The Meaning Behind My Name

    After seeing Elizabeth Dubinsky make a status on Facebook about the meaning behind her name, it made me think about my name, and it's meaning.

      I've known for awhile that the meaning behind the name "Alexa" and "Alex" was "defender of mankind", but never really how that correlated with my life. I didn't really think it did. "Defender of mankind" seems like such a huge task. But then I thought about what has the most meaning for me in life, and it does have to do with defending. A big part of my life story is defending the lives of the unborn. It also has to do with defending my friends, and defending those with special needs. Showing the world that each life is important, and it matters no matter how different someone may be. Loving people and showing them that they matter, defending their lives and seeing them as sacred.

     My parents thought they were picking a random name, but all along God had brought the name to them. A name that has been molded around my life. It's so cool to look up your name and have it totally fit your life's purpose and story.

   

California Trip: Day 4

    My bed in the cottage was next to large windows overlooking the ocean, so I had literally fallen asleep to the sound of ocean waves. We all got up early again, which was surprisingly easy during this trip. (I wasn't as tired as usual).  I actually slept the best this night even though I was most likely to sleep the worst that night due to excitement. (Meeting Ryan Ross later that night). Today my friend Katie cooked all a dozen eggs for breakfast. At this cottage there was a hot plate. It took a long time to cook the eggs. but we didn't have to feel like we were being wasteful then.

   While the eggs we're being cooked, we walked along the shore of the beach one last time. Playing on the beach one last time. There was a lot of crab shells. Lizzie and Anna had gotten a bag of items from the gift store, and when we weren't looking a seagull almost robbed us. The seagull actually ate a hole in the bag before we chased it away. We put the pile of scrambled eggs on a plate and each took a fork and ate, while looking out a big window which overlooked the ocean.

       

    Today was my day to get to plan activities, due to it being the day of the Christmas show(Ryan Ross performance). In advance I ordered tickets online for a Hollywood Tour. We were nervous we were going to miss it, due to traffic. But we managed to get there just in time. On the Hollywood Tour we got to lookout at the Hollywood sign at Muholland Drive, look at celebrity homes, look at crime scenes, and see other historical sites. Some features include "the" Hotel California, where Jim Carey got his start, where Britney Spears shaved her head, and Iron Man's house from Iron Man 2. We decided to get off the tour bus on Hollywood Boulevard instead of riding back to the parking lot. Here we did the obligatory Walk of Fame, and looked at celebrities footprints and handprints (Hollywood's a place you only need to see once and never again, it's not too exciting, it's more hyped up then anything.) The Walk of Fame is a sidewalk not it's own area. I got my obligatory picture with The Beatles star. 

     After exploring the stars, we decided to find a restaurant on Sunset Boulevard. We settled for a restaurant called Rock N' Roll Sushi and ate outside. My left over Pad Thai leaked from the left over container onto my dress. It was the dress I was supposed to wear to the show, but luckily Lizzie let me borrow hers. Luckily my camera covered the orange stain, until we had time to change. 

   Since the Guitar Center of Hollywood was nearby we walked over there after lunch, and it had me awestruck. There were hundreds of different guitars. Some famous music stars also had there handprints and footprints outside the store. Since it was my day we were hoping we could go explore Venice Beach or Santa Monica but sadly that would of been a 50min drive from Hollywood, and we weren't going to risk getting to the show late. So instead we drove to Cinnaholic, a place where you can get a custom ordered cinnamon roll. I ordered a cinnamon roll with cake batter frosting and rainbow sprinkles. Best cinnamon rolls ever. 

  Before the show we went to the fanciest looking Starbucks to change, do makeup, and hair to prepare for the show. (Since I already posted about my experience with the show I will not repeat the details.)  

California Trip: Day 3

   Today we actually did the unthinkable, and woke up to see the sunrise. The breeze off the water was pretty cold. We had to wake up at around 6:30 to see the sunrise. But it was incredible.

   
     We had breakfast at the restaurant on the beach. We shared these powdered baguette things that tasted like funnel cake.

