The Start of a New Year

well it's been quite awhile since i have updated, so ill go over some of the major highlights of the last few weeks!

so... i graduated! i honestly was so excited to be done, and when i left my last final, i actually cried on my drive home! not that i'm really gonna miss all the work and all the classes... but it's such a big change! and i can't believe that this chapter of my life is over. people always say the best years of your life are in college, and i agree 100%. i have loved the past 5 years... ok 5 1/2... and yes it had its ups and downs but through it all i have gained so much knowledge, so many great friends, and most importantly i have found myself. what an accomplishment, i can honestly say i am so proud of myself for finishing, i wanted to give up so many times! haha

the break was wonderful, and i spent alot of time with my family and my friends. christmas i spent with my parents, and then rob and his family came through the awful snowy canyon to meet up with us :) heather and jess and baby calvin were in idaho, and i missed them so much! calvin is such a cute baby, and i love spending time with him! it is so amazing to me to watch heather and jess with their darling little baby, and i wonder when the day will come for me! haha.. not for awhile obviously, but it is so fun to watch them become parents and learn things right along with their cute little boy.

i went on a fun roadtrip with a group of my friends to california and arizona for new years and for fun.. and it was a great trip! we drove through vegas to get to cali, and decided to stop to take a stroll down the strip for a few hours.

left to right: johnny, jim, van, kim, me, sam, tonya, jared

then we spent the night in victorville, ca in a crappy hotel. we woke up bright and early to drive to santa anita to go to some horse races! i have never been, but they were really fun! i am not much of a gambler, but i tried my luck on one race (i bet 2 dollars..) and i won 4! so... yea i made a lot of money haha.

this is us girls and van waiting outside out hotel :)

me, kim, sam, and tonya watching the horse races

then we made our way down to san diego to spend the night and go to an lds singles dance for new years! it was so much fun, and i had an amazing kiss at midnight with my friend jim who i have known for 4 years! i guess you could say we are kind of dating... and our first kiss was at midnight, isn't that so romantic?? anyway ill keep you posted how things are going with that as they progress, for now we are still just hanging out and are in the beginning stages.. haha. so the next morning we woke up from our night of partying (mormon style of course) and drive to the beach to look around. i have never been to san diego, and la jolla was beautiful! here are a few pics from that afternoon:

me kim and sam enjoying the freezing water and exploring caves

the view from the bay was beautiful! me and jim were looking at the sea lions down on the rocks

this is the whole crew, lookin like a dang pac sun advertisement! haha

straight from san diego me, johnny, van, kim, and jim headed to mesa arizona while jared and sam and tonya headed back to utah. we got to mesa at about 1130 pm that night and were amazed to find our guy friends living in a huge mansion!! we stayed there with them for days, and had a great time seeing around mesa and just hanging out with some friends that we have not really seen since they moved from utah!

our last day a few of us went fourwheeling while jim and johnny went to the fiesta bowl. it was a ton of fun, and some of the views from the small mountains were incredible!

below, me and jesse. he has some sexy legs right? he is single by the way ladies.. any takers? haha

here we posed in front of the sunset, and it turned out to be a pretty cool pic! our trip was fun and i really enjoyed the 75 degree weather, and it was so depressing to come home to utah to snow! now im back to reality, and looking for a job with my fancy new college degree. wish me luck, i hope i find one soon!!!

100 things...

I did. I didn't.

