2011

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This may have been my personal mantra this past year. Remember last year's post? Man oh man. If 2010 Randi knew that this year was coming...she probably would have been like "No thanks, take that back and give me something else please". Cause that's kinda what my brain was thinking this year. Let's get it out there that I am a generally happy person, really. One of my greatest beliefs in life is that happiness lies in your own hands. You can make it or break it.
But I was not happy for the greater portion of this last year. That was a tough pill to swallow and this is my public owning up to it. It was hard. I had to ask for a lot of help. Things in my life changed, opened up, closed, and some things suffered. Like this blog. I found it very hard to blog when I felt that I had nothing to share. So I just didn't.
I thought I knew who I was. And really, I had only scratched the surface. And instead of hating this past year, I am so grateful for it. Did I cry alot? Did I feel like I had hit rock bottom? Did I get angry and tired and upset and feel like a failure? Yes.
But...
I had a family that helped hold my hand through it. I opened my heart and sorted things out. I prayed like I've never prayed in my life. I spent countless hours in silent pleas with my Heavenly Father to save me, help me, take this away from me. I grew in ways that I did not know were possible. And my relationships with many were strengthened.
If there's one thing that I hope comes out of the trials I was given, I hope that my trials have made me a stronger and softer person. I hope that I've become kinder and more patient. I know that I have become more faithful and trusting with my Father in Heaven and Savior.
2011 was like a refiner's fire for me. And I will forever be thankful for it. Here's to overcoming struggles and learning rough lessons.
Happy New Year

update.

Basically, I'd really like to update with some pictures but blogger is being incredibly lame-o.
Boo.
Oh December, how quickly you end.
I liked Christmas a whole lot. What about you guys?
We made away like bandits.
I get blessed a lot. It's kinda the best.
The roommate got married. It was beautifully sad.
I got to see all my other roommates though and that made up for things.
I have a nasty cold that's making me cranky.
And having the snow gone? That's complete weirdness.
Basically, this makes no sense.
Sorry, but not really.

O4 Christmas...

Merry Christmas! Wait, you didn't know it was Christmas today? Well, it's actually only Christmas here at O4. Alisha and I wrote this little poem to describe our O4 Christmas Eve/Christmas Day celebration...

Twas the night before our Christmas and all through O4,
Every creature was stirring, behind the closed door.
The mattresses were pulled from their stands with great care,
and then set down to soften each hard, narrow stair.
The event began, and they slid down with great cheer,
Yelling, "Yes! We love Christmas in here!".
After the slipping and sliding of each person was done,
They crawled into bed, and fell asleep one by one.
When morning came, Randi rose very quick,
She got the house ready, in the spirit of St. Nick.
The tree was lit, the music was playing,
But the other roommates kept laying and laying.
They finally awoke, and the gift-giving began,
Each person got presents, each and every woman.
Then into the kitchen to eat up some food,
The sticky bun biscuits were especially good!
More mattress sliding ensued after that,
Until, we fear, our mattresses were flat.
When all was said and when all was done,
O4 Christmas was incredibly fun!!

O4: Aubrey, Randi, Erika, Heidi, and Alisha


Aren't the aprons Alisha made us so fantastic?


Sticky Bun Biscuits. Thank you, Pinterest.


Mattress Sledding!


Snow! It's a Christmas miracle...


Merry O4 Christmas.

Happy/Sad

Dawn

I have 7:30 class just about every morning. And while it's an incredibly hard task to talk myself into getting out of bed and into the shower in the mornings, it brings me moments that I wouldn't otherwise get in the later hours of hustle and bustle in the mornings. I'll be honest, when I first get out the door and get hit with the first wave of cold air, the only thoughts running through my mind are, "Why am I voluntarily getting up this early to go to class? Why is it so freaking cold? My bed is still probably warm...WHY AM I EVEN IN COLLEGE?!"
But, as I start walking across the parking lot to the bus stop, I notice the stillness. The quiet peace with the morning light that is slowly peeking over the mountain tops. And just for those five or ten minutes before I get to class, my morning is quiet and still. I can take a chance to just be before I start going through my mental check lists of the day and the daily noise of homework, exams, and the crowds on campus. There's a little part of me that lives for that moment of my day just like the part of me that lives for the moment when I slip into bed. Make no mistake, I'm not planning on taking a another 7:30am class if I can help it, especially during second semester when the air is so cold it hurts to breathe and your eyes water. I'm just writing this little note to remember the days where peace comes early along with the sun and the world is just mine, just for a moment. Because in that early morning moment, anything is possible.