       We were told by the cottage staff, that they'd know if we could stay another night if we came to the office at 11am. We decided to stay and wait, so we spent the morning playing by the water. My friends Anna and Lizzie got soaked during this endeavor. 

                      

      When it got to be 11, my friend Katie went up to the office to see about another night. It turned out she won another night at the cottages by the flip of a coin. There was another family trying to get in at the exact same time. You can't convince me, that this wasn't a miracle, especially with the day before. If we had barely gotten the cottages this day, how did we get a night at the cottages at 3ish in the afternoon, without anyone snagging it for exactly 4 people? The cottage available was a different one, but it was again for 4 people. We were relieved. We then made our decent to Joshua Tree National Park which was a 2 hour trek away. Driving through the desert was pretty boring, so we were kind of nervous the park would be a dud, but it wasn't. It had amazing views, and the boulders were fun to climb on. We first attempted to climb Ryan Mountain, we thought we were almost to the top when a mother and a daughter told us we were only half way up. I was literally dying by then so we decided to climb up the boulders in the park instead. Joshua Trees look like something out of Dr. Suess. 

        It was after sunset when we got back to the cottages. Our cottage this time was larger, so we were sharing it with two other groups. A couple and a few women. We tried to get into the wrong room at first. We thought our room was letter B....turned out it was letter D. We were pretty sure the room we were trying to get in to, was for a couple having sex. I immediately went to the office, before I knew we had misheard the letter, and he made the correction. (Thank goodness, we were the ones that made the mistake and the couple hadn't accidentally just had sex in the room we were staying in.) 

California Trip Day 2

      Here comes the most stressful day of the trip. However, although it was very stressful, we were all able to keep it together. This is also when the biggest miracle of our trip happened as well. The day didn't slowly turn into a bad day. It was a stressful day from the start.

     I was awoken to shouts of, "Our car got towed." Turns out we had parked in someone else's spot, and they had called the tow truck sometime during the few hours that we were there. My friends weren't sure if our rental car had gotten stolen or not at first. They went to the front office, where they found we were apart of a scam. The lady who rented us her Air BnB was doing so illegally. The apartment complex does not allow people to rent out apartments as Air BNBs. We didn't think much of it at the time, but this encounter would eventually lead us to getting kicked out of our Air BNB. 

   We told the lady renting out the Air BNB about what had happened, and went to pick up our car. Before calling a Lyft we went to a cafe next door. This is where I experienced my first taste of fresh California orange juice. I drank it all in about 10 minutes. We then took a Lyft to the towing company, then went to Walmart to buy food for our trip. Assuming we would be at the Air BNB the rest of the trip. 

   It was Lizzie's day due to it being the hottest day of the trip, in the 70's, and wanting to explore beaches. We went to Crystal Cove to explore Newport Beach, and had a picnic on the beach. It totally felt like we were in a secluded village, and again it was peaceful. There was a Christmas Tree set up on the beach as well. We laid our towels on the sand and laid down until we got the call that we were kicked out of our Air BNB. The Air BNB hostess had sent my friend who had booked it a series of documents right before we arrived. Like a half hour before. She frantically filled them out without reading them. In one of the documents it stated that she would not tell anyone about what had happened. So when they had told the front desk, they had broken the agreement. 

    

   While relaxing at the beach we were told we were basically stranded in California without a place to stay that night. We all rushed, going online to look for cheap housing. We had noticed that there were cottages on the beach, so we went up to the gift shop to ask about these cottages. It turned out that a 4 person room in a cottage would cost $71 a night. The catch was these cottages were always booked out, and reserved 6 months in advance due to popularity. She told us we could go to the front desk however and see if they had anything. After praying, we went up to the front desk, and to our surprise there was one room yet to be rented out. A 4 person room. It was too perfect to be a coincidence. We were so excited. We were excited to be able to come back to the beach after spending almost no time there, and the cottages were super cute. We definitely struck gold. God had our backs that day, and had our backs again the next day, you'll see why. 

