Saturday, August 31, 2013

I love my roommates!

Just for fun, I went down to Provo for a weekend. It was filled with fun friends, great breakfasts, and a rodeo!
Chandler, McKay's younger brother was in town for EFY and gave us all the juice on the girls. 

Emily and I discovered that we have the exact same outfit. All items were purchased individually of the other! What can I say, great minds think alike! 

(Insert Ashley Norton in the top left corner.)

Logan City Cemetery

During the summer semester I lived in Aggie Village. It is usually married student housing but they have a few buildings dedicated for graduate school housing. The only thing between my house and campus was the Logan City Cemetery. 
The cemetery is absolutely beautiful but every day, all day they are running the sprinklers. These aren't any normal lawn sprinklers but heavy duty powerful sprinklers, like the ones they use on a golf course. Getting hit by one didn't mean a light, refreshing sprinkle of water but a drenching of everything on your person. It became a daily game of dodging the sprinklers.



An added bonus of coming to Logan and living at Aggie Village was that I was able to pass my ancestors headstones every day. I have only ever heard stories about them but for some reason passing by them each morning and afternoon has helped me feel more connected to them. 


These are Grandpa Boyd's parents, Wilford and Jennie. I have heard really interesting stories about Grandma Jennie but I look forward to meeting her one day!

These are my great-great grandparents, Peter and Janet Johnson. From what I remember, they were the first ones to come into Cache valley of the family. The best story that I remember of Grandpa Peter was when he got his first car. He was driving it home and parking it in the barn. Unfortunately he didn't know how to stop it so he just starting yelling "Whoa!"







This headstone was actually added while I was here. It has been super special to come and visit Grandma Jean. She is such a special woman and whenever Grandpa comes up to Logan we meet here.









We're not in Provo anymore...

I left on Las Vegas on a Thursday and drove into Salt Lake. My dad, acting on divine inspiration, met me there and make the rest of the trip up north into Logan. He spent all day Friday helping me move in, clean my apartment, organize my things, and buy the essentials. It hit me right after I dropped him off at the airport that I did not know a soul in Logan and I was brand spanking new. Part of me was excited and the other part of me was scared to death. As I was walking around campus, there were certain things that reminded me that I was no longer in Provo... 




Caffeine on campus - what?! 


Coffee shop in the student center?

A different temple view 

Welcome to Utah State! Go Aggies! 

End of the Vegas Chapter

The three weeks that I spent in Vegas passed way too quickly. The Hawks were incredible to open up their home to me and allow me to eat their food and use their Kinect all the time. Love you guys! 

I think this is the most Corie and I have looked alike, ever. 

I'm going to miss these girls like crazy! 

The Legend Lives On

Every so often my dad would play a game with us kids called "getting." He would ask us questions and depending on our answers, we would get tickled. Carter came to visit the Hawks while I was there and the tradition has been passed on. 

Dane and the women in pink! 

Friday, August 30, 2013

First Road Trip with Little Ones

So part of the deal of Corie coming out the Denver was that I drove back to Vegas with her because Matt flew home early to get back to work. I would be lying if I said that I wasn't the tiniest bit nervous about making an 11 hour road trip with two little ones. Corie was a champ though! I was super impressed. She had snacks, toys, shows, and entertainment for every hour. Plus she drove the entire time!
Carolyn was out before we even hit the highway. I don't know how they sleep like that! 

Carolyn really had to use the bathroom! 
 
A great way of entertainment was my phone and Carolyn learned quickly how to use the camera. 

Even to take pictures of herself! 

Blind Taste Test

My family always makes fun of me for liking the Frosted Mini-Spooners instead of the actual Frosted Mini Wheats. So they finally put me to the test. They bought both and had me do a blind taste test. 

I could totally tell the difference! The Mini-Spooners are SO much better! 

Random Trip to Denver

True to Christensen form, my plans changed rather quickly. While in the Edmonton Airport I called my father and told him that I had a layover in Denver and wished that I could stay. He said: "Well why  not?!" So I did!

Brittany and Elias had just moved in with my parents and the Hawks family made a spontaneous road trip out to Denver to join in the fun. It was an absolute blast! 

I got to check off something on my bucket list - running the Boulder Boulder. It was basically a party for 6 miles. There were hippy bands and entertainers the whole way. 

Dad was the best running partner! The race finished in the football stadium with tons of fans cheering on their runners. It was so fun and such a beautiful day! 

I spent my birthday in Denver. Brittany and Elias treated me to a home-made meal of onion rings and steak. It was delicious and made the house smell for hours! 

My family loves and knows me so well. They got the perfect gifts: Dairy Queen blizzards, Colgate Total paste plus whitening, deodorant, earrings and a matching necklace.  

Open mouth shot in honor of Hannah! 


The Hand of the Lord

When I started my undergraduate degree in communication disorders, I always knew that I was going to have to get a master's degree. It has been a part of the plan from the very beginning but it was one of those things that you just never think is actually going to happen. As I started the application process, it all became a little too real. A fear developed inside of me that I wasn't going to get into any graduate school and my dream/plan was going to be put on hold or completed washing down the toilet. Applications were sent to schools from East to West...
  1. Washington State University
  2. Eastern Washington State University 
  3. Arizona State University
  4. University of Utah 
  5. Utah State University
  6. Idaho State University
  7. University of Virginia 
  8. George Washington University 
  9. Northeastern University 
If everything went according to my plan, I would get accepted into Utah State but the likelihood of that happening was pretty slim to none. Every part of my application was border line and on the lower end of the their acceptance averages. It was a long-shot to say the least but I wanted to try. After Utah State I didn't really care where I went. They were all different and far away.

While in DC I received an email notifying that I had made the wait list. I was happy but still nervous. I hadn't really heard from any other schools and this wasn't the start that I wanted. I ended up getting an interview with Arizona State but shortly received a rejection letter. I subsequently received rejection letters from a number of other universities. On  March 21st I received another email informing me that I had been accepted into the program and would start in June!! Waiting for other schools to reply didn't seem to take as long after that and it honestly didn't matter as much. When it all was done and finished, Utah State was the only school to accept me. Of all the long shots and safety-net schools I applied to, I got into my top choice.


Other than divine intervention, I can only attribute this miracle to one small, seemingly insignificant interaction. You might remember my trip with Dad to Atlanta for the ASHA convention. I forgot to mention that while there I stopped by the Utah State booth,where I met Dr. Kim Corbin-Lewis, the chair of the department. I spoke with her briefly, asking about the program and if there was anything that might help my application stand out. Upon leaving I didn't think much of it but did send her an email later that night thanking her for answering my questions. After a few days, I received an email from the academic supervisor explaining that I had impressed Dr. Corbin-Lewis and asking if I needed any help with my application. That was quite the shock.

I know this could have been put a lot more eloquently but I felt like the story needed to be told, especially since I haven't written it anywhere else yet. The whole experience was one that you look back on and see the hand of the Lord in every step; even if I didn't see it along the way.