Lately...

Lately...
I've camped outside to get good seats for a game.
I've gone on a blind date to a formal dance and had the best time with my roommates and our dates.
I'm almost done with all my missionary farewells.
I'm ending my first semester.
I've eaten a pork taco every Taco Tuesday at Cafe Rio since September.
I've felt every emotion in the book.
And I've fallen more in love with this semester of college than I ever have before.

Mud and a Maze

Roommates and I went to family night with our ward last night.
Best thing about fall activities? Corn maze time!
It was drizzling and super muddy.
We kinda slipped around all over the place.
But we finished the maze in half an hour.
"I think we are ready to go pro."
Then we may or may not have gotten some refreshments...after we realized that it wasn't our ward passing our refreshments.
Oops.
(By the way, we have no idea who those boys are in our photo.)

Pleaaaase Fall...

Logan is getting cold. Granted, not as cold as it's been back at home, but still cold. Oh, and most my warm winter jackets and shoes and coats are back in Idaho.
Perfect.
No worries, I'm making do. I texted this picture to my parents today with a note (backstory: my parents have been telling me to go buy warm stuff if I'm freezing. I'm cheap and I'd rather wait till I got home in two weeks). My dad answered saying I looked like I was having fun and did I buy that vest?



I've had this vest since middle school.
That's like sixth grade and now I'm a sophomore in college.
Is it weird that I've kept it for so long? Or that it still fits?

Two Choices...

Sometimes life seems a little crazy.
Things happen that we didn't expect.
Sometimes those things are really great.
They leave you laughing till you're crying and you're up way too late talking and you feel content.
Sometimes those things are not so great.
And you're left feeling like you got sucker punched in the chest. And you can't really breathe. And then you're mad because you feel that way.
See, not so great.
So you're left with two choices.
To cave or not to cave.
To cave, would be to give into everything you feel at that very second.
Not to cave, would be to take a deep breath, acknowledge what you feel, and finish your math homework....and then to just cry into your pillow later (the fourth step is optional).
I chose the latter.

“Courage doesn't always roar. Sometimes courage is the little voice at the end of the day that says I'll try again tomorrow. ”
― Mary Anne Radmacher

just a taste of the east coast...

At the end of the summer, I went to New Jersey and New York with my friends Chels and Nolan. We had a killer time. Here's just a taste of it...

east coast from Randi Hanson on Vimeo.

Ch-Ch-Ch-Changes

Guys,
I made a decision today.
I changed my major. Signed the paper and everything. Early Childhood Education is no more.
I felt really conflicted about it for a while. For quite some time, I'd felt that something was not quite right in my schooling. I've been decided on Early Childhood Education since my junior year of high school. At the time, it felt right for me. My plan was to get my degree at Utah State and then I would teach Kindergarten for the rest of my days.
It is not so.
I took a very basic class last year that studied marriages and families for a short period of time. I became hooked. I started this semester with thinking that I would take a marriage and family course and then a introductory course to elementary education and then I would be able to make my decision based off the two classes.
Here's where we get into my semester as of right now. I'm taking 17 credits. The most that a student can register for (without special permission) is 18. I'm like a full full time student. My elementary class calls for 15 hours of outside class work, not including reading and daily homework. Add that to my math class, my english class, my science class, and my marriage and family course.
Yeah, my brain feels like mush sometimes.
But my elementary class is just not doing it for me. Like at all. So I'm thinking about dropping the class to lighten my load to 14 credits. It's a little lower than I'd like but 15 hours of outside class work without the readings and homework?
Not feelin' it.

So as of right now, I am an Family, Consumer, and Human Development major, pre-Marriage and Family Therapy.

