans.  And the verdict is:  I am obsessed with these suckers!  I was a tad bit nervous that they were going to look atrocious, with and without me in them.  But!  Thankfully, they look gooood.  (Thank you 6 a.m. jogging class). 

I also got some tan pointy toed flats that are lovely, albeit very painful and unforgiving to my achilles tendon and the skin surrounding it.  Hopefully I'll break them in soon enough because I'm getting the feeling that I'm going to be wearing those shoes quite often.

Onto some more matters?  Well, I finally sent a letter to Zach!  He's been gone for what, three weeks and I've been sort of slacking.. But I wrote it and sent it!  I really miss my best friend.  I'm going to go ahead and disclaim it right now,  Zach and I have never been in a relationship together and I don't plan on it.  He is like the older brother I never had and I love him dearly (Even though I'm like a week older).  He's my best friend.

I'm slowly getting on top of things again!  I sort of let the beach and the wacky schedule of things get to me last week and the week before.  But it was sorta worth it because I am regaining that beachy little tan again!
And I've also completed bascially all my assignments for the week.  So what does a bored college student do?  Nap.  Oh and hang out with friends and stuff.  But mostly nap.  And it feels oh so nice to sleep for a spell, very invigorating.

Speaking of which, Alex and I had a nice long run last night that was quite invigorating...yeahh..

 Singles Awareness Day is coming up, ahem, I mean uhh Valentine's Day.  I do believe I will be one of the lucky lonely ones who gets to observe all the happy couples strolling around campus.  I'm also certain that there will be a lot of marriage proposals here at the BYUH campus.  I mean come on, even though it's the school with the least amount of hitching going on, there has to be some corny people around  here itching for the most cliche date possible to come around.  I'm just glad that I'm not going to be one of those girls running around with a ring on it.  And you know what, I am absolutely okay with being single on Valentine's day too.  Weird right? 

I just realized (thanks so something I saw on Pinterest, go figure) that I don't need to seek out anything.  Because that isn't the right reason.  If I just live my life and continue being happy as I am, then that's all I need for now.  So when someone does actually come around, I'll be with them not because I'm unhappy and alone, but because he and I have been drawn together out of actual interest and mutual feelings.  Not because I have that desire and need to feel wanted by someone.

So mystery man, come when you wish.  At the moment I am perfectly content with living my life as is.  And I feel like that's how it should be.  There should never be any reason to force a relationship. 

I am single.  I am young.  And I love it.

Slacker with a capitol S

Alright alright, I'll be the very first to admit that I'm not the greatest at consistently updating this public "diary" of mine.  My reason?  Well it's relatively pathetic.  I just don't feel like recapping over and over and over again.  Yes I know, that is no excuse.  Especially with lil miss Erin Timothy churning out posts like it's no bodies business!  So tonight, my friends, not only will I treat you to a recap, but an insight to my inner workings and such.  You could say I've had an emotional past three weeks what with Zach leaving and all.  Gah I miss him.

Okay, well I got home shortly after midnight on Tuesday the 20th.  I had two surprises waiting for me when I got off the plane.  Firstly, I see all five members of my family dressed in ridiculous Christmas themed turtle necks waiting for me.  Even Papa Clouse, the big, strong daddy that he is, was in one of them.  He looked like a goober, which is really difficult for him to accomplish.  I still love him anyway though!  And then out of the blue, Makayla disappears and then comes back with my next little surprise:  my best best BEST friend Erin Timothy.  In an ugly turtleneck too, mind you!  It was fantactic to see her face after three months of absence. 

So then we all head down to the baggage claim to pick up my little suitcase that only weighed 30.5 pounds.  Can you say light packing? Yeah I did a good job with packing, watch out!  Anyway, so we were all talking and catching up and finally I got my suitcase and we started out to the car in the parking garage.  I see the big blue Suburban and then out of no where this guy in a brown shirt says "Here I got that for you" and opens the back door of the car for me.  As you can guess, I was slightly confused by the stranger.  But then I realized.  That was no stranger...and that not stranger had another not stranger in a black button down with him.

