Wednesday, November 16, 2011

Fall College Days

Wow, so I am the worst blogger in the world I've decided, but oh well. here's a quick update since i last wrote! :)





-I have been starting on the University of Utah volleyball team and have played pretty well for my first year

--I love playing and love my teammates even more. They are all really nice and look after me! Being in the PAC-12 definitely threw me for a curve. I t is a lot harder than one would imagine. Out of the 12 teams, 5 are ranked in the top 20 and you can't look past those who aren't because they are good too (that includes us!). We have 3 games left that we should win and we can take 8th in our conference which is extremely good considering we are young and this is our first year in the PAC-12.


-School is a breeze and I am passing all of my classes easily.

--I am not taking hard classes because I am so heavy into volleyball but I enjoy my classes the same. I am doing extremely well and hope my grades will reflect that at the end of the semester. We only have 4 weeks until Christmas break and I am so ready to go home and relax for a while.


-Dates, Boys, And More!
--I have gone on a few dates since I have been here and each one has been a blast. There are a few guys who I am crushing on (as normal). They both play sports are freshman and super cute! One is a swimmer and the other is a quarterback. They both just got their mission calls and will leave in the spring semester. A bummer for me but really cool for them! I am writing my friend Steven who is on a mission and comes home in less than a year. It'll be nice to have him home.


-Dallon has left on his mission and I miss him more than ever.

--I am so not used to having my brother gone and every time I think about him I can't help but cry. Luckily one of the boys i dated this summer has connections with the district leaders in Peru so i can secretly know what's going on and how my big brother is doing. This Christmas is going to be super strange and foreign without him there.


Well that's the big news so far. Nothing exotic unfortunately, but i like to make believe my life is. I am so happy and love being at college. It has definitely proven to be as fun as everyone told me it would. I miss my friends from high school and club ball but couldn't be making better ones here. Life is GOOD!! :)

Wednesday, August 3, 2011

What a DATE!!

So last night I went on one of the best dates I have ever been on!
A guy I met at a Utah Institute dance took me. We first went to his friends house where all four of us (me, him, his friend, and his friend's date) all made sandwiches. Then we went to a park that was half way up a mountain. There we enjoyed our sandwiches and watched the sunset and talked. After the sun was down, but there was still light outside, we hiked up the mountain a little. We stopped and enjoyed the most beautiful view of all the city lights below us. After he took me to Wendy's where we enjoyed frosties and got to know each other a little more through conversation. We had a great time talking and laughing. He drove me home and gave me a polite friend hug. Definitely a keeper date! Maybe we'll go on another! :)

Tuesday, July 26, 2011

More pictures of Europe!































Home at Last!









Well I am finally home and am so happy to be! I got in last night around 1 am after my flight had to be delayed due to bad weather in Atlanta. That had to be the longest flight in the entire history! The flight from Venice to Atlanta was 11 hours in itself but it didn't help that I sat next to a lady that complained about the screaming babies the whole time. She was worse then the babies! Needless to say I did not sleep on that flight. When we got to Atlanta I was so relieved to be back in the US and know and understand the language they spoke. It felt like home, even though it was just Atlanta. The flight to Salt Lake got delayed 3 hours and I felt as if I were never coming home. But miraculously the plane finally took off and we were on our way. There was barely anyone on the flight and we each got our own rows to lay down on. Oh boy did I sleep like a rock on that flight. We touched down and I almost ran off the plane to see My family and get out of the airports that I had now been in for 23 hours. Finally I got home!

At home I gave mom, dad, and Dallon thier gifts, I was really excited to show them everything that I got and tell them some stories. I spent the night at mom and dad's then drove up to school this morning. I had class and a presentaiton that was due, which I got 100% on!! Now I get to chill due laundry and put all my things away.


Europe was so much fun and I am so thankful I got to go. It was a true blessing!!