    We left the beach to go get our stuff out of the Air BNB. We splurged on this Air BNB. It was a higher price then most Air BNBs we had been looking at. But we wanted to do it due to the perfect location and the luxury of a hot tub. This was definitely not your typical scam. All the reviews online were really good, so there is no way we could of prepared for this malfunction. Since our Air BNB was next to Newport Pier we decided to check it out before heading back to our beach house. Once at our beach house, we explored the beach at night with flashlights. Although it was much cooler to explore the beach in the daylight. 

    Two of my other friends stayed and sat down by the beach while my other friend and I went back up to the cottage. We met the other person living in our cottage. His name was Vince, and he was very sweet. We told him about all that had happened that day, and he offered us a mostly full bottle of wine. The cottage had a refrigerator which we were happy for, so all the food we had bought wouldn't get spoiled. Although the stove in the cottage was just for decoration. The cottages were made to look like when they were built in the 30's. 

California Trip Day 1

    Since we got into LA late Tuesday night. I'm going to talk about Tuesday and Wednesday in this post. Tuesday contained a lot of stress as it was Finals week, and I crammed everything into Tuesday. I do not wish to remember the stress I felt that day so I'll start with after my schoolwork was done.

    I got my hair done right before the trip. It just so happened the girl had availability on the day I was leaving. After I got my hair done, I packed up my car and was picked up by my friends in Kenosha. From there we made our way to O'Hare in Chicago. On the way we took turns choosing songs to listen to. When we got to the airport, we found out our flight was delayed an hour, so we had to wait in the airport for 3 hours once we got settled in. However we found a nice area with comfy couches and drank Christmas flavored Starbucks coffee as we waited.

    The flight there wasn't very memorable. It was a big airplane so there was a lot of space and I got the whole row of seats to myself. I think we got to LA at around midnight, and from there we took a Lyft to our hotel for the night from LAX. It was a bit concerning when after we told the Lyft driver where we were headed she said it was on a bad side of town. A 7 on a scale of 10 of how sketchy of an area it was. The Lyft driver had lived in LA for 30 years, so I was definitely worried for our safety that night. She told us it was a nice hotel however, and we did survive. There were no complaints besides it being pretty cold, and a dog barking at night. (The Lyft driver was the sweetest lady).

    The next morning my friend Anna got to plan the day. She had seen a video on  Buzzfeed of cool restaurants in LA so we decided to try one of them out for breakfast. This restaurant was called The Griddle Cafe. At the Griddle Cafe you can order 5 pounds of pancakes as bigger than your head. The waiter mislead me into getting two pancakes, I didn't know you could order just one. I ordered a pancake named "Mounds of Pleasure". Mounds of Pleasure contained powdered sugar, vanilla flavored whipped cream, and a bunch of coconut pieces. I had left overs for days. We weren't hungry again until late that evening. (As you can see the pancakes don't even fit on the plate.)

    To walk off the large breakfasts we had consumed we went to Ferndale. Ferndale makes it seem like your walking through an indoor botanical garden, or next to zoo exhibits. At the end of one of the trails was an outdoor cafe, where we stopped for a couple minutes. It was a beautiful, peaceful spot. Although one of the picnic tables outside was made to look like a Oujji board. Only in California.... (Other strange things about California include billboards with pictures of women in weed bikinis with the caption "Get the Grass", a lot of people you meet are stoned, signs on the side of the road that read "Hump" instead of "Bump". 

    Are next stop was to the Brotsmann Cave and Canyon. A lot of movies were filmed here, including Batman. You walk through the cave, into a valley on the other side. From the valley, you can climb up the side of the hills to see the Hollywood sign. It was really beautiful, and peaceful as well. 

      

     From here Anna decided she wanted to go to "The Getty." "The Getty" is an art museum in LA. After going to "The Getty" I realized that art museums aren't really my thing, at all. I also almost knocked a painting off the wall, so there's that. Looking at paintings on the wall is just not very intriguing to me, however there was a great view of LA from "The Getty." We also got to see the sunset. 

    Next stop was Rodando Pier for toe rings. I was not peer pressured into getting a toe ring, instead I got pineapple earrings. A lot of stores were closed at that time, but not that cute tiki looking shop. Finally, after we were done visiting the pier we were somewhat hungry. Since we were in California, we felt obligated to go to In N' Out. The burgers were pretty good for being fast food burgers, although the fries were stale. (I've heard the fries always suck though?) (Another random thing I noticed about California is that they don't decorate very much for Christmas, there were only a few houses decorated for Christmas, and decorations here and there. Nothing like how Wisconsin does Christmas or Chicago.) 

