This morning I finished my last Final of the semester, and of my time at BYU! I studied like crazy (more than I needed to) and got 100% on the exam, which is definitely a first for me. It's usually a big letdown when I find my score on the screen in the Testing Center. But not today! Woohoo! Going out with a bang! It's exciting to be graduating, but it's also pretty strange. I can't believe my BYU days are behind me. Josh will be going back to get an MBA in a few years and I'll be going back for an MFA degree at some point (maybe as a middle-aged empty-nester!), but neither of us are planning on doing our graduate work at BYU. I wish there was a December graduation ceremony, but there isn't any formal ceremony. Josh and I could come back in April and walk in the April graduation ceremony, but I doubt we'll be back for it. It would seem a little anti-climatic. Anyway, here are some fun memories of my BYU experience....(warning: this is a very
long post of reminiscing! Sorry, I had to. How many times do you graduate!?)
.jpg)
I spent my first semester of college at the BYU London Center for a study abroad with the art department.
What a neat experience! I made great friends and had such a blast studying art in London, Paris, Prague, Berlin, and other cities in the U.K.
The rest of my freshman year was spent living in the Helaman Halls dorms at BYU. I lucked out with an amazing roommate, Kristin Drennan. What a wonderful friend!
Freshman year was a fun year filled with lots of crazy adventures in the dorms! Anonymous love notes, secret deliveries, spook alleys, dances, campus activities, all-nighters, and the frantic cramming for tests.
I also had such a great experience serving with these three amazing girls in the Relief Society.
.jpg)
I was definitely single and unattached all of my freshman year, but I had my share of interesting dates and set-ups. (No offense if you know this particular boy.)
My next semester of BYU was spent on a field study with about ten art students from BYU. We spent the first month of our trip in Tonga. It was definitely a little scary and uncomfortable at first!!!
But what a great experience it turned out to be. I learned soo much and had quite an adventure. Tonga has to be one of the most beautiful places in the world!
We spent the rest of the semester in Whakatane, New Zealand. We studied art and visual culture at a Maori university. This was a challenging experience, but I made great friends and I learned so much about myself as a person and as an artist.
New Zealand is simply breathtaking. I cannot wait to go back someday!
I spent the rest of my sophomore year at BYU living at Liberty Square with my good friend Lindsey Peterson. We had such a blast living together!
Soon after I got home from New Zealand I went out with Josh for the first time. I was smitten from the start....as shown in the picture above. (Taken right after my first date with him).
We started dating right away, and....
We got engaged near the end of winter semester. (My ring is actually a diamond, even though this picture makes it look like a little green neon light instead). This was such a fun semester of dating, but it resulted in the worst grades while at BYU! I was a little distracted.
We got married between my sophomore and junior years of BYU, so I began my third year at BYU as a little married woman. When I wasn't studying religiously at the library (ha!), I was learning how to cook! This was a fun time. I got such better grades (and such better sleep!) as a married student because I didn't have to schedule in time for dates and socializing.
I started BYU in the art program, but during my junior year I got accepted into the BFA division of the art program. I finally got studio space on campus. Hooray!
As far as art goes during my junior year, I spent most of the time on a series of paintings about the Great Salt Lake.
At the very end of my junior year I found out I was pregnant. I was so nauseous with morning sickness during my finals!
Luckily, I only had a few more classes to finish up, so I could fit my final credits in before the arrival of the baby. My senior year has been great! I had my final BFA art exhibit in October (see my art blog for more details). Once that was over, the semester wasn't bad at all. I just had a few last classes to wrap up, but it was a far easier semester than my past years.
I have LOVED my time at BYU. I feel soo blessed to have attended this university and to have been able to graduate. I have learned such a great deal these last few years, and I'm so grateful for this wonderful educational experience!
(1) We finally got our housing set for California! What a relief. We are moving in a month and we just got a call that there will be an opening for us at the apartment complex we were crossing our fingers for. We've been on the waiting list since July and I didn't know if it would work out for us. We had found a few other places as back up on Craig's List, but they were more expensive and we hadn't actually seen any of them in person. As it got closer and closer to our moving date I was getting a little worried that we still didn't have housing worked out. But now it's all taken care of! We'll be in Huntington Beach, about a 15-20 commute from Josh's work...and about a 10 minute walk from the Pacific coast. It's over three times the rent that we're paying here in Provo, but it's actually a lot cheaper than the other places we were looking at so we feel really lucky. I am so grateful we have this all set!
(2) We have the cutest daughter in the world. We went to a Tueller gathering last night and Brynlee showed off her new outfit. You gotta love the shrug sweater! Ninety nine percent of the time she's in a sleeper, so it's so fun to dress her up in a little outfit! I love this little girl so much. I have never been happier! Josh and I are soo lucky to have such a sweet little daughter!!!
Bryn hasn't been to church yet, but she's got a cute little Sunday dress ready for her when she makes her big debut! This is the first time she tried it on and I was dying! She looks so much more girly and feminine when she's in a dress!
Brynlee loves her baths now. We cover her with warm washcloths and she just lays back and relaxes. It's a nice change from the little sponge baths we had to give her until her umbillical cord fell off. She hated those baths and would get so sad.
I love watching her face when she sleeps! She makes so many sweet/silly/strange facial expressions.
Brynlee's three week mark fell on my 22nd birthday. It was a wonderful day! My best birthday by far! I am so grateful to be a mom and to have such a sweet little daughter!
This was one of the first nights being home at about 3:00 am. Josh was helping me to burp Brynlee after she ate and this is what resulted! We were both so tired and worn out that when this little accident happened we just started laughing so hard! Welcome to parenthood!
We don't have room in our little apartment for Brynlee's full size crib, so we're borrowing a cute little crib from my Aunt Margaret. It is just the perfect size!
She loves sleeping with her arms up! It is so funny. We have to swaddle her really tight to keep them down.
One other thing worth noting: Josh got the pins out of his finger this afternoon. Finally! He is soo glad to have them out. The pin going down the middle was about two inches long and the side pins are shorter. Yes, he kept all three pins and brought them home from his appointment. Don't be surprised if he pulls them out of his pocket and shows them off the next time you see him!
