post sa thoughts.

here's the postest with the mostest.
i'm home and i've had time to soak this whole experience in. i've done the jet lag, the picture uploading, the laundry and unpacking.. really all that's left is my final paper for the class and then i could completely forget this entire experience.
to say the least that will not be happening.
people said that this experience would change my life. i knew that it would be something i would never forget, but i wasn't quite sure how the life changing would take place. but somewhere along the way, between london and beijing, good ol' me got tweaked a bit.
i don't remember many other times when i've been that happy. every bit of me was pleased.. i was with great people that i want to be friends with forever, i was in places experiencing things i'd only seen in movies or pictures, i was laughing, i was learning, and i was having those moments that i never wanted to forget.

here are some FAQs from my trip..

what was your favorite country?
thailand. i loved the mixture of tourism, real vacation, and culture. we stayed at a great resort, the people were so kind, the tourist attractions allowed you to learn more about the people and the culture.. they weren't just structures they were experiences.

can you say you've written an elephant in thailand? yeah didn't think so. save your money and go now because you need to!

what was the craziest thing you did?
i think this actually took place in thailand. we rode this somewhat ghetto boats to the floating markets. we had water splashing in our faces, which we were told to cover our mouths because it could make us sick. there were signs posted to watch out for crocodiles. then the whole floating markets experience was so unique and fun. floating around, getting pulled in my vendors, trying to make deals with them.. definitely something that's no eiffel tower or necessarily a glamorous shopping experience, but so fun!

not me, but some of my best friends at the floating markets!

what was your favorite business visit?
i think either microsoft or marriott. microsoft was fun and entertaining, and i left with more respect for the company. same with marriott. they both were companies that i would love to work for based off their presentations and want to support more after.

what was your "study abroad moment"/favorite day/ etc?
our last day in paris. our last day in thailand and in china were very close second and third, but everything about our last day in paris was perfectly imperfect. we started out by going to versilles. the line was super long, but we may or may not have found a way to the front. we went through the palace then rode bikes around the grounds. then i had a delicious ice cream cone. after that we attempted to go the the french open. i wouldn't give many more details because it didn't turn out too well and its a sore spot for some. then we did some more sightseeing plus two awesome art museums. ever heard of the lourve? yeah that was one of our stops. we ended the night watching the sunset and the eiffel tower sparkle on top of the arc de triumph, an amazing view of the city. we were all in somewhat goofy moods and we just messed around, laughed a lot, and took tons of pictures of course. it was light hearted and we weren't students- we were friends. then we headed to the eiffel tower one last time. we just layed on the grass, talked, and loved life. but seriously. not to mention in between many of these locations we were RUNNING. sprinting. we had to fit everything in and we always thought we were late. it made everywhere though, even home to the hotel :) i think i liked this night so much because it was maybe my first glimpse into what the rest of the trip held for me, and i started catching on to how awesome all these people i was traveling are.

boys?.. these questions came in every way possible :)
i am SO glad we had a surplus of boys as compared to other study abroads, most study abroads actually. i think i was with a guy 95% of the time we were out and about and i didn't know how much that would mean to me. i am a pretty independent person so i never thought having guys around would mean anything to me, but i'm really grateful they were there. they all were great guys. so far, no study abroad romances from anyone. crazy huh? but they all are guys i would hook my friends up with, they're seriously the best.

so, how did my life change? i think i'm finding the answer to this more and more every day. i appreciate the world as a whole more. i have respect for other's way of life. before i didn't really care much about life outside of my bubble. now i feel like i would rather spend my money on more experiences and travel like this as opposed to "things." it was also a testimony builder. everyone around the world needs the gospel, and that's why missionary work is so important. people most definitely have different attitudes towards other people in the world. i would much rather interact with the loving thai people than someone from paris. is that horrible to say? but i know that my impression from the few people i interacted with isn't one i should use to judge the people of that entire country. i also want to make sure i leave the right impression on people of other nationalities visiting america, and being willing to do what i can to make their visit enjoyable, despite language and culture barriers.