I screamed and hugged my bestfriend Zachary Jacob Burton and my other bestfriend Caden Lee Alexander oh so very much!  Didn't see that coming?  Well, neither did I. (Insert shoulder shrug)  See that was the point, duhh.  I later found out that my little sister was keeping them aware of my whereabouts at all times via texting.  Oh and that they were basically shadowing my every move.  They were very discreet and covert about the whole operation.  And there you have it!  My third and very unexpected, but nonetheless appreciated surprise.

Moving on to Christmas Vacation?  I should mention that I was going on a date with Caden only a mere five hours after I got home from school.  Yeah, I guess I like jumping straight into the fray, it's cool.  I finally ended up heading to bed at two AM and fell asleep an hour after that.  Two hours later, I got up and threw on some sweats to go on a hike to watch the sunrise at Usary Pass.  It was good fun and as we started down, the group decided that it was a good idea to race down the side of the mountain off of the trail and across cactus and rocks and such.  Caden and I were very good at this.  We actually were in first place for a good five minutes of the decent.  That is until I took a major spill and sort of skidded at the bottom of the mountain.  Ouch.  I bruised up my knee and hit my boob really hard on a rock.  And I was tough and walked it off even though my knee could hardly take any weight.  I even started jogging again after the pain died down a bit.  Stupid idea?  Yes, but whatever, my knee is fine now and it makes for a good story.  I even told Caden that I injured my right boob.  Guys, just realize, I tend to freely give out that sort of information, soo yeahh...

Christmas Eve was spent a mere five minutes away from my house at Grandma and Grandpa Clouse's house.  Needless to say, the food was spectacular as always!  It's my goal to be as good of a chef as Grandma Dorothy one day.  It is going to happen, you'll see!  So we have this tradition of getting new PJ's every Christmas eve and this year was no exception.  I love our tradition and plan on continuing it with my eventual future family.  We all went to bed by midnight and then got up, opened presents and then my personal favorite part, went to church for Christmas services down at my ward's building/ the stake center.  I love it when we have Christmas on Sundays because it just adds even more meaning to an already spiritual holiday.  We then went to the Clouse's again before getting a break to make rolls for the Flaws Christmas dinner.  That was loads of fun too!  I love both sides of my family.

I got to spend a lot of time with my amazing Mesa friends over this break!  I adore them with my whole heart, I really do.  These people know me so well.  They love me even if I sass them or make fun of their hair (Jon and his hobbit hair..)  They know how to make me laugh the hardest and they see me at my most embarrassing moments, whether it's Michael and I acting special together, or my attempts to creep on Scott, Zach and I being ourselves, Erin and I being sassy, Jon and I acting awkward and Caden and I writing silly stories and me collapsing to the floor from laughing so hard.  There are a bunch of you others that I didn't mention, but I promise that I'm thinking of you too!  Seriously Mesa, Arizona has the best people in the ENTIRE world.  No joke.  We have Jones Night and play all over.  Mostly late at my house though...  Michael, one day, we will find you a suitable helmet with blue sparkles and everything!

I got to go snowboarding with my Daddy and sisters after about three years of avoiding the slopes.  Last time we went to Sunrise, the wind chill had the temperature down in the negatives!  For all you non Arizona natives, yes I know you must be in denial about it right now, but Arizona is not just cactus and dirt.  That would be about less than half of the state, my friends.  We have snow and trees and mountains and lakes too, mmkay David?  But yes, I live in the actual desert part.

Okay onto New Years!  Haha..well it started out with Makayla and I making cream cheese brownies and lemon bars.  Oh and a giant two foot pizza from Venezia's which was delicious even though I kept on thinking about how Caden and Michael told me they did the Venezia's Challenge and Caden puked up all of his pizza after they finished. FUUUNNY!  So around nine, Caden and Danielle picked me up and our night began!  Eventually we ended up at a fun party where most of the college freshmen were and Danielle and I had this brilliant idea to go to Wal-Mart to pick up some Mardinelli's sparkling cider!  I mean, it was New Year's after all!  So we found sparkling grape juice instead..but it was still delicious!  Eventually, Erin, Danielle and I ended up snuggling together on a hammock and made some fantastic memories.  Wiggle.  Yeah.  I love you girls dearly, by the way.  Just going to make that known!

