Metamorphosis: April 2013

Heyyo!

I wish I could start this blog by asking how YOU as a reader are doing but that would be awkward because I wouldn't be able to hear your response and that would be no fun, now would it?

Anyways, hello reader, I hope you are doing well. :)

When I left off, I was headed to Chrissy and Cameron's house for New Year's Eve and a lot has happened since then! The rest of my Christmas break flew by and I headed back to school on the sixth of January. Whitworth functions on two semesters (Sept.-Dec. & Feb.-May) with a JanTerm in the middle. JanTerm lasts for the month of January and you basically take 1-2 classes for three hour increments every day of the week. For JanTerm I took Psychopathology and Film and Snowboarding. I absolutely LOVED both of these classes and the entire month of January, actually. With only one academic class, I had very little homework thus giving me lots of time to hang out and have fun with the lovely ladies of Cornerstone (in case you're a first time reader, that's my dorm). JanTerm was very big for me because over Christmas break I was unsure if I would be coming back to Whitworth for Spring Term because I hated it so much. JanTerm was a blessing because I feel it was God's way of saying "Keep doing what you're doing, Ashley. This is where you need to be right now." I love it when He does stuff like that!
I got to go home for a week between the end of JanTerm and the beginning of Spring Semester and it was kind of weird to me to be home and feel "alright" with the fact that I would be returning to Whitworth. That was a new concept to grasp.

So with the end of the wonderful JanTerm came the beginning of Spring. Holy cow. I started the semester with 18 credits (one above the max limit) and was fighting the realization that I bit off more than I could chew for about five weeks until I finally allowed myself to drop a class (last week). It was tough decision because I do not like quitting but I have full intentions of retaking the class so I had to cut myself some slack.

As you may know, my birthday was in February and I was so blessed to have Mom, Dad, Chrissy, and Marcus come to Spokane to celebrate it with me with Grandma, Papa, Pete, and Lora the weekend beforehand. It was great to be able to spend time with everyone together and I was so thankful that everyone took the time to spend with me. It was somewhat heartbreaking to see Mom, Dad, Chrissy, and Marcus leave because my time with them was so scarce but I was so glad to have the time with them at all! As for my actual birthday, I was surrounded by many wonderful ladies who made me feel special all day and it was just a great day. :)

I have been having tons of fun with some wonderful people here at Whitworth. A few Cornerstone ladies and I took a beautiful Sunday hike a few weeks ago which resulted in me falling into a river while attempting to pretend to jump in... oops. We've made a SICK karate music video (posted below), hung out in downtown Spokane, watched Wreck-It Ralph (such a good movie!), gone on late night walks, played Broomball (lots of fun and lots of ouch), and even performed tons and tons of pranks on each other. We watch a lot of movies here on the weekends (typically Bridesmaids, Mean Girls, or Pitch Perfect) and I love that not only because those are all American classics (<-- yeah, I said it) but because it is time that I get to spend with some amazing people. I guess all I can say is that we just have fun whether we're watching a movie, going to Walmart, or fighting crime-- it's just fun. I don't know how in the heck I keep getting so lucky but God just keeps blessing me with wonderful people in my life be it my lovely parents, family, or dorm-mates. There are some amazing girls living here in Cornerstone and I am so lucky to be blessed with their presence on a daily basis... it is safe to say that I am developing some highly cherished friendships here.

So, to sum it all up life is basically swell. I am content with where I am currently at and who I am currently with.

Thank you for taking time out of your busy life to catch up on what's going on with me, I love that.
I hope you have a blessed few months and that everything in your life is feeling great.

-Ashley

P.S. As always, here is some visual aid for what I've been up to for the past few months.

P.S.S. If you caught what I did with the title, here's a virtual high five for you! *Cue virtual high five*

P.S.S.S. I know it's supposed to be P.P.S. and as follows, but I'm an individual and like like S's more than I like P's... fight me. ;)

This is the karate video I referenced above.

You're going to want to turn your volume up to get the full effect of the video. Enjoy!
Filming credit goes to Allison Maus (first girl dancing with us at the end) and the video features Sam (purple bucket), Tori (black bucket), me (orange bucket), Nicole (girl with headband that dances at the end), Taylor (runs in at end).