Phelps Phan!

It might be because I used to be a swimmer, but any time the Summer Olympics take place, I am glued to the screen during the swimming races. I love the gymnastics as well, but (and I think this year especially) nothing gets my heart pumping quite like those swimming races. This year, there's this 23-year-old "superman" of sorts, Michael Phelps, who is pursuing a mind-blowing eight gold medals. As I am writing this, he has earned six of those eight and I am eager with anticipation because he goes for number seven in about an hour and a half west-coast time. If you have not heard of Michael Phelps, you must have been living under a rock or have no access to a computer or television. Since I was not alive when Mark Spitz earned his seven gold medals, even though I have heard about it, it's Michael Phelps who is making an impression on me right now. With all of the pressure of what he is trying to accomplish in Beijing, I don't know how he holds it together. I even saw an interview with Mark Spitz and he said that when he swam, nobody was really paying attention to him until gold medal number five...then suddenly the media decided to start covering what was going on at the swimming pool; not the case for Phelps. He has had a camera following every move since even before Beijing. He emerged in Athens and has, since then, been focused on the Beijing Olympics with his sights set on breaking Spitz's record. I am filled with admiration because he is amazing...and because I know, in a very small way, about all those nerves leading up to a swimming race and standing on the racing block waiting to hear the start signal. I still get butterflies every time I think about it and my admiration for Phelps and all those swimmers is growing daily...mostly because I know they have those same butterfllies and nerves, but have figured out a way to use them to their advantage. I am in awe of the talented Phelps and cannot wait to see him attempt to break even more records.
And did you see the mens 4x100 relay? I think those moments watching that race might be the most exciting moments of my life in recent months. I couldn't even sit down. I might have even shed a tear at the end and during the medal ceremony. To see those four men work together to make that gold medal a reality was phenomenal...but the most phenomenal part of the race for me was Jason Lezak's come-from-behind sprint to bring home the gold. Considering the French and their promise to "smash" the Americans, seeing the French get beat made the win even more satisfying. I think Michael Phelps, if he does end up bringing home eight gold medals, will need to give a huge thank you to all of his teammates in the relays...because three of those gold will be from relay races. Swimming in Michael Phelps's shadow is probably somewhat difficult, but I, for one, have loved watching the incredible talent of all the United States' swimmers as well as talented swimmers from other countries.
Don't even get me started on the incredible performances by the US women gymnasts in the all-around last night! GO USA!

I love my family!

This picture is from last summer, but I thought I should post it because it shows a large portion of my family on my mom's side. We had a fun-filled family reunion at my sister and brother-in-law's ranch in Donnelly, Idaho. I am in the back, second from the left with my brother-in-law, Barry next to me. My sister, Stephanie, is in the back also, second from the right. My brother, Billy, is in the back, 4th from the right. My mom, Annette, is the gorgeous lady sitting in the chair on the left.

The reunion was full of gorgeous scenery and fun adventures that can only be had in the beautiful mountains of Idaho. We missed Aunt Ruby, but they had another reunion this summer in June (in Texas), so she was able to enjoy that one. Unfortunately, I couldn't go to that reunion due to scheduling conflicts with the end of my school year, but I will definitely be at the next one! Family reunions are always so refreshing and a good reminder of how fortunate we all are to have loving families. I know how blessed I am and am thankful every day!

