I can be social, too.

It was a long, but great weekend. I haven't had this "fun" of a weekend in awhile! (Okay...last week... so let's be honest, all of my weekends are fun.) But this one, I actually planned stuff. So I got to look forward to my fun. 


Friday night, I went to Brian Regan! I didn't think I would laugh that hard, but really. I did. I had tears rolling down my face. That guy is hysterical. It was at the point where my stomach didn't want to laugh anymore, and then at that point...I laughed even harder. I was comedically exhausted to say the least. 


And yesterday, I got to everything on the customary Saturday checklist. It was fantastic. I finally rolled out of bed at 10:30, hit the gym, got my iPhone fixed (!), did homework, cleaned my room, and went grocery shopping. Success. But THEN. I went to the Velour for my very first time. Yes, I have lived in Provo for almost three years, and still haven't been yet. That tells you a lot about my social life right there...anyway, it was really great. I accompanied Katilin to see some of her friends perform. I was actually very impressed with the music! I will most definitely be going back soon.

I was on a social high this weekend. That NEVER happens. Because in my major, we joke that class is the social hour of the day. Then when we get home, there's no strong desire to "get out," because we've been entertained all day. Weekends are really the time to relax from social activities. 


So...bring on True Blue Monday! I am determined to make it another successful week, and give myself something to look forward to on those calendar days of M-Th. Next up: emceeing the Ward Talent Show...and going on a really great date. Can't wait!

Behind the scenes.

So...I'm pretty much in love with my job. If that's not obvious. Yesterday I worked a 12-hour day, but it went by so quickly. It is such a blast in the Broadcasting building, and the people I work with are absolutely hilarious/amazing. Anyway, last night I got to try my hand at live sports for the first time. We just did a tiny halftime show for the USD came, and I got to be the producer over graphics. That means I got to get all the stats and player info and sit with the graphics operator and feed him the information. It was super fast paced, and I'll be honest, I was nervous that I would miss something! But I didn't--I kept right up to speed and it was SO FUN. I loved it. Did I mention I was the only girl in the studio? It's fun to be in a male-dominated atmosphere...and know what you're talking about. I get a lot of respect--but most importantly--I get all the "TV" jokes.


So here are a few pictures, but I mostly took them to keep a journal of the "inside" look at what it takes to put on a half an hour show each week. 

This is our BYUtv Sports "cool stuff" board. It all started when one of our editors is STARRING in the new movie, Unitards. It comes out in theaters on January 27th! Click here to watch the trailer. Then Dave and Robbie had great articles written about them, so we had to do something cool. (The Sharlene Wells addition was not my own.) 

This is a video I filmed during pre-pro yesterday. We had Blaine Fowler and 

Steve Cleveland hosting the show, and this is them discussing the players right before going on air.

I love my job!

Dig a bit deeper.

"Moreover, states that spring up overnight, like all other things in nature that are born and grow in a hurry, cannot have their roots deep in the soil, so they shrivel up in the first drought, blow over in the first storm." -Machiavelli's The Prince


I'm reading The Prince for one of my Poli Sci classes, and little did I know how interesting it is. Machiavelli says it straight to the point, and isn't afraid of what other people think. He's really the first modern politician that brought about this new way of leadership. He clearly states how he sees the government and how it should be ruled. It's a must-read for anyone remotely interested in politics...and I'm only a few chapters in.


Anyway, while I was reading, I came across this quote that hit me pretty hard. Machiavelli is discussing how the states within government don't pop up themselves. They take time and patience. It's like I'm being hit in the face with Someone trying to teach me patience. I think that everything should happen now and if it doesn't happen now then it will never happen. It's actually quite the opposite. The longer I dig those roots in the ground, the more stable it'll be, and won't blow over in that first little storm. They'll eventually be able to withstand any big storm. 


I've learned the most important things in life take that same patience. It's not always going to come in the first try, or maybe even the second. I have first hand knowledge that my "third time's a charm," actually means "thirtieth time's a charm." Don't hold back anything if you believe in it. It's never taken by force, however, but always with patience and love. Once we master those two things, we can master anything.

Superbowl: Female Style.

This past weekend I had a wonderful opportunity to accompany my mother at the Miss America pageant. Now, let me preface this. I think pageants are great for people who love them. I'm not one of those people. Once a year is plenty for me. There's way too much hairspray, too many high heels, and A LOT of women. Let's just say I was checking the NFL/NCAA scores on my trusty ESPN Scoreboard app through the whole thing. But it was fun to get out of school for a couple of days and hang out with my super cool mom.