New Blog

Yeah, yeah, we're sick of all your excuses and unfulfilled promises Randi.
Is that what you're all thinking? Cause I would be.
Here's what's up:
I'm back in college.
I want to pull my hair out part of the time but I'm still loving it.
I have loads of pictures and stories to put on here.
Oh, and my friend Chels and I started a new blog.
It's Only Awkward if You Make It. It's a blog we'll co-write about our experiences of being a at home student (Chels) to being an away from home student (me). It'll included stories, tips, and the funny stuff we think of along the way. Go start following it. Riggggggght now.


Seriously.

No, I Didn't Forget I Had a Blog...

Indeed, I have been missing as of late. How are you doing? Did you miss my posts at all? Can I just tell you how much I loved loved loved New Jersey and New York? Really, I did. It was a wonderful experience for a small Idaho girl such as myself. The experience was magical and eye opening and I loved every second of it. I'll post later this week of the experience and every wonderful thing I got to see, promise.
It's a little strange to think that I'll be heading back to school in two weeks. Literally, two weeks from today will be my first day of my sophomore year of college. Eeep. So much has transpired over the course of this summer, I feel as if it can't really be time to go back yet. This summer has been one filled with lessons. Much of it has been very personal which is why I haven't blogged much.
Fear not, Life and Times of a Miss will return with all it's silly, sarcastic comments for the school year! To everyone who reads this little piece of the internet, thank you for your comments that make me feel like people actually read this stuff. I can guarantee you that more ridiculousness will occur this year.

As of Late...

Happy late birthday to my Mom! She's so wonderful and I was late on the ball on posting a happy birthday! Her and my dad just took off today for a 25th anniversary trip to California. It's a older picture but I love it, isn't she lovely?

Is it not crazy how fast summer has gone? I'm not sure that I'm liking the fact that I head back to school in a little more than a month! Thing are picking up though. In fact, in four days I'm taking a little trip to NEW JERSEY and NEW YORK! I have a friend who has family that we're staying with in New Jersey and we're going to go sightseeing and play in Jersey for almost a week. Good thing I've already started packing!
And lastly,

I saw it. I loved it. I've seen it twice now. The Harry Potter fan within me is satisfied.
That's all I have to say about that.

In Other Words...

This is my dad. I sure like him a lot. Today was his birthday, so happy birthday to one of the best dad's in the world! For serious, my dad should get an award for being so crazy awesome.
In other words, once upon a time I worked at a bridal store. It was quite fun (except for that one time that I burned myself on the iron). I worked with a bunch of funny ladies and it was the first job that I actually liked everyone who I worked with. Well, many of these ladies have gone on and gotten married and the other half went and had some beautiful babies (two this past month!). Per request, meet Cristine.

My friends, Cristine should also win an award for being awesomely funny. It saddens my heart that she moved to Florida because 1) She's funny, 2) She was supposed to help me pick out my wedding dress when that day ever came, and 3) Last but not least, she just gave birth to this little fellow:
Isn't he just squishy, and sweet, and wonderful? Too bad there's a couple thousand miles between Idaho and Florida. Or else I'd totally be kickin' back with little Jacob and Cristine. By the way, another girl we worked with Melissa, just had a new baby girl named Hallie! I'm thinking that Jacob should become a potential suitor for Hallie. Just sayin'...
Anyways, congrats to the Margene's Bridal girls for their beautiful offspring!

Pictures of Cristine and Jacob via Cristine's blog and her Facebook. I'm not a super creeper.

I Had a Date...

I had a date, I had a date, I had a date, hey, hey, hey, hey! (Not to be confused with "I've got a pickle, I've got a pickle, I've got a pickle, hey, hey, hey, hey!" Please say you understand my references here.)
But indeed, I had a date. Remember this letter? Well, this friend is home now. And we went on a date. And it was fun. And we basically talked for about five hours. And my face hurt from smiling all night, but I thought it was a good date. Enough of that.
Random story time. So the other night, I set my water bottle on my bed and went to go brush my teeth. I came back to a big
puddle on my bed. It had soaked through my bedspread, my top blanket, my sheet, and my bottom sheet.
Oh, poop.
I wrung out as much water as I could and then I just settled with the fact that I would only be able to sleep on one half of my bed that night. Until it came apparent that I would often make the mistake of rolling over onto the Pacific Ocean that existed in my full size bed.
So I stuffed another blanket in there sleeping bag style and the problem was taken care of.
Never, never, never, leave a full water bottle of cold water on your bed

Hey There...