Camping in Newport Beach

I have come to the realization that I have a love/hate relationship with camping. I love seeing the sights, taking pictures, playing card games around the campfire, s'mores; I dislike the bathroom/shower situation and feeling dirty. Some campsites have nice bathrooms and showers (Newport Dunes had decent ones, but even with nicer ones, I still have a hard time showering in community showers.) and others might not have either. Some places have showers and charge you a load of quarters for a 1 minute shower, so really, I was thankful that Newport Dunes had decent bathrooms with showers and we didn't even have to pay for the showers. I have some friends who just LOVE camping--and tent camping at that-- and will camp under any circumstances, even if there are no bathrooms or showers. I am not one of those people. When I get invited by friends to go camping, if there are showers, I will usually agree to go because I love spending time with my friends.
When my friends Kevin and Tara invited me to go camping with them in Newport Beach last week, I was totally excited. Not only is Newport Beach beautiful, but the campsite had bathrooms, showers, a pool, game room, and lots of other perks. Kevin and Tara also have a tent trailer and that sealed the deal. They also had tickets to an Angels game that we attended while down there. (I had never been to Angel Stadium and I was quite impressed--it is much nicer than Dodger Stadium.) We had so much fun interacting with Ella (Kevin and Tara's beautiful little girl), relaxing, reading, seeing the sights on Balboa Island, swimming, playing card games at night, and yes, there were even s'mores! On Wednesday night, Kevin's sister came out to visit and beat us all at cards. She had not seen Ella for a long time, and it was fun to catch that reunion on film.I was so thankful they invited me. We had a great time and it was another nice break from the desert. I don't have much time before school starts, so I am trying to live it up and enjoy this time as much as I can! Hope you are all enjoying your summer too.

Facebook and Other Random Things

I am not sure how many of my friends and family know about this wonderful invention called "Facebook," so I am going to enlighten those who are unfamiliar and just generally rave about how much fun it is! If you know anything about the internet, you have probably heard of Myspace. I am not sure which came first--Myspace or Facebook--but I prefer Facebook. Both are basically online social networks. If I remember the history correctly, however, Facebook (you can check the whole story on Wikipedia) started as an online college networking tool. I think many of us remember having "facebooks" in college--those handy dandy little books that helped us find (stalk?) people and their contact information. Well, Facebook--the online version--is basically the same thing, just on the internet. Awhile back, Facebook became open to anybody 18 and older and is growing every day as people join in on the craze. I suspect college students who used to use it exclusively are probably annoyed by this, but I am personally so thankful for it. This fantastic tool has allowed me to reconnect with some very dear friends from high school and college. Without this network, I doubt I would have been able to get back in touch with so many! It has also allowed me to stay in touch more frequently with friends from the past and present, regardless of how many miles might be between us. The great thing about a network like Facebook is that it allows you to (very easily, I might add) create sort of a blog, but with even less work. (I don't mean to imply that updating or changing this blog is difficult. All I have to do is type a few words and click a few buttons--they do the rest!) Facebook is a blast and I highly recommend that everyone get a Facebook because I am sure you all need just one more fun distraction! ;-)

On another note, my mom mentioned that she was annoyed by the music here on my blog, so for those that might be of the same mindset (although I am not sure how this could be since it's all such fun music!), I just wanted to make sure you were aware that all you have to do in order to stop the music from playing is hit the pause button at the top on the left-hand side of the green music player. That way you can read with no musical distraction...but I don't know how much fun that would be. In the spirit of taking Mom's suggestion, however, I wanted to mention it just in case anybody else was thinking the same thing!

Finally (and completely randomly), my hair is really bothering me. I am at the weird "in-between-short-and-long" stage and it is really bothering me. I am tired of short, so I am growing it out, but since there are layers (and I suspect that anybody who has dealt with growing out layers before will agree) it is very difficult. It's at that awkward time that the growing layers just aren't long enough, but my bangs are too long. I don't want to go and get a trim since I feel like that will defeat the whole point of letting it grow out. To make matters worse, due to the naturally curly factor, as I have been going on vacations and visiting places with high humidity, I have learned high humidity + heat + sweat + curly hair = disaster. It's never good when I choose to put my hair in pony tails and put on a hat for every event. Another disturbing discovery...GRAY HAIR. I have noticed a few here and there, but the other day, I started noticing a lot when I was pulling my hair back for the pony tails and hat look. I would like to say that I am growing older gracefully, but with such dark brown hair, I suspect I am going to be paying a lot more $$ to Michele at Priscilla's Salon from now on. As if haircuts aren't already expensive enough! On that note, it just reminds me how short and precious our time is on this planet. Which means I need to go now and use it wisely and be a light to those I am about to come across as I head to Target. :-)