but it also just made me grateful for the good u s of a. we have freedoms that other countries don't. aka religion is a big one. i like all the different landscapes, people, cultures, and foods i enjoyed, but i really like what we have goin' here too :)

our first business visit, conoco phillips did not disappoint.

yay for using this blog for something useful :) more to come about it all!

calling all world travelers

hey guys. for those of you who don't know i'm going on a study abroad this spring term. it is the "global marketing study abroad" and it travels to seven countries. last night we had our last class together as a group until we meet up again in may for five full days of classes before we leave! we leave from salt lake and go to london > paris > copenhagen > stockholm > st. petersburg > bangkok > beijing. the more i talk about it the more excited it get, but it also seems so unreal! i can't believe i'm lucky enough to have just an amazing opportunity. we will be doing business visits with companies like amazon, google, marriott, and volvo. pretty crazy. we also are staying in some amazing hotels and there is so much to see in each of those cities.

we have plenty of free time, especially in london and paris. i want to make sure i get in everything that i possibly can. i probably won't sleep the whole time. (if only that was possible) but i want your help. have you been to any of these places? tell me what to do! or where the cheap shopping is :) or where your favorite place to eat is.

i just can't wait! now to get through these finals..

xo

quick thoughts.

12 days? yep its been a while.
but the last 21 days or so have been crazy!
i've been all over..
st. george > midwest > road trip from SD to UT > st. george > zions national park > st. george > current residence in orem, ut.
i've rekindled friendships at home,
remembered why i love family reunions so much.. and my family,
got sick and had to have my mom pack up my life,
moved up north,
started working a new, temporary job,
tried to hold in my extreme excitement for my sophomore year at BYU.

yes, i love life.
lately pinterest is my thing.
i spend waaay too much time on it and i have added a new "craft ideas" folder to my bookmarks.
today i will be tackling
this one.

i am seeing how i like the end product and hoping to use it in my uncle jared's wedding reception photo booth i am in charge of.
if anyone has any cute ideas for a diy photo booth please holla!
however, i have lots of ideas coming from all over stuck in my head and hopefully soon i'll be doing something with them.

lata skata.

recap.

highlights of my week:

family time at the store, and training some new employees :) 

i got some new sweet shoes from hurst general store :) but seriously, these shoes are genius. they have so many colors i can wear them basically anything. genius. 

then, mom, maggie, sam, and i drove up to orem. it was a nice break and alone time with my mom and siblings. 

the kids had some fun in the sun, its getting hot up there! caroline, my cousin is an amazing dancer by the way. i expect to see her on so you think you can dance or something of those sorts. 

the hansen's have fled the flood and have been in utah for a while. i finally got to see them! i was so excited. our families are close and i loved any chance i got to babysit them. when i was still there it was just curtis, ashley, and annie, and now its fun to have baby ava in the mix too :) aren't they the cutest, classiest, most fun kids ever? yeah. they are. 

oh yeah, and look at these two hotties. totally got to see them. it was the best. i also got to see hailey, daniel, and CODY! ah. it was a big unplanned treat to see cody and kelsey in provo. so weird how it worked out that they were visiting the same time i was but i am so glad it worked :) 

and just to mix it up, here's brynley's report card from work. it should make you giggle a little. she worked at a yogurt shop, a little too serious? i think so. but a 79.6 isn't too bad i guess?

this week has been full of surprises, disappointments, old times, yummy food, tears, laughs, hugs, drugs.. jk. just wanted to see if you were paying attention. 

anyways. peace.

my review of las vegas.

for most of my life las vegas was just the place that got me to grandma and grandpa's.
we flew into vegas, i saw cinderella's castle as we left (the excalibur), and we had the occasional stop and inn and out as we left.
the lights were pretty, and i could say i'd been there, but i didn't really think it was that cool.
sometime during middle school we went as a family and stayed at mandalay bay, it was fun, and to be honest i don't think we left the hotel.
anyways. now everyone thinks vegas in a big deal.
i'm not quite convinced.
i've been to vegas twice this year

here is my conclusion, if you even care to hear it. 

vegas can be cool. there are neat things that you should do.

go to the vegas sign, watch the bellagio fountains, m&m world, do the tastes from around the world at the coke factory, see the lions at the mgm ..anything cool you've heard of or know is cool. 

