winter break and the next four years

Well hey there bloggers! Alright, so i seriously wouldn't be surprised if none of you ever comment on any of my posts. Ever again. Because 3+ months away from this ol' blog i have here is waaay too long. Heck, I could have died and no one would have even known. But do not fear, I'm alive and somewhat well. Mannn, 8th grade is not all it's cracked up to be. But hey, some great things have come out of the year so far! Like yearbook, this whole slew of new people I've met, and all these different experiences I wouldn't have been fortunate enough to get anywhere else. So, here's a little bit about my winter break... We went back up north to Pittsburgh! Yay! And guess what traveled with me?! MY. NEW. CANON! Yesssss, fellow bloggers, you all heard me. My big Christmas present was my amaaazing camera, who I like to refer to as Norman(: I've gotten some great nature shots from hikes and just around town so I'll put those up soon, but as for now, I thought I'd introduce you all to my lovely family. So see that first picture up there? Those are my cousins. And my aunt. And me! And my brother(:




















Allow me to explain.. This is my best friend in the world, and her fantastic boyfriend! I only get to see them like three times a year, but we always pick up like we saw each other the day before. I love them sooo much.
P.S. We were playing football. Look at those game faces!



















Why this is my new friend(:


















This boy has been my best friend since 1st grade. He is NOTTT afraid to tackle a girl when he's playing football. I had bruises for weeks!












Completely unexpected. I thought the lighting was pretty cool!

These are my best friends. They're more than that, even. Family. I see them all of three times a year, but every time I come back, it's like I've never left. <3

abandoned? i think not.

Holy dang. Where have I been these past two months? Not on blogger, apparently. That much is clear for sure. So, if I haven't been on blogger, where have I been? ...

EVERYWHERE.

Not even kidding. Life as a teenager, while some say is lax, chill, spontaneous, etc, is very NOT those things when you're a teenager with the job of making sure a good yearbook is printed for the entire student body of your school in May. Yeah... when you have pages, the cover, and fundraising to take charge of, you don't really have much time to be 'lax' or 'chill'. Let alone spontaneous! But, rest assured my fellow bloggers. I have not died! Just thought I'd let you know I'm alive and well. :D And as for the yearbook, we're making some serious progress! Our cover design, (which I'm still in the process of planning and executing) is due next Friday. Oh joy. And then, there's the 50-some people I'm in charge of... If they don't get their pages done on time, I get the crap for it. I swear, if I have high blood pressure, it's definitely due to the stress of yearbook. Alas, I cannot complain. I'm loving every second of it. And all that stress? It's just part of the job(:

I'm worried. Concerned, alarmed, shaken... You name it. I live in a good, wholesome community. That much I know. But even in the best of communities, you always have that one slew of friends... The ones who are into drugs and other things waaay beyond their years. The ones I'd personally never EVER want to associate myself with. Because I, simply, am just not like that one bit. And I have good friends. Who are ALSO not like that. If they were, I would not be their friend. However, one of my absolute best friends in the world has been showing signs that they're starting to experiment with drugs. It makes me extremely sad that she's even having thoughts about doing drugs, let alone physically doing them. I'm worried. We've talked openly about her struggles and what's been leading her to experiment, but I know she's still doing them. I just want my friend back.

It's getting colder... Even here, down south. I have to say, I miss summer already. I cannot wait for the days when the harsh winter chill leaves our lives for another year, and glimpses of summer are noticeable. Yes. Those are the days!

i can only wish my summer consisted of 500 days.

Well, it's official... Zooey Deschanel is flawlessly brilliant. And not to mention gorgeous! (500) Days of Summer is, without a doubt, the most witty and charming movie I've seen in years. At first, a few years ago, I was really into those romantic comedies that are jokingly referred to as chick flicks in my house. But after about four or five years of watching them, they got so bland and dry. I can't even explain it, to be honest. So, while I took a little break from the overly cheesy stories of perfect love, I found out I thoroughly enjoy movies like Flyboys, Saving Private Ryan, Flags of Our Fathers, Flight 93, We Are Marshall, Remember the Titans, and The Express. And once I watched them about nine times each, I wanted to cry, they were so utterly depressing.