    After trying out In N' Out we checked in to our Air BNB. We were supposed to stay there for 3 nights, but only ended up staying there for about 8 hours. The next post will go into why. Since our Air BNB had a hot tub, once we loaded everything into the room we got on our swimsuits. The apartment complex where we were staying also had an outdoor pool. We could only stay in the hot tub so long however because it was after 10pm when we got there. We then went back to the room, made 4 boxes of macaroni and cheese, and watched part of "The Holiday" which partially takes place in LA. 

The Z-berg and Ryan Ross Christmas Show

     As stated previously, my main reason for going to LA was to see Ryan Ross perform. Right now he is my favorite celebrity, and has taken part of my heart. (You're all probably gagging....I'm sorry)

    We got to the Pico Union Project around 7:20, with the concert starting at 8:30 and the doors opening at 8. Since a lot of Ryan's fans are also fans of Panic! At the Disco, most of the fanbase was younger. Although they're were quite a few people my age as well. Before going to the concert I found some people online who were going to the show, and we had a groupchat set up to talk about the show beforehand. Most of them actually hung out outside the venue for hours before the show. (Don't worry they were all really nice, and who they said they were.) If was strange meeting a group of people from across the United States that came from Twitter.

   The friend's I went to California with were true sports. None of them had been fans of Ryan Ross before the show, but even though they didn't know his music they were excited for me. They even did my makeup and hair before we arrived at the show. When I got into the venue, I didn't even stop at the merch table. I wanted a close spot, and I did get one...on the floor. The thing about this show was that it was smaller. It had a capacity of 350 people, so it was a very intimate space. The venue was an old synagogue made music venue. There were pews, but wide aisles. Since it was a concert I thought it would be okay to stand in these aisles at the front. (It turns out no one actually stood at this concert, until the last song.) We got mixed answers when asking if it were okay for us to stand there. Some people said yes. But a guy told us not to stand in front in the aisles so I sat instead. It was awkward because most people stood in the back, instead of siting in the aisles when the pews were filled.

   However, the other acts when they weren't on stage would sit off to the side of the stage on the ground behind a barrier. I thought that maybe if someone came to tell me to move I could always pretend to be a photographer for the venue, with my professional camera, or blend in with the other performers. No one asked me to move...and a few others besides one of my friends sat up there with me. I think Ryan and I made eye contact at least 5x during the night. Right before one of the times Ryan went on, he peaked out the side door, smiled and waved. This was during the time that Z-berg was talking so most people were focused on what he was saying. I told a girl sitting near me about it, and she thought I was joking. I actually couldn't believe it myself.

   Being so close to the stage was incredible, but meeting them, hugging them, and talking to them was even more incredible. I didn't feel like I was actually living most of the show. My friend told me I went completely still, like I forgot how to breathe when Ryan came on stage. I wanted to take in every moment. During one song, when he was done doing back up vocals he just sat on stage. If you haven't heard their music I highly recommend checking it out.

   After the show was over, my friend and I wasted no time standing in the back of the room where they said they would meet fans. Thankfully I was one of the first people to meet them. (I wasn't leaving until I did, and that would of meant my friends waiting extra long). It was important that they made a connection with each fan, so they spent a couple minutes talking with each fan. I was at a loss of what to say with Z, but was prepared with Ryan. Thank goodness I could get myself to speak to the man. His mannerisms are so gentleman-like, and he smiles and gives perfect eye contact so you feel like you really matter to him. I wrote down what we talked about so I wouldn't forget. I'm so glad they took the time to speak with each fan more than 30 seconds. When I met Tyler Oakley and Shane Dawson you were super rushed by security. So it was more like a meet, greet, and leave. ha ha.