but other than that, for a group of byu kids there for a weekend, there's not much to do. 

we were able to spend or time easily because we had the game, but in the end las vegas is a one time thing. 

it's not really that cool. it's dirty. and that makes it kinda awkward, especially when you're with righteous, mission prepping boys. it just kinda makes you disguisted with the world. 

but. there is one thing i found refreshing this trip. 

the bellagio. 

if i was rich, i would stay there. 

it is just classy. 

i was so impressed by the crowd that gathered to watch teh founations, especially when its like one of the cleanest forms of entertainment in vegas. 

inside is this sweet ceiling. 

then there's a really pretty garden. 

there's also a chocolate fountation that's hugggge.

its just nice. and all of it is way amazing and good for all ages.

and its not dirty like the rest of the city. 

so anyways. not that i know anything, but. i suggest hitting up the bellagio.

to do.

maybe if i write down what i need to do on here, i'll actually do it.

-clean my room before cleaning checks
     *vacuum
     *defrost fridge
     *clean vanity   
-work out
-shower
-finish laundry
-work on my rhetorical analysis
-mentally prepare for warm weather and hopefully no rain in st. george this weekend
-get new ideas on ways to get back the boys
-find a hotel in vegas for the weekend after my birfday.

love.
oh yeah. yesterday was v day. or "single awareness day"
whatevs. i spent it watching the bach with these girls.

maybe that's why we didn't have a special someone...


peacee.

the year of 'perfect ten' in review- day three.

the most important ten of 2010 #3

i moved away.


june 2010 proved to be the most life changing month of my life. the first of these reasons is that the ticket that took me to las vegas on june 14th was a one way. i packed my "heavy" bag (yes, i got the heavy tag on my luggage), and shoved all that i could into my carry-on and flew out of sioux falls to the dirty city of las vegas, where a shuttle then took me to st. george, ut. did i mention that i had to have my friends take my to the airport? i didn't have any family to take me, or pick me up. but we'll get to that later. 
my summer of independence wasn't all that it was supposed to be- warm sun, tanning, hanging at the pool, spending time with bryn, going out to eat for dinner chats with grandma and grandpa, working at the family store, and just trying something new. my family was there a majority of the summer, for reasons we'll get to later, and my grandma and i were all that was left that the end. 
really, its quite depressing to think about all that my summer could of been and then all that occurred instead. but, i guess it was one of those character building experiences. personally, i would much rather have the fun, but we don't get to pick do we?
i earned a lot of money over the summer, but i learned the value of it when i had to spend it all on college necessities and when i had to get up and work a real work day to earn it. it was just a summer of change, for sure. i loved living in st. george, and may even be back there this summer. we'll see what happens. it's sad to think i may never live at home again, but the more i get out and try new things, the more i want more challenges- internships, classes, any opportunity i have to grow and build my resume i want to take. maybe i'll find one of those experiences in sd one day. 
this summer was one i'll never forget, but i truly believe my choice to move to st. george was not all my own, and it was inspired. as heartbreaking as this summer was, i am SO grateful i was able to experience all i did in st.george. 

♥

the year of 'perfect ten' in review- day two.

the most important ten of 2010 #2

i turned eighteen, and fell in love.. with a city.

on the day of my eighteenth birthday my parents flew me away to washington dc. the hours leading up to my birthday and most of my birthday day was miserable. i got ditched at a dance within thirty minutes and watched as that dance that i planned was abandoned for parties/alcohol. needless to say i was ready to leave all about march 5 (friends, south dakota, immaturity, high school) and move on to march 6 (my eighteenth birthday!).
well, i was exhausted and fell asleep right when i got on the plane, but when i woke up we were still at the airport at our gate. i called my parents to ask what was going on, and eventually got the answer (they were closer to the front of the plane) that a tray table wouldn't go up properly, so we had to wait for it be fixed. well. they couldn't fix it, so they duct taped it, after hours. then of course we (my parents were with me) missed our connecting flight and i was stuck in the airport for my connecting flight that was supposed to be in dc. so. we ate at an overpriced chili's and had some ice cream. finally late late we got to dc and got settled into our hotel.
dc was amazing! we toured the sights with my aunt suzanne and cousin tenny and my friend brynley joined us as well. everything in dc felt important and historical and blew me away.