Saturday, July 23, 2011

Hello again!
So here we are in Venice. Oh my goodness it is so beautiful here! Yesterday we arrived around 2 and immediately went out in the city. After shopping and marveling at the buildings for a few hours we were supposed to meet at Sam Marcos. HA HA The girl I was with and I got really lost on our way but it was the best thing that could have happened. After we met at San Marcos we decided to go on a Gondola ride. We saw these two men on the side of the canal and asked them how much. They proceeded to tell us that it was 150 euros. Too much we said and started to bargain...well of course with my good looks and excellent bargaining skills, I got them to consider two boats, 4 people in each boat, for 100 euros. I rock! The ride was super amazing! (not to mention our Gondola guy was SUPER DUPER CUTE!) (don't worry pictures will come later). Well thats all that happened. Today we are doing the same things and tomorrow i get to come home! I am so excited! I miss you all very much! See you then!

Thursday, July 21, 2011

Volleyball Land of Romans











Sorry it has been a while since my last post; the hotel we are at right now does not have Internet unless you pay for it. So I splurged and now have 309 minutes to tell you all about what has happened since we have been in Croatia. Where to begin! First we arrived on Sunday and had opening ceremonies that night on the old roman streets. The buildings were amazing and so interesting to see. We watched some kids dace around in the traditional Croatian dance then they announced each of our teams.


The next day we played the Czech and Slovenia teams. with each team we went 2-1, unfortunately we were the 1 but oh well. The next day we played an Italian team (at least i think they were Italian) and the Romania team. We beat the Italian team 2-1 but lost to Romania 1-2. The next day we played an American team, my college coaches team and teammates. It was a very close and fun game but they pulled out the win 2-1. Today we played another US team and lost in a close battle 2-1.


We ended up taking 8th overall which actually isn't too bad. It was a lot of fun playing and i feel as if i have definitely improved.



On Monday we went to the beach and jumped off the rocks. I had a blast and never knew the water to be so salty!!




Other than that not much has happened. It has been fun getting to bond with the girls and I have enjoyed seeing and meeting new people and new sights. I don't know what we are exactly doing for the rest of the time but I will be sure to update in a few days!



Oh by the way...my name is officially CHARLES now. Love ya!!

Saturday, July 16, 2011

Once again



Here we are once again...so the team is still in Solvenia and are 5 minutes from leaving for Bled. They say it is gorgeous there and the best town to tour, good thing that's what we're doing! Afterward we head to Crotatia! Yeah!!!! I am way excited! well...ta ta for now!

Friday, July 15, 2011

The Trip Evolves...





Europe has been a blast so far, but let's start from the beginning of it all!



Our plane ride got delayed by two hours from Atlanta to Munich. that was not all the best but still fun. I got most of my homework done, well 9 out of the 12 hours i had to do. Grrrr maybe college isn't as fun as i thought it would be. Anyway, the 11 hour flight was fun because I sat next to Kaesey Taylor. We watched Soul Surfer, wich was excellent by the way, and did yoga in the back of the plane with one of the flight attendents. Ha ha ha her name was Grace and she was the besst! Our flight touched down in Munich at 9:30 Munich time, that's 1:30 Utah time. So excited we quickly went through the passport lines then was greated by three German guys, don't worry mom, not cute, old and spoke naughty. We drove for 1 hour to Salzburg, Austria and toured for a few hours. We then drove 4 hours to Morabor where we currently reside, in a brand new hotel, like two days old, literally, but actually our celing leaked and we had to move rooms the first night, not so fun. this morning i got up at 6 am here and took my midterm which i feel pretty good about but that usually means i failed it. ha ha oh well. After I finished my test we had practice. This was a funny practice. The balls are super strange, light, float a lot and yellow and blue. The court is really really really really sticky and there is no way you can slide. Good thing i was taught to roll!! ha ha :) after practice we went to the city and toured. i got new shoes because the white ones i brought are about to get a whole in the top. Then we scrimmaged a Solvenia team, no one really won we just played. Now we are about to go see Harry Potter and i am SUPER EXCITED!!!!!! Let's hope it's good. Well thats all for now, sorry this is a lame post but i don't really care. Hope all is going well...I love you all!!!