   So here's how the conversation went. I said hi and introduced myself to him, he introduced himself back. (In retrospect I think it would of been really funny to act like I didn't already know). I had brought him a gift for Christmas which contained Christmas candy and a bandanna for his dog. (He took a video of himself putting the bandanna on his dog, and I'm still shook). Before the show as well I had gotten other fans to donate to a dog rescue that Ryan supported. He seemed confused when I told him about this, though and asked if I was from California since the dog rescue was located in Southern California. I told him that I was actually from Wisconsin and flew in Tuesday after Finals (that really showed my age ha ha). He asked what I had seen in California, and I told him it was my first time seeing palm trees and the Pacific Ocean and how I had visited Newport. He agreed that Newport was a beautiful place. He then asked how long I was staying for, and I told him how I was going to be leaving tomorrow. He wished me a safe flight then we took a picture together and I hugged him.
   
   Both of them signed my ticket for the show. I literally didn't know what to say to Z so I kind of just told her I thought she was really pretty and that she sounded really good singing ha ha. When I asked for a picture she told me to hug her body, which I did. They are the sweetest humans and I love them so much. I might have to make another trip out to LA next year just to see them again. Until then I'll just run a fan blog I guess, and try to get noticed by them ha ha.

Who's Ryan Ross?

     As you may have noticed, I went to California for a couple days. My main reason for going to California was to see Ryan Ross perform and meet him. But who is Ryan Ross, and why would I fly all the way to LA to see him. You're in luck as, in this post I will answer these questions.

     So who the heck is Ryan Ross? If you don't recognize his name, you might recognize the name of the band he started, which is still famous to this day. The band that he started is called Panic! At the Disco. The last remaining member, and lead singer of Panic! is Brendon Urie, who has a more famous name at the moment. Panic's most famous songs include: "I Write Sins Not Tragedies", "High Hopes", "This is Gospel", "Nine in the Afternoon", and "Miss Jackson."

   So why Ryan Ross and not Brendon Urie, if Brendon Urie's the most relevant one now? Back story. So during the summer I went to my first Panic! At the Disco concert. Not wanting to be a fake fan, I dug deep into their history. The original band members, the split, how they became famous, etc. I watched old interviews, and old concerts. While watching one of the older concerts, I noticed that I really liked the background singers/guitarist's voice a lot. Since no one usually notices the background singer, I didn't think the comments would mention him at all, but tons did. As I watched the interviews and old concert videos, I noticed we had a lot of similarities. Ryan wrote most of the songs for the first two albums, and the lyrics are filled with deep meaning and intelligent words.

    Ryan is a writer, and a guitarist. He is soft spoken. He's witty. He's overlooked. He's misunderstood. He's filled with joy. He's soft spoken. He's humble. He's kind. Whereas Brendon Urie is loud, energetic, seen. Ryan also writes more of the music I'm into. Ryan writes more acoustic songs with deep lyrics, whereas Brendon writes catchy songs that are more modern pop sounding.

    Okay but that still doesn't answer the question of why you flew all the way to LA to see this dude perform. The thing is after Panic! split Ryan became increasingly less famous. From the top, slowly sliding down the ladder. He kind of went into hiding after 2011. He stopped posting anything online. Only occasionally after 2013. But in May, 2018 he came back on the scene, and did a show with a close friend, Z-berg. He also did a show in September, as well as the one I went to in December. I'm blessed that in the same year I came to low Ryan Ross, is the same year he began performing again. He recently released a new song on December 10th of this year. I do believe Ryan Ross will become relevant again and maybe even tour the US in the future once again.

    So who's Z-berg, and how does she relate to Ryan. Z is one of Ryan Ross's ex girlfriends. Ryan and Z's relationship was really toxic, and they decided they'd be better off as friends. They've become close as the years have gone on and she's his best friend now. The Bad List, the song that just came out is about the toxicity of their past relationship. Z never did become as famous as Ryan did, but her voice is of a singer that might as well be famous. She has a really beautiful voice, and interacts easily with fans. She is originally from the band "Phases" and "The Like". I'd highly recommend listening to her work. (Since this post has been long enough...I will post about the show in a separate post, along with the other parts of my LA/California experience.)