Sadly, the break had to end.  And with the end of the break came Zach's farewell.  He gave an excellent talk and made me tear up a little.  Zach was seriously my best friend.  He still is, he's just sort of in Uruguay and I'm in Hawaii.  Anyway, so I went to his open house and spent time with everyone.  A lot of faces (the boys) are going to be gone when I come home in April.  Michael will be in Jamaica and Scott in Idaho.  I'm going to miss them a lot, some of my closest friends and you know what, I'm going to be honest.  It really sucks that they're leaving.  But I do know without a shadow of a doubt that they're doing the right thing by leaving everything they know behind and serving the Lord and His purposes.  As much as I will surely miss them, I am so very proud of my friends for making a choice that will effect them only for the better for the rest of their lives.  They'll be blessed for their two years of service and I know that when they return, they're going to be even more brilliant and fantastic than they already are. 

It was really sad saying goodbye to Zach though.  I'll be the first to admit that when the time came, I cried.  He's was always there for my senior year, and even after when we headed off to our respective BYU's.  Elder Burton, you're going to be a phenomenal missionary and I can say that with the utmost confidence!  Your first letter is on its way bud!  I can't wait to hear from you!

I cried a little when I got back to Hawaii and thought of how I  can't talk to Zach, or skype him for the next two years.  Shut it.  He's my bestfriend, mmkay? 

But I've been reunited with my Hawaiian family and we have been nearly inseparable since we've all been back!  I was the fashionably late one seeing as I got back to school on the 9th.  AKA the first day of Winter Semester. Whoops.  But I had to see Zach's farewell and there isn't anything wrong with being fashionably late, yeah? 

We've been to the beach several times together and boy has it been fun!  We also eat every meal together and at least one of them is with me at night.  I love these people so much.  And they're slowly but surely getting to know the Haleigh that my Mesa people know.  I don't know if this is a good thing?  Oh well, they haven't let me in the dust yet!  We're going on a hike this weekend.  I am sort of really really stoked for it.  And also, of course we'll be spending a great deal of time relaxing on the beaches near school.  I WILL come home with browned skin this time. 

Did I mention I have a jogging class two days a week at six in the MORNING?  Well now I have.  Whoot whoot.  Sike.  I hate it.  I would kill it if I could.  But I like to think of the class as the means to blasting the fat off of my legs.  I'm going to have sexy track legs again minus the attractive shorts tan line.  This morning, we ran 4.5 miles.  That is the most I've ever ran!  I am very proud of this accomplishment.  And guess what, I only stopped twice for a few minutes each..soo yeahh I'm not as terribly out of shape like I expected to be.  I get to do this all semester ladies and gents. 

I should mention also that I am addicted to Vampire Diaries.  Even though I swore off everything with fangs three years ago.  Whoops.  Damon Salvatore is just too handsome for me to resist, mmkay?  But that's fine, because since I caught up to the present episode, I can focus on studying in the library agian.  Ughh.  I hate that place passionately.  Stupid library people and brain melting books. 

Okay, this is picture time:

First night with some of the group of the Mesa kids!  We got naked guys...

Sike, getting Naked costs too much, I got hot chocolate instead.  So did Michael annd not Scott and Spencer

Sun's game with my bestfriend Zachary!!

New Year's Eve with Erin and Danielle!  We had good times on that hammock

Snow boarding with Papa and my sisters!  We look like marshmallows, I know it...

Caressa's birthday on the beach!  World War Sand occurred on those shores that day.

I wish I had an iPhone.. they come in handy for moments like this one.

And here when Sumner and I were preparing ourselves to be stealthy scary intense intimidating and fearless bouncers.  Yeah that's right, we are tough.

