creative juice activity: negative.

List #1: Today.

1. This morning was the first time I actually, legitamately fell asleep in seminary. Yeah, there's the days where I close my eyes, but I honestly don't fall asleep. I listen. and I think. but Dain and I were out this morning.

2. I was in a really unusual mood for the first few periods of the day. I wasn't unhappy, but I just didn't say much to anyone all morning. I felt like I was in a dream, drifting and floating from class to class...like I was the Disney Hercules when he meets his supreme father Zeus, and Zeus picks him up from his toga and places him wherever he pleases as Hercules just dangles. That was me. Ms. Dangle.

3. After prayers and announcements at the end of the day today I took a trip to the classroom of my world cultures teacher frosh year. I wanted to tell him about my weekend. I was looking forward to telling him about it all day, even though he had no clue I was coming. I have no clue why I was so hooked on telling him about it, but I was stoked. And he wasn't there. Gah.

4. "My Girl" by the Temptations just came on my iPod. I watched Father of the Bride, one of my favorite movies EVER last night with Dain, and I can never get enough of the scene with this song. You know, the one where George and Annie are playing one on one as the melodic music weaves smoothly through the scene "I've got sunshine, on a cloudy day."

5. Today is the first day this school year where I am finished homework by 5:00. Unbelievable.

6. I haven't been on facebook for a few days, and I checked it when I completed my work. 4 notifications. I'm really cool.
however, I got a wall post that made me smile. I guess thats all that really matters.
:]

7. My English teacher gave me an extraordinary compliment on a paper I broke my back over for countless, endless nights. I'm thinking that was the climax of my day. It's pretty much the best evidence I have for being a geek, because thinking about it actually makes me really happy.


List #2 A shuffle on the pod.

1. Tell Me I'm Wrong ... Hema Heimuli
2. Here I Am...Leona Lewis
3. Save the Last Dance for Me...Michael Buble
4. Ballerina Girl...Lionel Richie
5. Good Old Fashioned Loverboy...Queen
6. You Are...Lionel Richie
7. I'll Be There...The Jackson 5
8. The Climb...Miley Cyrus
9. Mary's Song (Oh My My My)...Taylor Swift
10. Ilonga Ha Taha...My Sister (The Wolfgramm Sisters)
11. Sky (feat. Ingrid Michaelson)...Joshua Radin
12. Open Arms...Journey
13. Lost...Michael Buble
14. Thankful...Josh Groban
15. I Wanna Know...Joe
16. Wild Horses...Natasha Bedingfield
17. No Air...Jordin Sparks ft. Chris Brown
18. Scenes from an Italian Restaurant...Billy Joel
19. Who's Lovin' You...The Jackson 5
20. You Make Me Feel Like Dancing...Leo Sayer
21. Refuge (When It's Cold Outside)...John Legend
22. Stuck on You...Lionel Richie
23. Reasons...Earth, Wind, & Fire
24. Step in the Name of Love...R.Kelly
25. For the Beauty of the Earth...Jon Schmidt
26. She Will Be Loved...Maroon 5
27. Human Nature...Michael Jackson
28. Forever...Chris Brown
29. Bennie and the Jets...Elton John
30. Got to be There...Michael Jackson
31. My Girl...The Temptations

Fair share of scrunchies and grass stains

Growing up, I never thought having three older brothers could be so life changing. My thoughts were always geared towards wishing for a perfect little sister that would let me paint her nails, do her hair, talk about boys, go shopping, give her advice, watch chick flicks, take pictures, throw surprise birthday parties for, and take "girl trips" out to lunch every other weekend. I remember my first babysitting job was with the Lewis girls-Emily and Sarah, who were just a few years younger than me. They were both the perfect kids to babysit. It was almost as if I were being paid to hang out with my friends, or even better, my two little sisters. They're now the oldest of seven kids total, and are still so mature and fun to be around.