It's been almost 3 years now, and I wonder if you still think about me,
I think of you quite a bit.
I try to think of you in a non-bitter way.
The happiness you brought,
The memories we made.
We thought nothing would pull us apart.
And when it did I tried to pick up the pieces
You left them where they were.
But maybe it's Better this way.
At least I try to convince myself of that.
I fell to deep, and you weren't there to catch me this time.
You let me fall, and I didn't even see the moment you walked away.
You were long gone when I noticed.
I'm still left to question,
If that had never happened where'd we be.
Would you have grown any older
3 years has felt like 10 for me.
19 then but at least 29 now.
Or would you still be the same.
Did God.protect me from you,
Or were you only meant to stay for a season.
After all this time
I loved you,  and I love you,
And I still wish you the best.
  From: A best friend of the past

The Other Band Members

   This post is dedicated to the other members in a band besides the lead person. They deserve to be looked at as well, and not forgotten. Specifically I will be focusing on Panic! at the Disco, as I have been listening to them the most lately. But to start mentioning some other bands as well. twenty-one pilots isn't just Tyler Joseph, The Beatles wasn't just John Lennon, Panic! at the Disco wasn't just Brendon Urie. (Although now it is just Brendon Urie.)

    Before seeing Panic! at the Disco last week I only really knew about Brendon Urie. I knew the past members first names, but that was really it. Understandably so, since the band is just Brendon Urie now. When I get into a band however, I get invested. I research. I look at their old music, or music not in the limelight, and within that past weekish, I discovered quite a lot. It's so easy to celebrate the band member in the limelight, or like the songs from the band that are popular on the radio, but there's much more to it than that. Most of a band's best songs, don't actually ever end up on the radio. Maybe you have not discovered a potential favorite song, due to only hearing/knowing the songs on the radio. (I'm not saying that all of the songs on the radio suck, and it's okay if one of the songs is your favorite from an artist, but it's likely not.) Most bands have over 50 songs.

    Okay, but what did I discover in my week. I found Ryan Ross, the past guitarist and backup vocals of Panic! at the Disco. A master lyricist. A man with a great passion, and excellent harmonies. After watching live performances with the past members I felt I struck gold. (One song in particular which I probably have listened to about 100x by now, being "Time to Dance" specifically the Live in Denver version.) Yes, Brendon Urie is a really amazing singer, but with Ryan Ross doing harmonies in the background made it all that much better. So did the lyrics he wrote, which had a lot of depth to them, which some of Brendon Urie's lyrics lack today.In the recorded versions of the songs, on the Panic albums you can only distinctly hear Ryan's voice, and I think people are really missing out on what he brought to the band. (Brendon Urie was put in the limelight, and really never left.) The fans focused on him, since he was the lead singer, and arguably the best-looking.) This is one of the reasons Ryan ended up leaving. (He saw Brendon's potential, and asked him to be the lead singer instead of himself, and after that it seemed people only focused on Brendon.)

   This is not to say that people need to ignore Brendon Urie. Brendon Urie is multi-talented, if I didn't think so, I would have never went to see him. I'm saying that I wonder what Panic! would have turned into if Ryan had remained in the band. How different everything would have ended up. I truly think greater things would have happened then what did. Just remember that a bands not just the lead singer, the other band members all have something to offer. In my case this means listening to Panics! first two albums on repeat, when all the pieces were brought into one, and following Ryan's new musical career. (What I've been really grateful to see is on YouTube clips of their old music people really do appreciate the other members, and it isn't all just about Brendon, it's wishing that they were all still together in the band, mostly, which warms my heart, that even when they're no longer in the band, the fans of Panic! still really appreciate them.) I do like Panic's presplit music, but I've found I am really attached to the first two albums now.

    I give mad props for Brendon Urie producing two albums all on his own, and I am proud of his successes of course. I'm not bitter, I still keep up with how he's doing. His voice is seriously incredible, being able to sing low notes, and the really high notes as well, but yeah please don't forget about the other members of your favorite bands. :) Even if the lead is your favorite member, appreciate the others in the bands talents as well, and what they bring. Encourage them. :)

Colorado Family Vacation

   All the details of what we did, and the restaurants we went to. I went with my parents and brother, and sister in law.