we even met my senator- senator thune at the end of our tour of the capitol. along the way we also saw john mccain, and many other senators. we even saw a senate vote :)

i loved dc and hope that some time soon (like 2012) i can do an internship there, possibly with senator thune :)
after a great time in dc, my parents flew home and brynley and i took the train with suz and tennyson and met my uncle jeremy in new york where he had to work for a couple days. we stayed right across the street from ground zero! the weather was horrible, rainy and windy, but we tried to make the best of it. we saw wicked which was amazzzzing, walked through way too expensive stores, got ice cream at trump tower, were on tv as one of the crazy people at the today show, and learned to navigate the subways.

i'm not really good at this..

sometimes i just have no ambition. this past week was a full seven days of that.
so. here i am. sitting in my grandma's basement in st. george. finally deciding to blog it up.
how did i get here you ask? you're so lucky.. i think i'll tell you!
this weekend was my nana's (dad's mom aka my grandma aka nana) 70th birthday. so old right?! jk. she's still up and kickin'. serving missions.. hosting parties.. helping out the fam.. cooking up a storm.. she basically does it all- and well.
the whole family, with the exception of my family and an uncle and cousin were there saturday night to celebrate. quite a big deal, when you consider there is 42 of us.
it was a lot of fun and its always great to be in good company. i'm a big fan of each and every one of my family members.
but. class is in 8 hours for me.. so why am i still here? well. saturday morning my great- grandma terry passed away (she was 95 and so amazing!) so i get to stay here until after the funeral on wednesday.
i can't wait to work a little at the store (i missed the store and the employees so much.. its kinda weird).. study, shop, be with family, be in the sun, be here, see bryn, aka a little summer remake with a byu twist. eh.
anyways. its late. why am i not asleep? i passed out at nana's after brunch. hahha. i'm lucky none of the kids did anything to me.

staybeautiful, ashley ann.

BEST WEEKEND EVER? close to it :)

Guess where I'll be spending my eighteenth birthday?

That's right, I'll be kickin' it with Obama.

:) Kidding of course, but yesterday my parents surprised me by letting me know my 18th birthday weekend will be spent on the east coast.

I have an aunt, uncle and cousin in D.C. who we will visit, my dad has a medical conference and I will visit SVU- Southern Viriginia University while there.

ps new york city is also being talked about!!

How could this be topped?

I spent Friday night and Saturday early morning in Beresford with Emily Palmer.

..we're basically BFF.

Oh yeah, her boyfriend Troy was there. We're lovers. Haha. Only kidding.

I went to her game in Sioux Falls, she's basically a stud.

And then just hung out in B-Town.

Then... Came home and hung out with my little brother I mentor for Big Brothers, Big Sisters- Devon. Awesome :)

Now I'm babysitting.

May seem like a simple weekend, but could this be topped?

Oh just wait.

I asked my grandpa to do some research at Dixie to see if I could get in-state tutition if I spent the summer there.

When I asked for this is he said, "Well the problem is the only person I know at Dixie anymore is the President.."

Real bummer, Gramps.

Instead- he talked with one of the administrators he's friends with, and apparently must of talked me up A LOT.

This administrator is a friend of my grandpa, but also knows and apparently adores my parents, specifically my dad from when they attended Dixie.

Yesterday my mom got an email from him. It was a forward from him to a lady in admissions asking if I've been admitted yet and if not I should be with a full tutition scholarship. Also included was him saying I'm that "one in a million."

And I'm from Iowa, parents are Dixie alum, and grandparents live in STG. Does living in Iowa.. well actually South Dakota, really give me a one up? Haha.

She said I should be getting info soon and needed to fill out some things for scholarships. EXCITING!

He said if we did this he would make sure my tutition was talking care of.

This may seem small but its nice to really feel wanted somewhere. Now Dixie has a one up on the other colleges- I'll take anything to make my choice easier.

bwe- best weekend ever.

yes.

stay beautiful- ashley ann.