As the years have passed, I have come to notice how much I love having three older brothers. And how much I love them. I had my mom to do all of the girlie things when I was the little princess. You know, matching my headbands and bows with my outfits to a T; painting my nails while I slept in my royal bed..and didn't make a single smudge once; dressing me up in my favorite glittery gold dress; the endless effort and time put into my updo for me and daddy's annual "Daddy Daughter Date" on my birthday weekend; and most importantly, teaching me to sit, talk, and act like a lady at age two. It was not difficult to follow her counsel at such a young age because she was and is the ultimate example for me on how to be lady. How else am I supposed to learn those little smidgens of feminine advice with a house full of macho's?

Aside from the countless amount of girly goods my mom provided, my brothers and dad made up for them. BIG time. Playing with worn out Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle action figures and toy guns; and having no mercy in the backyard with infinite games of baseball, football, dodgeball, run the bases, and my personal favorite, jailbreak. During the summer I would challenge the neighborhood kids to a race almost on a daily basis-barefoot, of course. Then we would chase the ice cream truck with quarters flying from our pockets to buy tons of candy and ice cream. Landon always bought something different, LJ never left without an ice cream sandwich-the chocolate chip cookie kind, and Treybo always exchanged MY quarters for a foot long cherry laffy taffy. My favorite was the Mickey Mouse shaped chocolate and vanilla ice cream on a stick. I could never forget playing baseball with Trey until dusk on school nights while in elementary school. We always negotiated with Mama when she called us in for dinner for a couple more innings, but she made us come in right away and eat our vegetables. On those days my hair took control of my hair tie and was in a crazy loose ponytail with wispies all over the place. No matching bows or headbands. Maybe an occasional coordinating scrunchie. Grass stain streaks ran across my Limited Too shirt and shorts.

But all of that has changed. The boys started attending high school, liking girls, going to dances, then college, and then missions. Now I'm in high school.

My childhood is in the past.

And I'm okay with it.

That's all part of growing up, isn't it? Accepting the fact that you're growing up is a huge step, but probably an even larger step for the parents. I still tie ribbons in my hair, and I still love playing backyard baseball games with the neighborhood kids, even if we're in high school and college.

The craziest part about this is that LJ is getting married.

hitched.

tying the knot.

So my dreams of having a sister are coming true. Not only that, but she's an absolute doll. I'm coming to love her in a familial way, which is a different feel, but incredible nonetheless. Soon to be Mrs. Kaylie Sikahema. There will be seven of us. I couldn't be happier with our new addition. I love you, Kaylie Jean...just as much as my mud-covered dress days.

Update..although most of you already know.

I don't even know what to say. It's almost been a month since the last time I posted, and SO SO SO much has happened. So instead of elaborating on a ton of things, I'll give a quick update on all the things that have happened. They won't be in order, just because I'm just gonna let all of it fly...

1. Leland James came home.

2. Leland James got engaged...

to Kaylie.

3. Level 4 at GC set a record of hiking the mountain: 45 minutes.

4. went to Education Week at BYU

5. hung out with the Jersey crew who are now freshmen at the Y for a week

6. helped LJ get a [possible] job of writing children's books.

in Chinese...SO stoked for him!!

7. I turned 16.

8. !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

9. went on a date..doubled with my engaged brother. and had a blast :]

10. school started. meh.

I'm really not feeling very creative, to tell you the truth. And I'm sure you can already see it in this post. But I promise that I won't wait as long as I did to write in my next blog. Until next time. :)

I just spent a total of 15 minutes texting and typing random letters of outrageous excitement, drumming my fingers on the desk, constantly moving my feet, smiling uncontrollably, and cracking up. He's at the airport. The two years are closing in.

O;AISJGOVIANOVJOAFJOJFANO;EASPIDFKASJFALJFCALSKDPGKJORIHJGKAFNASFJOAISFJSLFJSOFFJALKSJDFAIJEFL;

LAKSJFIAJKGHIARLUHFAEIJFA;SIJHUHGIUGUFUYILULIJ!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

...oh perfect. "You Make Me Feel Like Dancing" by Leo Sayer just came on iTunes shuffle. 

Coincidence? More like flippin fate.