As many of you know, my mom won Miss America in 1984, making her the '85 Miss America. That's probably the only time you'll ever hear me say that. I don't like telling people--I want them to be my friend because of who I am, and not for some title that my mother had almost 30 years ago. (I also don't want the second question to be, "are you going to do any pageants?" No.) They'll find out who she is their own...they always do. It's not important. She feels the same way...in fact, she keeps her crown hidden in a box in her closet, on top of some clothes, and only pulls it out when she's trying to teach the lesson of, "Believe it or Not: The Crown Isn't Everything." 


With that being said, I couldn't have been more proud of her this weekend. I loved showing her off, and there's only one weekend in the whole year that I really get to do that. She quietly dominates the stage, and in my opinion looks even better than she did at my age. She's also the most level-headed, beautiful and calm one in the whole group. Everybody loves her, because she makes every single person feel like a million bucks. Naturally, I absolutely love introducing myself as her daughter. 

I took a ton of pictures with my new phone, so I'm really glad I got it before I left. Because let's be honest, I'm horrible at taking pictures. I let everyone else take pictures and then tag me on facebook. But now I'm really motivated! Especially with this new Instagram thing. Really awesome. Anyway, let me share with you a bit of what went down in Vegas this weekend. My mom would never go back to the Miss America pageant unless she's putting someone else in the spotlight. Currently, she's the President of Remember My Service--a company that does all of the history for the military. (Well, she's working on getting the WHOLE military on board...but she's pretty close.) She invited twenty-two moms, wives and daughters of our heroes killed in action to be VIP Miss America's for a weekend. They had their makeup, hair and nails done, went shopping...well I'll just show you. 


First, we got together to see the Blue Man Group. Mom made it possible to get the VIP treatment for them and have them meet the blue guys backstage after the show. They were super creepy, but also hilarious. The girls loved it.

The next morning, we got together and she showed them her crown. She gave the speech I was talking about earlier, and told the girls the crown means nothing if you don't take the opportunity you've given to serve other people. But then of course that went in and out of their ears, and they just wanted to try on the crown. It was adorable.

 One of the girls seeing what it's like to have paparazzi in your face.

Then, they were all treated at the largest spa in the US. (Maybe in the world? Not sure.) But it was HUGE. All the little girls and women were beaming at the chance to look the part at the Miss America pageant. They all looked beautiful, and most importantly...they were happy.

A few hours later, Mom (again) got the hookups to have the girls meet Chris Harrison (host of The Bachelor!!) on the stage before he had to go prep for the show. He was so gracious and made sure the girls knew that their husbands and daddies were the ones who kept this country going and he thanked them from the bottom of his heart. It was great for them to hear that again, especially coming from a celebrity they only see on television.

We got about half an hour on the stage for them to walk the runway, take pictures, whatever they wanted to do. They loved being Miss America for a weekend, and especially meeting all of the contestants and Formers the night before at the Crowning Gala. They got VIP seats there too--front and center. I lost it when they all went up (with the Miss Americas) and sang "God Bless America," with their daddies' pictures behind them. I don't think there was a dry eye in the house. 

 The three littlest walking the runway.

This is McKenzie praying for Miss Maryland to win. (How cute!) My favorite part was that they took this whole thing seriously, and really felt important. I'm glad they did, because they really are. They are the real girls behind this country, and what they gave up is more important than any title or crown. We appreciate that huge sacrifice they've made and wish them the best.


Now, while they were off doing their thing, we had some free time on our hands. I love hanging out with Mom. She also introduced me to many important folk...let me tell you, my networking this weekend was through the roof! Woot!

It looked like this within the first 5 minutes...

This is the Miss America suite where all the Formers get free food and justget to sit and talk.
They put us all on the same floor, so it was fun for me to get to know them and their daughters better.
We want to start a club: MADA...(Miss Americas' Daughters Anonymous.) It's a tough job keeping them in check ya know... 

...because they do stupid things like this. Joke! Once again, my mom
is so cool! I was just joking while passing these gross snakes, and
of course she jumped right in. 

 ...and the video behind it...

I had to include this one. A sign backstage...
Glad to know the Miss America folks have a sense of humor. 

And this is the time we were in bed on Saturday night!
We were both exhausted. Instead of usually going to the after
party, we both looked at each other, took our heels off, and
headed up to the room.

This weekend rocked. We joke she was my mom for 18 years, and now we hang out and do fun girl things. She's still there to give me advice and help me along my path, but the years of telling me to practice and clean my room are over. 


I love having Miss America as a best friend. 

The day my life changed.

It's official. I'm the proud mama of a new iPhone. Seriously, I'm dying. How did I never have a smart phone before? I feel like I'm the last one to get one on the planet. But, now I'm "cool" because I can check my email on my phone. It's an early birthday present, and I couldn't be more overjoyed. 

I'm just downloading some cool apps and tunes to my new child:

And now I'll have no excuse not to take more pictures. I'm so excited. This is so great. I am in love. 

I'M IN LOVE, I'M IN LOVE! AND I DON'T CARE WHO KNOWS IT!