Well, I should promise to update more, but as you can tell, I don't do well with updates and such. 

Peace out and I hope you enjoyed reading about my life, you dirty little stalkers

In the Library

I can only take so much before I absolutely need a break.  Hello all, me again!  I am currently sitting in a chilly library studying my freshie butt off in preparation for semester finals.  It is not an experience that I enjoy, but it is something that I must do, unfortunately.. 

Why am I not in my dorm room?  Well, I have finally realized that in the quiet of my room, I find reasons to not study.  For example, I end up on Facebook or Pinterest and waste precious study time.  Or I'll be semi-distracted by music playing on good ol' reliable Spotify or watch tv on the internet.  Or I'll be unconscious on my bed.  It's a viscious cycle that I've finally broken.  Here in the library, I am motivated by passers by to stay off of all social media websites.   I also refuse to bring my headphones because if I brought them, I would use them as entertainment.  So here, I get a lot more work done.  It's just boring.  So boring.

May I say that in six days I'll be on my way back to the lovely Mesa, Arizona for three weeks?  I know everyone is excited, no need to tell me!  My family just won't stop bragging about how they've been using the fire place and how it's cold back at home and that yeahh... I'm out of ideas..

But I am excited to see mi familia!  Three months away might have made my heart even more fond of our silly jokes and whatnot.  Family, since you are accustomed to the "cold" and I am not, I shall be needing extra blankets on my bed.  Since, you know, it's about 70 degrees here always... 

Also, I'm not going to be as tan as you all are expecting!  I've been a studious young woman who remains indoors preparing for tests and doing homework.  Sorry to disappoint!  But I will do my best to catch up and get a last minute tan before I come home!  I have to have a little bit of a glow at least.  Just to, you know, gloat at all you ghosties.  (cough*Erin and Makayla and Jordan*cough). 

Okay...okay okay okay.  Break time is over.  Time to resume my studying of Anthropology now.  I'm reading about religion.  Exciting, isn't it? 
Bye All!  See you next Tuesday!

Happiness

Hello dear blog stalkers!  Haleigh here making another update!  This time, there is no extensive hiatus, so everyone (Caden) should be happy.  You may be wondering why this post is entitled "Happiness".  Well, aside from finals prep, I am a very very very veryvery happy person.  You may ask, what is wrong with this girl, did she just lose it?  To which the answer would be, maybe just a little bit...

But really, I have so many things to be happy about and it isn't even funny.  For example, last night, me and my friends had a snugglefest in a house.  An actual house! I haven't seen the interior of one of those for eons.  Literally.  Okay, fine, maybe not that long, but still.  It was nice.  I love my Hawaiian family.  We form an excellent unit.  We have mama Emma and I'm not particularly sure which one is the most fatherly.  I'm gonna have to say that Eric and David are out.  And D.J., Austin; you two would be too nice as Oh well.  I think I should start out with earlier this week before I talk about the Saturday Snugglefest?  Yeah, I'll do that.

So, Sunday, we had a fireside and that night, I donned red lipstick for the first time in public.  Lets just say that I am sort of obsessed with it.  Like really obsessed.  I wore it Friday and today too...

Anyway, the fireside finished, my lovely family and I got together and had a jamsesh out by the security office with a guitar and three ukuleles.  And a shaker.  Yeah, we're legit at this Hawaiian musical thing.  We all have musical talent in some shape or form, so it is really quite safe to assume that this will become a regular past time.  And I am excited.  So very excited.  So excited that soon I will purchase my own uke and teach myself how to play.  Sorry real family, I'm going to be singing even more, I'm afraid!  Lucky you!

The rest of the week week wasn't very interesting.  I spent a lot of time finishing my lovely research paper for English, and copying down the notes for Biology and prepping for Anthropology.  In general, just a lot of studying.  Just one more week of it, I can do this.  I know I can!  