1. Slept under the stars
2. Started your own blog
3. Played in a band
4. Visited Hawaii (soon though!)
5. Watched a meteor shower
6. Given more than you can afford to charity
7. Been to Disneyland (Possibly in two weeks!)
8. Climbed a mountain
9. Held a praying mantis
10. Sang a solo
11. Bungee jumped (probably never!)
12. Visited Paris (i will soon!)
13. Watched a lightning storm at sea (and at lake powell it was amazing!)
14. Taught yourself an art from scratch
15. Adopted a child
16. Had food poisoning (i have the worst luck with this!)
17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty (kinda not worth it.. haha)
18. Grown your own vegetables
19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France
20. Slept on an overnight train
21. Had a pillow fight
22. Hitch hiked
23. Taken a sick day when you’re not ill (mental health days!)
24. Built a snow fort
25. Held a lamb
26. Gone skinny dipping (unfortunately there were pics to prove it hahaha)
27. Run a Marathon
28. Ridden in a gondola
29. Seen a total eclipse
30. Watched a sunrise or sunset
31. Hit a home run
32. Been on a cruise
33. Seen Niagara Falls in person
34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors (no but i plan on it)
35. Seen an Amish community
36. Taught yourself a new language(my roommate taught me a cool one the other day! haha)
37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied
38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person
39. Gone rock climbing
40. Seen Michelangelo’s David
41. Sung karaoke
42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt
43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant
44. Visited Africa
45. Walked on a beach by moonlight
46. Been transported in an ambulance
47. Had your portrait painted
48. Gone deep sea fishing
49. Seen the Sistine Chapel in person
50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris
51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling
52. Kissed in the rain (its the best!)
53. Played in the mud
54. Gone to a drive-in theater
55. Been in a movie
56. Visited the Great Wall of China
57. Started a business
58. Taken a martial arts class
59. Visited Russia
60. Served at a soup kitchen
61. Sold Girl Scout Cookies
62. Gone whale watching
63. Got flowers for no reason
64. Donated blood, platelets or plasma
65. Gone sky diving
66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp
67. Bounced a check
68. Flown in a helicopter
69. Saved a favorite childhood toy
70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial
71. Eaten Caviar (its DISGUSTING!)
72. Pieced a quilt
73. Stood in Times Square
74. Toured the Everglades
75. Been fired from a job (hahaha... it was so stupid!)
76. Seen the Changing of the Guards in London
77. Broken a bone (my poor little pinky toe!)
78. Been on a speeding motorcycle
79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person
80. Published a book
81. Visited the Vatican
82. Bought a brand new car
83. Walked in Jerusalem
84. Had your picture in the newspaper
85. Read the entire Book of Mormon or Bible
86. Visited the White House
87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating (ugh it was not pleasant!)
88. Had chickenpox
89. Saved someone’s life
90. Sat on a jury
91. Met someone famous
92. Joined a book club
93. Lost a loved one
94. Had a baby
95. Seen the Alamo in person
96. Swam in the Dead Sea
97. Been involved in a law suit (stupid abercrombie&fitch!)
98. Owned a cell phone (well yea!)
99. Been stung by a bee
100. Read an entire book in one day

change is in the wind once again

im sitting here just thinking about how many changes are ahead of me in the next few months. change... sometimes its really hard, and sometimes its so easy! but i always think change is worth it.

people change, that is for sure! looking back on the past few years, its interesting to see which relationships and friendships of mine have changed, and which ones have remained. the ones that have changed used to bother me.. i used to be so torn up about lost friends, and friends who just seemed to disappear (sometimes voluntarily) out my life. but now i understand that change is good, and it always brings something new, and for the most part, something better.
but the ones that have remained in my life are the ones that mean the most to me. it is such a comfort and a blessing to know that i will always have my family by my side, no matter how far apart we are. i would not be able to survive without the loving guidance and support of my family, especially my sister. i love you heather! and my friend are also an important and vital part of my life, as most of them eventually become like family to me.

as i get older, ive noticed that i have changed too. after my sister heather (aka my other half) got married, i kind of felt lost for awhile. imagine living for 20 years with someone always with you, and then they get married and move to idaho! dont get me wrong, i was so happy for heather and jess! but i just didnt know what to do with myself for awhile! eventually i began to realize who i really was, and i let my "aly"-ness come out for once, instead of being known as "one of the twins". so, yes that part of my life was very hard, but now i feel like i really know who i am and i feel happy with where i am going.