Then, one fine day, about a week ago, actually, my mom and I decided it was time to find our love for romantic comedies again. After all, old habits die hard. So, we went to see 500 Days of Summer. I worship the ground the director of that film walks on. That movie was absolutely brilliant! Next to He's Just Not Into You, that movie was the best of the year. Zooey's character, Summer, reminded me of myself in so many ways, by the middle of the movie it started to scare me a bit. And by the end, I was dumbfounded.

On an entirely different note, school's been back in session for a week now. And there's not a doubt in my mind... Eighth grade will be my best year yet. Because at this point, after seventh grade being so suckish, I won't settle for anything less. I'll make it be my best year, if I have to. All I know is that it will be. As for Yearbook, things are going effortlessly. Ok, so that was a lie. It is anything but effortless. It is such an immense amount of work, but that's what makes the end result all the more meaningful. I'm in this for the long run.

Recently, I've really been getting more and more into church and worshiping God. The church I attend is one of the biggest in the country, with about 8,000 people coming from all over attending each service. We even have people who drive in from out of state each weekend just to go to our church. Our Middle School program is fantastic, with a special sermon each week for only middle school kids. Lately, we've been talking about the power of our words, and how with each word that comes out of our mouthes, we have the divine opportunity to build people up and act as an architecht making them feel good about themselves, or, if we choose, we can act as no more than a wrecking ball, tearing them down. There's a verse in the Bible that says 'Above all else, guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of life.' -Proverbs 4:23. I think it is beautiful.

So, I think this is my most productive post ever. I talked on and on about movies, then 500 Days of Summer in particular, then about school, yearbook, and church. Very productive, if I do say so myself (: But now there's only one thing missing... Photographs (:

Cooperstown Trip June 12-19 :)

I apologize for my leave of absense. On the 12th, I went to Cooperstown, New York with my family for my brother's week-long baseball tournament at the Dream's Park. It really was a magical experience. Needless to say I wasn't *thrilled* about heading off to rural New York to watch baseball for a week, but seeing how my brother's face lit up when he got his first Cooperstown homerun made it all worth it. Seeing him running those bases... I was working the scoreboard at the time, and literally when I saw the ball go over the fence, I jumped out of my seat so quickly I practically jumped into half of our team's parents. They weren't too thrilled about that. Watching his teammates congratulating him at home plate was the icing on the cake. It brought a tear to my eye, seeing my brother so happy. When that kid is happy, I'm happy.

Editing (:

Oh gosh. Editing. I had my first experience with it the other day, and I'm HOOKED.

cause i see sparks fly whenever you smile.

Simple as that.

One more week until school is out! Sometimes I have those moments when I'm like... "Gee, I'm done with this! I just want to go to college and get on with my life. Who needs middle school, anyway?!" But on other days, (my better days) I just keep singing Vienna to myself... "Slow down, you crazy child. You're so ambitious for a juvenile. Well then if you're so smart, tell me why are you still so afraid? Where's the fire, what's the hurry about? You better cool it off before you burn it out. You got so much to do and only so many hours in a day." And that just lets me know I really am doing okay. I'm right where I should be.

One more week until I'm an eighth grader. One week until I find out if I made YEARBOOK EDITOR!!! One week until I finally become my true self. One week until the best part of life starts :) And I can't wait.

Anyways, I have some songs I found recently that I loooove! I like all types of music, so they might be a little random :)
They are:

Freeze (feat. Chris Brown) - T Pain
The Show - Lenka
Sparks Fly - Taylor Swift (this song is leaked and you can only find it on Youtube. It's rumored to be on her third album, though! Yessss.)
Sugar (feat. Wynter) - Flo Rida
I Do Not Hook Up - Kelly Clarkson (LOVE THIS SONG!)
Not Meant to Be - Theory of a Deadman
Beautiful Disaster - Kelly Clarkson
Crazier - Taylor Swift
Show Me the Money - Petey Pablo

... So yeah! Check them out if you have time :)

Oh and to all of my fellow photographer bloggers... I'm looking into Photoshop and Lightroom. Would you recommend them? And also, how much do they cost? Thanks everyone!

some more pictures :) enjoy!

I apologize for my somewhat disappearance! Life has been exceptionally demanding lately. Good thing, though, summer is officially here in 10 days! (That's if you include the weekend :]) Anyways, I'd love to hear any feedback about my photos. The earliest these pictures were taken was sometime last July, and the newest pictures were taken last weekend. Hope you enjoy, and please leave a comment! Thanks ;-)