Hello my friends. I have been notified by some that I have been in need for a post for quite some time (especially since it's almost June) so here it is. Admittedly, I have been quite lame this summer thus far, hence the lack of bloggy posts. I've been a bit of a hermit and when I'm not being one, I've been passing out forty million resumes (or so it seems) in hopes of a job. Alas, I am still on the hunt for a job but never fear, I will find one. I still miss my job from last summer though. Boo-hoo. However, there are a few news nuggets that I would like to discuss here.
#1: Marriage. What's the deal-io with everyone getting all hitched and everything? It's like there's a new announcement in the mail or on the Book of Face every week. I feel as if I am severely lacking in an area of my life even though I know I am not. But hello, it's like all the sudden a numerous amount of classmates of mine have decided to tie the knot, jump the broom, and seal the deal. I have turned nineteen so therefore, my Mormon biological clock feels like its ticking...tick..tick...just jokes my friends, just jokes. We all know I'm far too little to be getting married.
#2: I don't really know what to say after that. Except that hunting for jobs is no fun. Really. This is the very first time in my job career that I've had three interviews, but no solid job offers. High ho, high ho, it's retail or food I go.
#3: The Etsy shop has been opened. Buy from me. Custom order from me. This is absolutely shameless, non-subliminal advertising.
just lovely by randi
Swears, I'll do something interesting in order to re-kindle my sad little blog.

Last Night of Eighteen...

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Tonight is my last night of being eighteen. It's a little funny but I was totally freaked to turn eighteen last year. I even cried on my birthday. But this year, it feels a little surreal that my birthday is tomorrow. I love birthdays at my home, they're filled with a lot of special treatment and a lot of acknowledgement from my parents. So believe me, I'm not a birthday hater.
But...I may be one of those odd people who get a little nostalgic on their birthdays. I loved being eighteen. To me, seventeen meant being invincible, eighteen meant freedom, and nineteen...well I don't really know what nineteen will mean to me. More freedom? My last teenage year? Serious decisions? I hope it doesn't take me too long to find out.
Eighteen. 18. That double digit number brought me a lot. Sometimes I forget that my age is so young because there are times when I feel older than those numbers. I loved being eighteen. My eighteenth summer was one of the best summers I ever had.
Here's to being eighteen. To late nights, summer romance, long walks, drive in movies, screaming at the top of your lungs, breathing in mountain air, driving too fast, and turning the radio all the way up.
Dear nineteen, treat me well.

My Time Has Been Kidnapped...

Every minute of my ever loving free time has been spent here.
I've got a billion ideas bouncing around my head right now, and no money to do them with. It's the pits. I'm still waiting to hear back on a job interview and two other possible job ventures so wish me luck please. I'm also trying to figure out my whole summer class dilemma. That's also the pits.
I had a break down yesterday. But it's all for the better.
My birthday is on Saturday and I can't wait to spend it with my family.
Oh, and certain people are coming home in a matter of weeks. Nervous/ excited/ weak kneed/ feeling like a ninny/ trying to be nonchalant/ hopeful.
Please forgive me.