Friday, July 8, 2011

College Days

Well here I am finishing my first official full week at school. This week has consisted of helping out with the volleyball camp, going to my class, gruesome workouts, and finishing a long a boring orientation that we were required to go to but didn't really learn anything considering us athlete's already live here. We tried on our official Pac 12 jerseys and will were them in not to long. I can't wait!
I have had a lot of fun being on my own up here. Utah has been the right school for me and I thoroughly enjoy myself. My school work is going really well and so far I have great grades, let's hope they stay that way. :)
Next week I leave on Wednesday for Europe. Wish me luck! I know it will be tons of fun.

Friday, June 24, 2011

A Blast of a Time!

What a blast we had! My volleyball team headed over to Disneyworld for the day. We arrived around 10:30 and headed straight for space mountain. The thriller ride got us all excited for the next to come: The rockets, Splash mountain (we splashed each other and were completely soaked!!!)




Buzz lightyear ride where we shoot at targets, i got second! Daniel Jones got first :), next came the tea cups, i did not join in on this one but got good pictures.

We traveled through the park hitting the haunted mansion, thurder railroad, and splash mountain once again. The trip was lots of fun and defintily one we will all remember!!!













Wednesday, June 22, 2011

A First Arrival turns good!
















Today we arrived in Orlando, Florida around 3:30. We very carefully crammed our suitcases in the 10 passenger van and drove off the the hotel. After literally dropping our things off to go out to eat, we made our way over to the Orlando. Florida temple to do baptisms for the dead. What a humbling and awesome experience all thrown in one simple hour. Our arrival and introduction was a little troubling as we realized no one had been assigned to do baptisms for the remainder of the night. Fortunately the workers were very kind and volunteered to stay a few extra hours after their shift the help the 7 of us. Nicole Koehler, Kaitlyn Vanhoff, Kimberly Dahl, Elle Brainard, Samantha Staker, Mckenna Tait, Daniel Jones and I made our way down to the font to be baptised. I couldn't hep but be so excited. It is amazing to me how strong the spirit is when one enters sacred ground and performs a work another could not do. My smile did not disappear from my face the whole time we were in the temple (I think one of the temple workers thought I was very strange, they kept asking if this was my first time in the temple :) ) The experience is one i will never forget.








After we walked and toured the temple grounds. Meanwhile Scott Lee, our coach, caught a corn snake and scared some of the girls with it. I on the other hand, I was brave enough to hold it, and what do you know, it stayed still for me and liked me, i believe!! Well...our adventure for today is coming to a close. Tomorrow we embark to Disneyworld!! WOO HOO!!!!!!
















Saturday, June 18, 2011

Transported!!









my awesome roommate!
The closet, maybe a little messy still...:)














My desk and bed are definitely not one of a kind but sturdy and hard!










Well, here I am in my new apartment. Yes everyone, I am officially a college student and so far going strong (granted I have only been here for 8 hours)! My wonderful parents helped me move in; 7 small boxes 3 suitcases and a few odds and ends, not too much but enough! My apartment is huge and actually handicap but that's ok, the more room for me! My wonderful roommate for this summer is Bailey Bateman. She is going to play middle on the team. Well not much has changed since I let home. It feels as if I am just having a sleepover and will be back in no time, but obviously that isn't true. I guess we'll see how everything pans out...

