Being a Dilley

Ok, so pretty much I have the best cousins ever. And I'm not just saying that. Sometimes I feel like we are more like siblings than cousins. I probably hang out with them more than anyone else. We do some pretty cool stuff too. Like last night my cousin Travis who just got home from the Dominican Republic taught me some jujitsu moves. We play card games for hours, watch the Office and Avatar (last air bender, not the movie), and go on the best vacations. I don't mean to the coolest places but just have the most fun. Whether its camping, boating, Las Vegas, or North Dakota, we always have a blast.


This coming Wednesday, all of my cousins on my Mom's side are going up to North Dakota. Everyone (even Clarke and Nathan) is going. Thank goodness we like each other or the 18 hour car ride would be horrible. We're going up to the reservation and are going to learn about more of our heritage and traditions from tribal elders. We also get to go to a pow wow, and some of us might even get to receive our indian names. I'm super excited! I know it will be tons of fun because even though we are going to be in the middle of nowhere, I'll be with my cousins.

I feel extremely lucky to be blessed with the cousins I have. Not everyone is close to their cousins or even have very many. Some people haven't even met all their cousins. My word of advise? Get to know them, then make them your best friends. Family will be there your whole life; unlike friends they never change or go away. You might as well like them right? Being a Dilley in our family is more than just a last name. Being a Dilley comes with a love for lots of food and cuddling, the "Dilley grace", a weird sense of humor, and an unnatural talent for napping. Even though this picture is a couple of year old, I think it describes the Dilley Clan perfectly!

Hmm...

Two weeks. That's it, just two weeks. I'm still deciding if that seems like forever or a blink of an eye. On one hand, this has definitely been the hardest year for me academically. Full of stressful classes and sleepless nights. I feel like The Little Engine that Could, telling myself over and over "I think I can, I think I can". Summer is in reach, and I'm almost there. But then I stop and realize, this school year ending means next year I will be a senior. A senior. Being a senior means college prep and growing up. That's not supposed to happen for a long time, yet in two weeks it's going to happen. Scary huh? So, two weeks, here I come!

Spaghetti Dinner

Every year the young women in my ward hold a fund raiser for girls camp. Usually we do some sort of breakfast or a dinner. This year we did a spaghetti dinner. It was super fun and a big success. We did something a little different this year and had a dessert auction with cakes, homemade breads, pies, and other yummies. I made a berry trifle to be auctioned off. As I was making it, my dad told me he would buy it no matter what. He loves trifle and even though he is probably the most frugal person I know, I knew he meant it.

After dinner the auction started. Most everything was going anywhere from 15-25 dollars. When my trifle came up to be auctioned off my dad started the bidding high. You could tell he meant business. But other members of our ward weren't going to let him have it easy and the bidding war began. His biggest competition? My mom! She got really into the whole auction thing and liked to drive up the prices, bidding on almost everything and against everyone, including my dad. Once my dad realized what was going on, he went over and sat by her so he could "monitor" her. Even after my parents stopped bidding against each other, the bidding war continued with other ward members. My dad eventually won. Guess how much my trifle went for? It went for $60!!! It was the hit of the evening.

She & Him

One of my newest music obsessions has been with the band She & Him. They are very unique and even quirky, but I absolutely love them. And today, I just found out they are coming to Salt Lake this summer! To make things even better, the concert is at the park and its FREE!! I will definitely be there. All in all, good day :) :)

Celebration

So as I mentioned in my last post today is National Eat What You Want Day. In celebration I decided to make cinnamon rolls. Not just any cinnamon rolls but huge, gooey, delicious cinnamon rolls. I knew the only place to find such a recipe for these desired rolls would be A Bountiful Kitchen. It just so happened that she had posted a new cinnamon roll recipe. Now that I'm finished with all my AP classes, I actually have time to cook, something I had to cut out in order to study. It was really fun to be cooking again. The cinnamon rolls turned out yummy, guessing from how fast my family ate them :)

ATTENTION:

I felt it was my duty to inform everyone that tomorrow, May 11, happens to be Eat What You Want Day. I am completely serious and if you don't believe me feel free to look it up. I am disappointed I was not aware of this holiday the last 17 years of my life, but now that I do, I plan on enjoying it. So tomorrow, bring out the ice cream, cookies, cakes, chips, and chocolate. Enjoy and don't feel guilty :)

To My Mommy:

One down, one to go

My brain is fried, my social life is non-existent, and I have never looked forward to summer more. I feel like all I do is study and do homework (with volleyball squeezed into any spare time). Eating and sleeping has turned into a treat rather than a necessary activity. Last weekend, my friends had to come kidnap me to hang out with them complaining that they never see me anymore and all I do is study. Unfortunately, there accusations are completely accurate.

Today I took the first of my two AP exams. I was my Calculus test and it lasted about 3 1/2 hours long (with a 15 minute donut break). Then on Friday I take the AP American History exam, which I have dreaded all year. Hopefully my studying will have paid off, and I can resume a normal life again. Thank goodness for Jack Johnson, chocolate animal crackers, and study sessions with Jessica for getting me this far. Only two more days and then I'm free!! Good luck to everyone else who is taking AP/IB exams these next few week :)

Now off to the library!