Dang right, I'm dancing right now.

Symbolism? Nah..

  Had a crazy dream last night. all i remember was i was wearing gray converses in some dirty old locker room, and as i was tying them with my foot on the bench, I looked up and I saw someone standing there in a dark brown robe with a big hood and I could see his face. It was LJ, and he was smiling at me. I figure that part of my dream came from the scene from Zorro where Alejandro sees Zorro in the middle of the chaotic crowd right before Zorro makes his appearance. I just watched that sensational flick a couple nights ago. Anyway, so I saw LJ in the robe, and then I walked out into the gym from the locker room, and he was lecturing a bunch of my classmates and old friends. Who knows what he was lecturing them about, but I remember the whole speech rhymed. And then Trey's rugby coach came up to me after the lecture and told me I was welcome to be the assistant to the team...meaning I would travel with the team everywhere. LJ stood next to me, and with his approval, I agreed. Then LJ and I were hugging like there was no tomorrow because I hadn't seen him in two years, of course. The ocean was the next stop for LJ and me. We were swimming and it was extremely cloudy and grey outside, but we didn't have a care in the world. We were enjoying ourselves in the water, until a gigantic navy ship came and pretty much occupied the body of water where we were swimming. We weren't worried about being run over by the ship, but we were just annoyed that it was taking up our enjoyment territory. Suddenly the ship stood still, and the people on it and people on the shore were making small talk with us. I don't remember who they were or what they were saying, but I remember they were extremely friendly. The last part I remember was LJ holding me in the water and both of us were smiling. 

I could find symbolism in my dream and analyze it, but I'm just so stoked for LJ to get home, I don't even care. All I know and care about is that I was in the presence of my brother again. 

one day.

 I know you'll love this, kaylie jean.

Iloa'a e ke ola mau: Let me walk through paradise with you

   "Hey Lana! My mom and I are heading to the shore tomorrow to watch the sunrise. We would love to have you come.." This happened yesterday after lunch and church. Nelly McNaughton, a close friend to my brother and just returned from serving his mission, came and picked me up last night and we headed to Ocean City this morning. The sunrise ended up being in the fog and we couldn't see through it, but it was definitely worth it. Just to hear the ocean, put my feet in the sand, and be with some of my favorite people in the world was all worth a foggy sunrise. This was a tradition for their family, and now that everyone in their family is either married or in college, Nelson hadn't done it since he was little. So I was just glad and grateful they invited me to tag along. If I live close to the ocean when I have my own family, this will undoubtedly be one of our family traditions. Pack all the kiddies in the car with an enormous blanket, sweatshirts, pillows to sleep in the car with, and cinnamon rolls. Then when we arrive to the shore, we'll write our names in the sand and watch as the water captures our names, as my kids will capture the memory. Then we'll sit close together on our gigantic blanket as we watch the sun climb onto the horizon. I'm not sure why I have been doing this, but I've recently been thinking and recording in my mind things I want to do with my children in the future. I know, it's really strange. But it just makes me more excited to have my own family, and more grateful for my own family. This morning was undoubtedly one of the best ways to start off my day this whole summer. 

Oh, and Elder Leland James Sikahema comes home in five days. Put THAT in your pipe and smoke it. 

Philadelphia Freedom

   I never thought it'd be possible to attend a concert containing two musical geniuses. I certainly couldn't contain myself the whole night. Billy Joel and Elton John. The piano gods. The concert was held in Citizens Bank Park-The Phillies stadium. So when Elton started playing the train like chords and started with "I used to  be a Rolling Stone, you know..." the stadium caused as much pandemonium as the blessed day the Phillies won the World Series. I'm pretty sure that if Elton John was living during 1776 he would have been the first one to sign the Declaration of Independence. Even though he's from England, Philadelphia Freedom would have been the nation's anthem. The song conveyed absolute freedom. Everyone was on their feet when it began, and whether you were drunk out of your pants or completely healthy, you were belting the chorus. "Philadelphia Freedom, I love you...yes I do."