Back to School.

Well the fall semester has begun.

I had forgotten what it was like to have so much homework.

And I'm having a hard time making myself do it.

But its so great to be back with my cohort.

They are just the best!

Before school started, we got to help out with orientation.

It is really fun to help the first years.

I got to be in charge of the mentorship program.

It was a lot of work, but it means I got to know all the firsties a bit.

I had fun being involved

and helping these new students transitions a little more smoothly into grad school.

Here are some pics from orientation.

My cohort had a lot of fun being back together.

The semester is going well so far.

I'm already being pushed and working hard.

I'll try to keep you all updated on how things go

with the last year of my masters program.

Loss.

Some hard things have happened lately.

My dear friend Elise lost her father.

I love Elise so much and wanted to cancel everything I needed to do to be with her.

Her family is fantastic.

I miss them.

I always have so much fun when I visit them.

Her dad is amazing!

He is so kind and funny and determined.

Their family has helped me out several times and mean a lot to me.

I pray for them often.

They are strong and will support each other through this.

I will never forget her dad and the wonderful memories I have of him.

Not long after the loss of Elise's father, a boy in my ward passed away.

It was very sudden and unexpected.

He was only nineteen.

About to go off to college and on a mission.

It was incredibly sad.

I attended the funeral to show my support to his family.

It was so powerful.

Each of the boy's six siblings spoke as well as his parents.

It was amazing to hear their memories.

One of the boy's siblings is my friend Pete.

He read some experiences from his journal.

It was so great to hear his thoughts from those moments.

It really showed the power and importance of keeping a journal.

It made me want to write in my journal more and on this blog more.

I know that both of these wonderful people are in a better place.

That there was a plan for them and this was all part of it.

I know that they will be with their families again.

If you would like to know more about my faith, please learn about it here.

Summer recap.

Alright so I know I didn't write all summer.

But now I will give you a little recap.

Hopefully that makes up for it.

My summer started in May because we finished classes at the end of April.

We had a couple weeks off before starting this crazy summer semester that was JAMMED into 4 weeks of absolute madness. I barely survived.

But before the madness started, my parents came to visit.

That was pretty sweet.

I also got to take a little trip home to go to THIS girl's reception!

Let me tell you it was absolutely gorgeous and I would gladly have my wedding look exactly like it.

I spent most of my summer hanging out with friends

and working away at my internship.

I am becoming much more comfortable with being a counselor

and just loving my clients.

I still have a lot of skills to learn, but the process has been great.

For my birthday, I went to a little zoo here in Spokane

called Cat Tales.

It was really fun and I got to FEED a TIGER!

Pretty amazing.

Pictures and video of this exist, I just don't have any of it on my computer. :(

But I also got to see THIS dream of a best friend.

Thanks for bringing me a bed.

And a huge thanks to your parents for letting me borrow it!

I was also lucky enough to take a trip to Rexburg

to see these boys (Brady, Jack and Griffin).

As well as many other awesome Rexburg peeps.

Brady was graduating and presenting his BFA show.

Which was A-MAZING!

Then I went down to Utah to see some amazing old roommates like

MARIE (and baby Link who was a blast!)

and MICHELLE (as well as her family who I love!)

as well as this dreamy family (the Telfords) (plus Darrin who is just as awesome)

Then my last stop was Logan to see none other that the AVILAS!

It had been years but it felt like no time had passed at all.

So great.

They will always be my family.

This was one of the hardest family photos to take.

Here is one of the bloopers to give you a taste of what went on.

And the final trip I made for the summer was over to Seattle with my sister Mel and her boyfriend Glenn.

The purpose of the trip was to go to the zoo and we had a blast.

These little guys were one of my favorites.

I just LOVE seattle with all my heart.

It was a pretty awesome summer full of fun and work and learning and growth.

We even had a ward campout/canoe trip to end the summer.

Worst arm pain of my life but a whole lot of fun!