The End of My Freshman Year of College

Tonight was my last night of my freshman year of college. It's a bittersweet night, one filled with a multitude of emotions. My apartment has slowly emptied and now I'm down to the bare essentials here. It's funny, when I woke up this morning I didn't think that I would feel this way tonight. I tried to ignore that niggling feeling in the back of my mind that reminded me that this was the last time I would go out to lunch with my roommate, that it was the last time I'd work out with my other roommate, that I wouldn't see many of my closest friends down here for a very long time. The lump in my throat has gotten progressively larger as the day has gone on. This biggest kick in the gut was when I walked into my room that I've been living in for the past 9 months to see my roommate's empty bed and her things missing from the shower.
It's funny how back in August, this was the last place that I wanted to be. I felt that it would take forever for May to get here and here I am now, preparing to move home tomorrow. This year has gone much too fast and I feel sometimes that I didn't take advantage of every opportunity I should have. I met wonderful people this year and it's incredibly bittersweet to say goodbye to many of them. Goodbyes have been hard and I have a feeling that they won't get much easier. It's hard to say goodbye to someone when you just barely realize just how much they love you and how much you love them.
I'm an emotional person. I don't do well with change. I didn't like moving away from home and here I am today, feeling very mixed about changing again. In a few weeks, I'll have been out of high school for a year. This year has been a crazy, wonderful, difficult ride. I graduated, I had wonderful experiences, I laughed with friends, I did many things for the last time, I fell in love with a boy over the summer, and I began college. When I think about that first night I spent here, I remember crying. I cried for the sting of leaving home, for the fear of being on my own for the first time, for the boy I wanted to be with, and the Randi I was used to being. Tonight I cry for a different reason. I cry because I'm saying a goodbye to people who love me because I don't know when I'll see some of them again. I cry because I'm finishing a year that meant so much to me. I cry because the bed next to me is empty. I cry because I'm leaving things behind.
I cry because I'm feeling the pains of growth. I had many this year and they were hard and they were difficult but oh, how they were needed. This particular pain however, is one that has taken me by surprise. I wasn't expecting to feel like I was leaving parts of myself behind. But those parts of me are here. They're here in my apartment where I laughed and cried and sang. They're here at the college where I learned and wondered. They're here at the side of my bed where I cried and prayed harder that I ever have in my life. They're here in the smiles and hugs and jokes of my friends.
Again, I cry for the Randi I'm used to being. I cry for the pieces that I'm losing. And tonight, I'll get ready for the hard goodbye of tomorrow. The goodbye where I'll leave Logan behind me in the rearview mirror.

But I'll be back.

Featured at miss dawn.

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I'm featured over here today!
I'll be posting back over here tomorrow amidst finishing packing and studying for my final!

Coming To A Close...

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I'm aware of the fact that I've been missing from my blog for some time. I think it had to do with the fact that I had strep last week and I've been feeling weighed down from things in my life. And when things like that happen, sadly my blog suffers. Never fear, I'm creating a new goal to post at least three times a week from now on.
I move home a week from Saturday. It's a funny feeling. I can't believe that I'm finished with my first year of college. I can't believe that I'm even in college. I can't believe that a year ago, I was preparing to graduate from high school and move on with my life. I can't believe that I'm already moving out of my apartment. It feels like it was just yesterday that my parents helped me move in and left, and I cried on the kitchen floor for a solid thirty minutes while I unpacked my dishes.
My life didn't go as planned as I thought this year. Big surprise. There were many things that I didn't accomplish. There are many things that I did and I learned more than just what I was taught in lectures and from group projects. A part of me is disappointed with myself. I feel like I wasn't myself for a while this year. I feel like I hid inside my apartment more often that I should have and didn't meet as many people as I could have. But I'm hopeful for this coming year. I feel like my Heavenly Father has given me a second chance. He's placed me with a group of girls that's like an automatic group of friends. I'm hopeful. I'm positive. I'm stronger. I'm wiser.
I don't know what this summer will hold. Last summer was beautiful, wonderful, amazing, and parts of it were heartbreakingly hard to leave behind. Things can only get better.
I've been crazy blessed in my life. I just want to make sure I keep my eyes open wide enough to see it all.
P.S. New buttons on the sidebar!

Wreck This Journal Wednesday #1

I'm starting a new segment on my blog called "Wreck This Journal Wednesday". Ever heard of this book? It's all about overcoming perfectionism by wrecking the journal. I'm going to start chronicling which pages I've done every week and showing them here. If you have this journal, let me know and we'll link you up to "Wreck This Journal Wednesday"!

Happy wrecking!

When I Think About It, I Get a Squished Lung...

Lately, this has been on my mind. A lot. Thinking about not going back this summer makes me feel like my lungs are being squashed. I didn't think it would be this hard to say goodbye.









There goes my lung.