Day 1: (June 9th):
          My first flight. I only slept two hours Friday night in anticipation for this flight. I was both nervous and excited for this new experience. Since it was my first flight I had, had silly airplane nightmares leading up to this point. Airplane dreams that weren't even scary just funny. I'm going to do a whole video on my misconceptions of flying in a later post. The problem with taking pictures in Colorado was that you would look at the picture you took, and back at the scenery and the photos would never come close to the beauty in the actual landscape. Same with the pictures I took out the window of the airplane.
           We flew into Denver early Saturday morning, getting there at about 7am. We left Milwaukee around 5am. We first went to a car rental place, then to breakfast. (The car that we rented was big but had no storage space. We had to put down the row of backseats to place the bags in. The remaining row, had a spot for the middle but it wasn't comfortable.)
           For breakfast we just went to Einsteins. I got a bagel with salmon dip spread, and a caramel latte or maybe it was a mocha. :p  There were a ton of dogs walking the streets of Denver, same with Estes Park, it was awesome.
           After breakfast we traveled to Red Rocks Ampitheatre. It turns out a ton of bands have actually played here, although it seems barely anyone has heard of it. Bands including all the rock'n'roll bands you can probably think of including: The Beatles, Led Zeppelin, and Lynyrd Skynard. Besides for the beauty of the ampitheatre, there was a little museum about the ampitheatres history along with list of all the bands who had ever played there. It was like going to a Hard Rock Café. Since it was morning, a lot of people were just exercising. The stairs were really steep. So strange. :)

       After our trip to Red Rock we stopped in Boulder. It was a pretty hot day, so there wasn't much to be done, but we did get to look at a Farmer's Market, and see a street performer while sitting in the shade. The street performer was pretty strange, but entertaining to watch. In his show he juggled fire and escaped from a straight jacket, all the while making uncomfortable/corny jokes. They also had a Lush store in boulder so I went in there to smell all the things, and had the smoothest hands afterwards.                                                                                                                                            

      When we finally made it to Estes Park we walked the Riverwalk. that goes right behind some little shops and restaurants in Estes Park. There are a lot of the same shops and restaurants that have been there for many years now, even though Estes Park has become a bigger tourist attraction now. We noticed in our time in Colorado, that a lot of people were actually from Wisconsin or somewhere in the Midwest. We even met a couple who said their daughter lived in Jackson. This is where my sister in law is from and a 15 minute drive from my hometown. We then went to the local grocery store for some food for the week and dinner. We couldn't check in until 4pm to our cabin, so we had to kill time. Once we got to the cabin, I passed out on a bed. The cabin we were staying in used to be a music hall, where people would hang out and watch performers. Our cabin came with an outdoor hot tub as well.                                                                                                                                     

   Here is a picture of one side of our cabin, this cabin had multiple rooms, and tons of seating/places to sleep. I think we may of had ice cream back in Estes Park to finish off the day. I got Peanut Butter Oreo ice cream.                                                                                                                                      

   Day 2: (June 10th): Today was our first full day being in Estes Park. To start out the day we visited Sprague Lake in Rocky Mountain National Park. The Park has gotten a lot more popular since we were there last, so it was hard to find a parking spot. For the more popular trails you needed to get a spot in the shuttle parking lot by 8:30ish if you wanted any chance of getting to the trails. Sprague Lake is a small path you can take around a lake, with the mountains in the background. It            was really windy on this day.  Here's a picture of proof of the wind. :P                                                      

    Next we drove on Trail Ridge Road. Trail Ridge Road is a road you can take up a mountain, to a visitor's center near the top. You have to be really confident in your driving, driving on this road, as  you could probably pretty easy drive off the mountain.                                                                       

   It was really windy at the top of the visitor's center as well, and none of us were dressed for how cold it was up there so we ran into the visitors center. After our time at the visitor's center which has a cool gift shop, we drove back down the mountain and had lunch at a place in town called Mama Rose's. Mama Roses is an Italian Restaurant. I ordered the meatball sub. We sat in the outside seating which was right on the riverwalk, so we could see dogs walking by.                                                    