and where am i going? i graduate from college in december, and im going to party like a rockstar for about a month.. haha. then hopefully i will find a job! i want to find one around the provo/orem area that will help me get my foot in the door of the writing industry. what i mean is, i want to write for a magazine, or newspaper, or even do some marketing. the third week of january i plan on volunteering at the sundance film festival in parkcity, working with the journalists. i am really excited, especially for the passes i will be getting into movies and parties! :)

then i think i have figured out what i want to do this summer! i am really excited for this internship through the company del sol based out of utah. they sell these unique items that change in the sun to tourists in cruise port cities around the world. so basically me and 3 of my girlfriends want to go to the port in kauai, hi or key west, fl or myrtle beach, sc or puerto rico.. and we will live there for 3 months and run a del sol store! the company pays for : the flight to and from the location, housing and utilities, and its a paid internship! so basically you get paid to live in a beautiful port town for 3 months and you get a great job experience as well! cross your fingers i hope it works out!

so my sister had her baby calvin over a week ago.. and it gets me thinking about when im going to have kids. i guess i gotta think about getting married first though.. right? haha.. but honestly, i dont mean to complain about this all the time, but dating in provo SUCKS!!! thats because no one actually dates! so how am i supposed to find the one if i never get asked on a date?? its ridiculous.. i honestly feel like i will have a better chance of finding a decent guy if i leave utah. is that so crazy? maybe i will leave, after this summer, maybe i will find a permanent job somewhere else. not permanent, but more on the long term side... so many changes await me, and no matter how scary they seem, i know they are a necessary part of life. all i gotta say is bring it on life!

things to be thankful for

Some Things I am Especially Thankful for this Thanksgiving Season

1) The new love of my life: my nephew calvin kingston butikofer :) And the fact that he and his mom, Heather, are both doing great!

2) The fact that the Quinns, our very good friends from back home in PA, are coming to our house for thanksgiving on thursday! I am so excited to see them!

3) I will be a college graduate in less than a month.. AHHHHH! Crazy!!

4) My roommates and how awesome they are

5) How I almost got into a pretty scary car wreck today, and didn't because of my super ninja driving skills... yea that's right BE JEALOUS! haha (seriously though, I swerved off the road to avoid this stupid truck.. and I was singing the whole time because I think I was so nervous! hahaha)

6) I saw Twilight and I actually liked it! I thought I wouldn't because it wouldn't be as good as the books.. but I really enjoyed it! And honestly.. in the end I was in love with Edward!!

So excited for Thursday :) And of course I only have two days of school this week!

a picture is worth a thousand words...

so i had a pretty funny experience today! i found this really cool website called Photofunia.com which lets you upload pictures of your face which can be photoshopped into other pictures. i was having some fun fooling around with different pictures from the website, like this andy warhol one which i thought was pretty cool:

then i played around with this cool eye picture, can you see me in the eye? lol:

aaaaaaand then... came this picture. its the body of a victorias secret angel model.. and i totally didn't think that it would turn out.. but apparently me and this model have very similar skin tones! so it honestly look like it could be me... but of course its not!!! here's the pic:

pretty funny right? so anyway i put these pics up on facebook as a total joke, and i honestly thought people would recognize the fact that they are FAKE! but.. this morning i woke up and when i got on facebook, people really thought this was me!! hahahaha.. talk about hilarious! i had all sorts of comments on this picture, asking how i got to look so good, and telling me i looked hot! haha.. i even got a message from this kid i haven't talked to in about a year asking me on a date! and he swore it had nothing to do with this picture whatsoever (riiiiight... you're not shallow or anything... lol)

so i got back into my pictures and pretty much put a disclaimer underneath this particular pic and told people that its not really me! but i seriously could not stop laughing! i guess its a compliment that people really think this could be me.. haha.. but they are in for quite a shock when they realize i am not 5'9" with tiny skinny legs and rock hard chiseled abs! but thanks guys for the confidence boost! haha this seriously made my morning.. i was laughing so hard!

back and better than ever!