Monday, June 6, 2011

Three Little Fairies

M om and I had the wonderful opportunity of creating a magical fairy garden for the three little girls who just moved in next to us. Earlier that month my daddy cut down a tree that was on thier side of the yard but due to the way it was growing, the tree was oulling up the fence oin our side of the yard. Mom and I took the tree and made this beautiful arbor to go over the garden. We liked it so much we decided to make one for our yard also. So with the arbor done we headed for the huge task of cleaning up the side yard where the garden was to be located. It was my first time ever using the rotatiler and boy was it fun! The vibrations made my hands go numb and I was a little perplexed on how to start it but boy was making the graound soft exciting!! We spent most of the 4 hours cleaning all the garbage and weeds out. Finally we got to the fun part of putting in the flowers, arbor, stepping stones and making table and chairs from the trunk along with putting a canopy above the table. We had a great tim painting flowers on the fence and making the garden magical. It was a good mother daughter project before I leave for college! Oh! And the little girls loved it! (maybe not as much as I did) :)

Sunday, June 5, 2011

One by One...

The rush in the morning as I realized the clock had just turned 7:30 and I had to be dressed and ready for graduation in less than 40 minutes. I jumped into the shower right after Grandpa Shaw had taken one step outside the door. After a frantic blow drying of the hair and cake of makeup I awkwardly got into the jeep and Dallon sped to the Marriott Center, meanwhile I am trying to paint my nails and doing horrible at it might I add. We got there and cord after cord dropped as I messily dress myself in the maroon robe and place the board on my head. Walking down a steep hill in heels which I rarely wear was not easy. As I entered the hall I searched each girls face looking for three things, how she did her make up/hair, how many cords they wore and if I knew them. As I spotted those who were most familiar to me I tip toed my way over. So many girls were embracing each other and saying their congratulations. The rush soon became unbearable as everyone made their way towards the front. Being Bruin Crew pres I was to be the first to walk out and take my place in the seat. The ever daunting music started and I took my first shaky step toward the never ending bleachers. I glanced outside and saw my brother. I held back tears as I realized this was one of the last major moments we would ever have together. We stood in front of the chairs and waited for the others to file in. The familiar yell of my mother was nehind me and I knew the rest of my family was close by cheering with her. I couldn't help wounder if she was crying yet; I know I was trying not to. We listened to the speakers for what seemed like forever. Dallon and I shared inside jokes and things only each other would know as we sat next to each other. Once again the music started and each one of us glanced at one another waiting for the other to stand up. Finally one person stood and so did the others. We made our way down stairs and teachers greeted us telling how much they would miss us. Unknown to me, my jewelry teacher really liked me and talked to me the whole way down. Once again Dallon and I shared comments and then I watched him walked through the curtains. I was next and made my way across the stage shaking unfamiliar hands and trying to briskly walk past those who were staring at me on the front row. I couldn't help the smile that grew with each step. Finally I sat down and everyone else walked. We listened to a few more speeches than watched a video. I was doing fine until the last picture popped up on the screen. It was one Dallon and I had taken for senior pictures my head was on his shoulder like it was a lot. Tears rushed but I was able to hold them back. After the video we were dismissed and of course we rushed outside for all the family pictures. So fun!...what a life! GRADUATION!

Sunday, May 29, 2011









Around the corner

Graduation is just around the corner! We have two days left of "important" school, you know the days that you actually have to show up! I am very excited to finally walk across that stage and never look back. Just 15 days after I report to college and become new bait! It is nerve racking but will be loads of fun!

Thursday, May 26, 2011

Trip of a Lifetime

This blog is being made in order to tell my freinds and family what i am up to!
This summer i have the wonderful opportuinity to go to Europe with a Utah USA Junior Olympic Volleyball team and I am Freakin excited! Last night Mom and I went shopping for graduation but got things for Europe also. I got three new pairs of shorts, the cutest dress and new shoes to show off in Venice! I can't begin to describe my excitement for the trip! I know it will be the trip of a lifetime and I will never forget it!
I am starting this blog to let all of my family and friends know what i am doing at the moment. This summer I am traveling to Europe and can not wait to experience a chance of a lifetime. Utah has put together a Junior USA Volleyball Team that will travel