So to Friday, I finished my research paper and turned it in a few hours early! I'm such a good college student.  Who knew, right?  I missed out on going to the beach with my family to finish it.  But that is okay because we were at dinner in the good ol' reliable caf for a mighty long time.  They eventually pulled out a fruit salad which caused a huge riot and ruckus.  All the Asians stole the fruit.  I wanted to grab a fist full from their enormous fruit filled platters.  Jerks.  But that is also okay because then they set out dinner rolls!  And even though they aren't entirely good as homemade, it is better than nothing.  

Can anyone say Ugly Sweater Dance Party?  Yeah, BYUH had one and it was fun.  I donned my lovely red lipstick again.  And guys get this.  Short hair, sock bun, not possible, right?  WRONG!  I did it and I rocked it!  It is officially my new go to hairdo.  I am thrilled.  I looked like a ballerina, and I liked it.  So after the dance, we all walked to the Chevron and then a few of us walked to Bikini beach and talked for a long time.  Then we decided it would be best to go to bed because we wanted to go to the surfing competition finals by nine.  And surprisingly, it worked! 

We, meaning Emma, Tori and I, went to the Pipe Line Masters competition and witnessed a perfect ten!  We saw a guy get a perfect ten on his wave, it was incredible.  Loved it, every second.  So we get back and I take a two hour nap, got ready and ran to Caressa's truck by six.  I got to sit in the back, which was fun!  I wrapped my scarf around my head like a fancy 50's lady driving a convertible and we, meaning Sumner, Emma, Alex, David and I had a mini snugglefest because it started raining on the way to Caressa's house.  Very fun!  So we made it to her house and made delicious french bread pizza and watched a trippy movie and just had fun like we always do when we're together.  Next semester will be very fun, I am predicting.  I love my friends.  They're cool kids.  So after the movie, we had the aforementioned snugglefest which was lovely.  I was toasty warm.  The only things that could have made it better would be a nice roaring fire and some good quality hot chocolate.  Yes, my obsession for hot chocolate is still going strong everyone.  I will never cease loving it.  EVER.

But so something that made me ecstatic happened and then we went back to campus and then Sunday came around and I went to church!  Today has been fantastic as well.

Another thing that makes me happy is that I will be home in approximately eight days!  Whooooo M-town here I come!  I think I'll get along fabulously with the 70 degree weather.  And a real comfortable bed and a private shower and good food and friends and family and cheaper prices and a boat load of other things! 

Bottom line, I'm just so happy!

Picture time, yes?

Triple Crown Surf Finals

My Hawaiian Family

Family pictures!

The female portion.  Plus me planking awkwardly in the back.  I was pinned between Tori and the stand, therefore, I could not move.

I think that should do?  I may or may not post again before I leave, if not, I'll update in lovely Mesa, Arizona!

Finals.

Finals will be the death of me.  I will be shipped home in a casket, I'm sure.  Especially my stupid English 201 finals.  Seriously, we just submitted our research paper, now we have to prepare a six to ten minute presentation, then for our actual finals, we have an essay sesh in the marvelous testing center and then our "real" final in class.  Oh boy oh boy I can't wait.  But actually, I can.  I'd much rather not do it at all though...  Then I have my other finals which I'm not too worried about, but still.  This isn't a fun time.  Nope, not in the slightest.  I now have an understanding of how college students feel. 

Okay, but now, lets speak of happy things.  Mesa Crew reunites in less than twenty days!!!! I am so so soo excited to see everyone after three long months of separation!  However, it will be a bit strange because Ringleader Matthew Pace is out serving the Lord as well as Voice of Reason Blake Savage...  I miss you boys.  It's just so strange to think that two major components of my life are in South America.  But hey, they're doing what they're supposed to do and they're going to be a million times better when they come back!  And also, they should just come to Hawaii when they finish serving because I'm going to be here for at least three years.  Matt and Michael can set up their personal training bizz!  I'll write soon, I promise!  Eve

Hold up, two more of my dear lovely friends have received their calls too! 