Yes my friends, i have brought my blog back to life! for some reason my old blog (happenings in happy valley) decided to be awesome and give up the ghost and go completely blank. Sooo.. here is my brand new blog! I have decided that I like this title much much better.. so I hope everyone else likes it as well!

Many things have taken place since I have last updated. It is not November, and I am that much closer to being done with college! I feel a mixture of anxiety and excitement as this new chapter in my life begins.. one that I like to call "adulthood". I need to figure out what I'm going to do job wise, and if I'm going to stay in the great state of Utah or move on to new things elsewhere!

My twin sister is about to pop! She is expecting her first child any day now! She is seriously one of the cutest pregnant women I have seen, because she looks like she has swallowed a basketball! (And I mean that in the most loving way Heather!!) (below: heather at her family baby shower thrown by cousin Melissa Shupe!)

As for my social life, I have to admit that I have been having more fun in the past 5 months than I have had in a long time! I absolutely LOVE living in a house with 5 roommates, because we all get along and we all love to party! It has been so much fun getting closer with these girls, and truly finding some of my best friends. Someone told me a long time ago that the friends you make in college will be your friends for life, and I am starting to see that now. Of course Heather is and will always be my best best friend! And I have some great girlfriends from highschool that I keep in contact with and love with all my heart. But these girls I live with and hang out with every single day have come so close to my heart, and I don't know what I would be doing without them! It is so nice to live with 5 other girls who all share the same religious values, and love to have fun just as much as I do. (L to R: Shawna, me, Brittney Jensen, Ericha, Kim, and Brittney Johnson)

This past weekend I went on a road trip down to Las Vegas for Halloween! I drove down with Kim, Brittney Johnson, and our friend Samantha and met up with 20 others at The Venetian Hotel on the strip. This hotel was incredibly beautiful inside, and we had 4 suites on the top floor! It was one of the nicest hotels I have ever stayed in, and it was an incredibly fun weekend! The first night we went to dinner in our costumes, and then went to club Tao located in our hotel. We got ourselves onto the VIP list and partied the night away on the dance floor! We got into the club around 1030 and didn't go up to our rooms until 4 am! I didn't actually crawl into my bed until around 6 am... I don't know how people do this kind of partying every weekend! (The Girls L to R: Janelle, Shawna, Brittney, Stephanie, Sam, Kim, Andrea, me, Veronica, Jenn, Mckell, Stacey Jo)

(Below: All the girls and Jared, Van, and Mike)

(Below Posing outside our suites top: me, Kim, Veronica Bottom:Britt, Sam, Mckell)


(This is the entire crew and I am not going to name everyone! I think we were seriously the only sober people in vegas!!)

(We don't need alcohol to party! We just danced until 4 am on the roof of the club!)

The second day we got up and went to Tao Beach, apparently a really exclusive pool. I was seriously not that impressed.. it was too small, too crowded, and everyone was drinking. But we got in a few good hours in the sun! (we decided to do some pool posing.. these cabanas were awesome!)

That night we got dressed up and went to dinner! It was amazing, and it was free! (well, it was included in our price that we paid for the rooms). (Below: we ordered 4 different desserts to share among us girls because we had money left over.. and it was delicious!)

Then we went to club Jet at The Mirage. Honestly, it was not a very fun club. I was not impressed with it, but at least we got in for free again! (We even sweet talked the manager and got all the guys in for free too!) We danced until the early hours again, and then went back up to the suites to change for bed. Then at 430 am we decided to take an adventure and walk down the strip in search for ice cream! Needless to say an hour later we ended up at Denny's and got some milkshakes. It was so much fun, and it was strange to see the strip completely deserted!

Overall, the trip was one of my favorite trips! My next roadtrip might be in two weeks, to Arizona and Mexico. I say might because I'm not going to go if my sister has not had her nino yet!