more Iowa State Fair

yes, i realize that is a huge bruise on my arm.

the last few photos are waiting for the hunter hayes concert to start.

it was a HUGE crowd.

i loved him. he is the justin beiber of country music.

it will be hard before it gets easy.

Well, I have arrived in los angeles.

My friend from college picked me up at the airport and took me to her apartment where I will be staying until I find an apartment.

I literally think I am crazy. My life is a chaotic mess.

My car was shipped out here and will be arriving around 4 PM which probably means 8 PM because traffic is always bad here… so I am just assuming it will be a delayed delivery.

Yesterday I went apartment searching with my future roommate.  After our first appointment I almost died.

An accident took place right in front of me.

I don't know exactly what happened because at that moment, I saw my life flash before my eyes.

We were stopped at a red light, I think a car ran a red light and the man to the left of us was turning.

The man who ran the red light hit the car turning.

It must have been just the right angle, speed and timing because his car went flying and did two circles in the air. I'm not joking.

The car was coming right at Melissa and I.

I literally thought ... okay ... I am about to die because this car is going to land on me and crush me.

The car landed one foot in front of us.

I didn't know what to do because I knew the man would be dead and I didn't think I could compose myself.

Luckily, someone else was nearby and rushed to his aid.  Pulled him out and he was alive.  With blood over his face of course.

I must have had every guardian angel with me. 

--

I start work tomorrow.

I am apartment searching again today. Please pray that I find something. Please.

The hardest part of it all is not having my mom or dad here with me.

Or my sisters.

I just love my family so much and miss them terribly already.

I told my mom not to cry when she said good-bye to me at the airport.  Tears swelled up in both of our eyes.  (tears are in my eyes as I type this now)  

I walked up to security with tears rolling down my face grateful for my parents who have given more than I could ever imagine but so heartbroken because I am living so far away from them.

I know this is a transition stage and that things will get better, but right now it is hard.

Prayers please. 

hello los ángeles.

today, i leave for los angeles, california.

right now, i have so many emotions running through me.

excitement. nervousness. anxiety. gratitude. shock.

four years ago, i had these exact same feelings.

four years ago i left for northwest missouri state university.

i remember my mom coming into my room at home and sitting on my bed with me as i cried.

all of my doubts started to kick in.  i thought i was making a mistake.

--

looking back now, i know i did not make a mistake.

the unknown is scary, but it shapes you into the person you are intended to be.

i can't imagine how my life would be if i didn't attend northwest.

i bet in four years, i will say "i can't imagine how my life would be if i didn't move to california and work for toms."

at least i hope so.

cheers to a new chapter.

california, i will see you soon.

Nothing Compares -- to the Iowa State Fair

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 seriously love this fair so much.

i love the people.

the food.

the livestock.

the 4H & FFA presence.

the exhibits.

the happy friendly iowa faces.

and much much more.

home.

 

 

 

just a few random shots from my time at home.

i bought a new camera and i am in l-o-v-e.

mariah's bachelorette partayy.

 In September, one of my best friends will get married.

As with any engagement, comes a bachelorette party.
...and a wedding shower.
...and a panty party.
We, the bridesmaids, decided to make it an all in one weekend.
We started the afternoon off with a wedding shower, followed by a panty party which morphed into her bachelorette party.

3 bars.
15 girls.

We started the evening out at a piano bar in Columbia, MO.
Followed by a country bar with a hugggge dance floor.
They had a Jason Aldean impersonator and he invited us all up on stage.

The last stop was a local bar.
Mariah has a beautiful voice and so they allowed her to come up on stage and sing.
I think she will be famous someday.

I loved being reunited with my two best friends from college.
Mariah was the first girl I met at NW.
She met Natalie.
We all became roommates.

These two girls know me better than I know myself.
I just love them.

Do you see all of those panties?
33 to be exact.
Oh, and Mariah has five bridesmaids, not 15.
The bachelorette party was a combination of friends, family and bridesmaids.

Can't wait until September 22nd when she ties the knot!

ithaca, new york -- it's gorges.

Jordan and I decided to take a weekend trip to Ithaca, New York to visit our friend Katie.

Katie, Jordan and I worked together in DC for National 4-H Council as program assistants.

She recently took a job at Cornell University as a coordinator for agriculture in the classroom.

Katie has a heart of gold and an upbeat demeanor that I envy.

She showed us around the beautiful - hipster - organic only city.

When we got into town, we watched the sun set over the lake.

This is going to sound really cheesy -- but as I sat on the rock and looked at the beautiful sunset, I got so emotional. Tears came down.

I had just left DC, life was a mess but I had this sense of peace looking at the Lord's beautiful creation.

Words can't describe how comforting it was.

 The next morning we went to a farmers market.

Uhhh look at these flowers!

Seriously.

Gorgeous.

I wanted to play in them.

 lots and lots of produce, including blueberries.

 Jordan and I tried the apple donuts and slushies.

Yum.

 few more photos from insta.

do you see how big those carrots are in the bottom right hand corner?

 The best part of the whole trip was probably the wine tour.

The Finger Lakes have a ton of wineries.

The wineries are located around the lake, so you find a DD, stop when you want and pay $3 each time to sample about six different kinds of wines.

The scenery was beautiful, the weather was perfect and the wine was tasty.

On our last day, we went and saw the gorges.

"Ithaca is gorges" is a little slogan they use in NY.

Clever, right?

It was a wonderful trip.

A bit stressful at times as I had my final interview for TOMS one day.

My dear friends were so patient and accommodating with my nervous tension.

Love those two and can't wait until we are reunited again.

d to the c.

1. nats game -- it was so hot and i had a bad attitude. sorry jordan.

2. gunner (bearcat) and i on the hill.

3. after sushi in chinatown. police woman told me i had a brave soul to take this photo.

4. metro.

5. pool side.

6. flea market in va.

7. keisto and i at karoke.

8. washington marina.

9. liz and jordan. 

alias marathons. a bachelorette application. & lots of coldstone.

in dc, i spent a lot of time curled up on the couch with catharine and whitney watching hours upon hours of alias.

we may have become slightly addicted.

it was too hot to be outside...

...until we became inspired to film an application for the bachelorette.

searching for a field in dc can be challenging, but after a detour and a few wrong turns we found one!

 and we always celebrated everything with coldstone ice cream.

miss those two.

pub golf...

is SO much fun.

eight different bars.

eight different drinks.

traveling by foot, bus, metro and taxi.

you can see from my score card that i didn't so well BUT i can now drink beer ...

and i give the credit to pub golf.

it was sooo hot and humid that night...

and i will always remember catharine and i deciding to jog on the hill to get to tune inn faster.

the fourth of july.

 

was spent grilling, eating and drinking in crystal city, virginia.

jordan, steph, michael and myself headed into the city for the big firework show later that evening.

we watched the fireworks from the rooftop of a friends apartment.

much better than being down on the national mall with the thousands of people.

seehusen-wasko dinner.

tonight we had the traditional seehusen-wasko dinner.

i finally got to meet baby sophie! such a cutie pie.

love that seehusen family. a wonderful family doing wonderful things in this world.

best quote of the night goes to donna ... "will your cell phone work in california?"

thanks for the words of encouragement and prayers, seehusens. 

can't wait to see you at christmas with new toms on your feet :)