Awkward and Awesome Thursday

The Daybook has this wonderful thing called Awkward and Awesome Thursday. So many awkward things happened today that I HAD to create my own list.
Awkward
-Eating jerky while sitting at the only available table near an outlet when there's a fan behind you and everyone can smell your jerky...Sweet and Spicy anyone?
- Ditching class only to find that on your way back home you run into every single person who's in your project group for that class. Walk of shame...
-Forgetting your checkbook at the DMV after you've already made 234234,04329 trips down there.
-Speeding like nobody's business on your way home to get said checkbook so that you can take your driving test. Ironic?
-Looking Chinese in your new Driver's Licence photo. Not that I have anything against the Chinese. I'm just...not.
Awesome
-FINALLY getting my Utah licence. Except my heart cried a little bit when my Idaho licence got hole punched.
-TOMORROW IS THE WEEKEND.
-Getting 100% on a quiz that I was not prepared to take.
-Buying things. Now I must refrain from it for a while.
-I GET TO GO HOME TOMORROW!

Spring Fever Slump!

So, I've been a little absent lately. I'm hitting the spring fever slump since there's three weeks of school left. THREE WEEKS. Needless to say, I don't feel like doing anything, even blogging. But, I've been reminded by a few people that I need to update so here is goes...
Update #1: E is engaged.
Update #2: E made a newspaper dress that I then wore in a fashion show for one of her classes.


Update #3: My family came and visited me last weekend and I got spoooooiled. Taipan, IKEA, and Gateway Mall? Lucky, lucky, lucky.

Update #4: Thinking of changing my major here. Lately, I've been thinking of getting a degree in Marriage and Family Relations which would basically be like being a marriage and family therapist. Downside: I'd have to get a masters so that I could practice....8 years of schooling.
Update #5: I'M ALMOST OUT OF SCHOOL FOR THE SUMMER!!
Oops. Did I just say that again?

College Beds...

Once upon a time, Randi broke her bed. She almost fell off and hit her head.

This happened a few weeks ago but I felt the need to share it since I found this picture last night. Yeah, I broke my bed. It wasn't by jumping either.
I was putting my fitted sheet back on my bed (more like wrestling with it) and as you can see, my bed is right by the wall. I was balancing with one foot on the wall and the other on the edge of my box spring...and the my cinder blocks (they make my bed taller so I can fit more junk underneath) fell over. Then my bed slide out from under me and I landed on my stuff underneath. See that dented box? Courtesy of my knee. It was super funny. For reals. Emma, who was on her bed at the moment, joined me in laughter after we made sure I wasn't maimed or anything.
Then I had to haul my mattress and box spring off (heavy) to survey the damage to my bed frame. I dented it a little and it popped apart, but never fear, I fixed in a jiffy.
This was the text I sent to my parents: "Once upon a time Randi broke her bed. She almost fell off and hit her head. But because she's a Scout, resourceful and smart, she fixed her bed like a piece of art. So since Randi went and fixed her bed, she now has a place to rest her head."
Genius.

Hare Krishna

My weekend was...colorful.
My friends and I took a little road trip to Spanish Fork to participate in the Festival of Colors. It's a festival for the celebration of Spring and it basically is just a giant chalk throwing fest. It was like Woodstock for Mormons, guys. Funky music, dancing people, weird speeches and lots of chalk. I wouldn't have missed it for the world.
Highlights: Riding with Steve, Orlando, and Andrew on the way down there. Non-stop singing both ways. Staying at Amanda's adorable old house and her mom making us super yum food (spaghetti casserole thing, Parmesan biscuits, smoothies, whole wheat waffles). Watching the boys dance to the Spice Girls and Britney Spears on Wii dance, so priceless. Staying up late. Being in an actual house. THE WHOLE CHALK FESTIVAL. Seriously, so insane. Hare Krishna is a interesting religion my friends.










Sorry for the picture overload post but you have no idea how hard it was to pick from the photos of this weekend. I really really had to throw that last photo in there.
Here's the deal though: the ends of my hair are pink now. I'm thinking that I got hit by some of the contraband homemade chalk and the dye in it was really strong. Hoping it comes out soon. Plus it dyed my feathers and I scrubbed my hair so hard that I weakened my feathers and they snapped. BOO. Never fear though, I'm ordering new ones today on rush order!