Dear Lovely Michael Rush is going out to serve in Kingston, Jamaica in Marchy March!  And Dear Lovely Scott Cook is going to Boise, Idaho at the end of February!  I love you boys.  Just gonna throw that out there again.  And most likely, I'll tell you about 160264631354653118x more before you both leave...
Don't be creeped out...

ErinErinERINERINERIN.  We have eighteen days left!! But not gonna lie, I think its actually nineteen.. haha it's okay, regardless of the number of days, it is still less than a month! Ahhhhh I am so excited to go to QT and get hot chocolate and make cookies and cupcakes and all the cool stuff we find on Pinterest with you!  Here are a few things I believe we HAVE to make.  Lookit that, italicized and capitalized.  It has to happen now.

Dulce De Leche Cheesecake bars

Pumpkin Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies

 

Super Really Chocolatey Cookies... You know, since I have an obsession with chocolate..

And this one, we WILL make.  Ten Layer Bars.  What? Look at that goodness.. It is begging to be eated by us:)

Of course, we will have Natalie and Makayla helping us out.  And eating the creations.  If I let them touch any of it that is.  But really, Just look at it all!  I am literally drooling right now.  I might need a bucket.  Eww TMI.  But that's how badly I want to bake and eat yummy food again!

Okay, it's my bedtime and I might go running on the beach again in the morning...soo farewell!

The Blackest Friday Yet

Woah, what is this?  Two updates in one week? Holy crap am I just so dedicated randomly!  Seriously, what just overcame me?  Welll, Alex and I just finished our movie and have decided to share with how what goes on beneath our shiny, straight hair.  But I am warning you, somethings aren't meant to be shared... however in this case, we are willing to tell all.  Literally.  Seriously.

I should start off with the beginning of our weekend.  AKA Wednesday where I ditched class to go to the Triple Crown Surfing competition in the historical surfing town of Haleiwa (Pronounce the W like a German, weird..).  Wait, back up a second.  Haleigh Clouse ditched a class?  Hold on, what has gotten into me?  I never ever ever ditch school!  Well two things made me ditch.  Number one, I only had one class that day because the other one cancelled and number two:  Alex and Brayden are bad influences on yours truly.  So on that note, Alex and I basically sat on the sand and were astonished by the cool flippies and jumps the surfers pulled.  I didn't understand half of what the commentators said, but hey, when you're raised in a desert, what else can be expected?  So it started raining while we were there.  It got real cold and real windy.  Luckily I was a smart little girl and I was prepared with a sweatshirt.  But Alex wasn't..nope.  She just had a shirt that was not made for holding warmth, and apparently had an umbrella stashed away in her backpack but had forgotten until the rain stopped. Why does Hawaii have to be so temperamental and dramatic when it comes to the weather?  And also, why does it have to be so dang flippin' windy?  I hate the wind.  It's official.  Windy weather sucks, therefore, I will never move to any place that is susceptible to the wind.  Or in other words, I shall live out my days inside of a cave where wind is all but nonexistent.

During a brief sunny respite, we snapped a quick picture

Had to get that banner in the back!

So moving on to Thursday, aka Turkey Day aka Thanksgiving.  Can you say non traditional?  Alex and I got to eat a lot of good ol' fashion Fijian cooking/monster banquet.  There was enough food to feed the masses of a small army.  And in no shape or form am I exaggerating.  Literally there was about six deep dish serving tubs of meat alone.  Piled to the top.  And then there was a whole table that was crowded with deserts alone.  And a whole lot of other things.  At least they had mashed potatoes and turkey.  It was good food.  Real good food.  Would you like to see?

Here is a peak onto Alex's plate.  You can tell she enjoys meat and will never become a vegetarian.  Ever.  Not on your lifetime, sonny.  Also, she likes to  eat purple potatoes that aren't really potatoes, but is in fact taro and "tastes like dirt" (Not our words)  Earthy would adequately describe the flavor.

Not even half of the table is full.  I promise.

Here is our place of dwelling during our feasting activities and the wonderful lady who invited us to the Thanksgiving dinner, Lynsie Atalifo!  She is the best!

The brownies were delicious...leave me alone..

Here are Lynsie and her husband Tevita. They let us play in their house for a while before the dinner.  We got to play Mario Cart Wii and slurp down delicious Pog!  And also, Alex and Lynsie made delicious pumpkin pie that I was supposed to help with except I was on the phone with my family.. thanks guys.  But I do want to thank the Atalifo's for letting us spend Thanksgiving with them, it was delicious and very fun!  Thank you!

Onto our epic Black Friday adventure, yes?  First off, it should be known that we only had four hours of sleep prior and things got a bit boring on the bus so we, of course, had to spice it up.  Also, you are about to see what happened and when it happened.  Good luck.

6:17 am:  Alex and I have embarked on our little excursion to the Ala Moana mall.  We awoke from our dreaming of new clothing at precisely 5:15.  We are tired and loopy and function on less sleep than the average human being, but we are no average humans.  We are women with a purpose.  However we nearly missed our bus and marching onto the first morning bus was the first sweet victory of many yet to come.

6:18 am:  We have been delayed it seems at the Turtle Bay Resort with no sign of leaving soon.  

6:26 am:  Victory!  we have continued onto the mall.

6:35 am:  Strange specimens are finding their way onto the bus.  We will Keep to ourselves and observe with subtlety.  Alex will not cease to sneeze and says "Hi mom!".  While driving past Waimea as the sky begins to turn pink we both wonder "Can you believe we really live here?"  Yes the shock of living in Hawaii is still present after nearly three months.

6: 49 am:  The bus driver nearly hit two baby chicks.  They barely made it out alive.  We have never been so relieved to see their downy yellow fluff scurrying across the road. 

7:00 am:  We have entered into the pineapple jungle.  The air is strangely acidic.  Do not breathe too deeply, it may very well be your last.

7:02 am:  Rumors have reached us that Big Foot lives on this island.  We have the full intent to investigate this claim.  Alex says that she'll keep her eyes open, but thinks that everyone should just leave him alone.  Urban Legends are people too.

7:07 am:  We find ourselves playing air guitar and singing silently to microphones to Bohemian Rhapsody.  We are aspiring to become more entertaining than the fat man sleeping at the front of the bus. 

7:16 am:  We are ready to shop, but there is no mall in sight... Getting very antsy as the bus sputters and lurches from stop to stop.

7:30 am:  After sending Eric a surprise for when he wakes up, we came to the wonderful realization that we are professional subtle bus dancers.  We entertain only ourselves and those paying close attention to our bodies.  Very awkward.  Until we find ourselves decorating imaginary miniature Christmas trees.  Then it just gets splendid.

The rest of the bus trip was boring.  Nothing of note happened.  Would you like to see the photo graphical evidence?  Okay!

Eric's surprise

                                                                     Meriadoc and Peregrin.

While we were at the mall, we picked a fight with an Asian lady who cut us off.  So rude, Asians just love cutting people off.  I swear, I was going to shove them all over the railing.  I cannot tell you how many times they got in my way.  Guys, I actually miss Mexicans.  What is this? 

But it was a pretty successful day, I got a ton of new things.  It would have been better if only there was an H&M, maybe one day there will be? 

Alex here! So after our long yet satisfying day of mall madness and being uncomfortably close to people, Haleigh and I retired to her peaceful dorm and chillaxed for a bit. We then decided to go eat (did I say eat?) some hot chocolate and then attend the men's basketball game in our sharp new outfits! The game went as expected. Haleigh, Sumner and I sat together and had a grand time. I finally took the initiative to approach the gecko and confess my love. It went nicely, I think, because he did a couple of flips on the court during the following timeout. I went home at 9:00 and skyped the man of my dreams. It was such a wonderful night! Andrew, if you're reading this, a) you're a stalker b) you already know that I think you're a babe.

Haleigh, back to you!

Back to me!  Well, that pretty much covers the weekend!  Today and Saturday were pretty uneventful.. too rainy and windy for the beach. Surprise surprise!

Until next time, my friends!