         We then went back to the cabin to rest, then went out mini-golfing later. I came in 3rd out of 5 people. Which I think was good. This mini-golf course has been around since my brother and I were kids, it's still pretty cheap too. Mom, won a free game. After that we went and got ice cream for dinner. I got Nutella ice cream. My favorite. When we got back to the cabin, we utilized the outdoor hot tub. While hot tubbing, a deer walked by.                                                                                     

                                                                                                                   

       Day 3: (June 11th): Today was the day of the biggest hike, which was to Emerald Lake (10,110ft above sea level). Every time I do this hike, I wonder if I'll make it the whole way up. I always do, so does my mom, even with MS. While going up one of the steep parts in the beginning it felt like there was rocks in my lungs. One year I did this hike with a bad cold, so I knew if I could do that, I could do this too. Near the top of the trail was another elk. At the top it was windy, so we didn't stay too long. We went down a small bit and ate snacks. While eating these snacks a couple of chipmunks visited us. These chipmunks were pretty brave. In years past, the chipmunks have come up to us and looked in our hands for snacks, but this year they were actually crawling on our legs. They were so soft and cute. An older man hiking down the mountain warned us, not to let the chipmunks crawl on us, because they had fleas carrying the plague?   Besides being at the top of the mountain, the best feeling is walking down the mountain path. You get a second wind of energy, and most of the path is downhill. However, by this point you have noodle legs, so you have to be careful. To do this hike we left the cabin at around 8:30am I believe.                                                                                                

                   

Later in the evening around dusk we drove around Rocky Mountain National Park and saw a couple of elk. One had an injured leg, and it looked like his friends were coming to help him. One crossed the road right in front of a car. 

    We all used the hot tub that night for our sore legs. :)                                                                      

           Day 4 (June 12th): Souvenir shopping day. We all were too sore to do another hike, so we decided to look at most of the shops in downtown Estes, and got some cool Rocky Mountain National Park/Colorado merch. Before we did this however, we got breakfast. We went to a local bar for appetizers for lunch. I remember my hips hurting a lot, it was actually difficult for me to do all the shops, but I did it. We checked out the tram as well, but there was a long line, so we decided to go the next day.                                                                                                                                                    

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     Day 5 (June 13th): Today was another early day. Today we did a hike up to Alberta Falls. This hike was a short, easy 20min hike. I remember it being longer. We checked out the falls, then ate snacks while sitting on boulders.                                                                                                        

After Alberta Falls we returned to the Tram place. This time there wasn't a long line, so we were able to go up fairly quickly. The tram takes you to the top of Mount Prospect. Mount Prospect is known for having a lot of chipmunks, so at the top of the mountain they actually sell peanuts to feed to them. We brought up trail mix. Unfortunately these chipmunks weren't as brave. You had to throw the peanuts in their direction, then they'd eat it. In years past they would come up to you and look in your hands. From the top of the mountain, you have a great view of Estes Park. Domino's was ordered for lunch afterwards. That evening we went mini-golfing again, so we could use the free game my mom had won. This time I did worse, and took 4th place.                                                                                

Day 6: (June 14th): (Last full day in Estes Park). On this day we got breakfast in town, then we went to the Stanley Hotel for a tour. It was pretty neat and we had an eccentric tour guide. No spirits followed us home that we know of. If you didn't know, The Stanley is where Stephen King stayed and got inspiration for his book, "The Shining."                                                                                   

   For dinner that night we went to an American burger restaurant. After dinner we went into Rocky Mountain National Park to the sight of a flood in the 80's. At the place of the flood there is a lot of boulders and a waterfall.                                                                                                                  

  We also visited a Tiki Bar in town as a final celebration of being in Estes Park. I had a Mango Colada which was super tasty. I'm pretty sure the bartender thought I was just waiting with my family as they ordered drinks. She seemed kind of surprised when I started ordering. They carded me, but they didn't card my brother or sister in law who are only 3 years older than me. It's not fun looking like a high schooler. At night we took one last dip in the hot tub.              

June 15th (Day 7): Our flight back to Milwaukee wasn't until around 8:30 p.m, so we had most of the day to spend in Colorado. We left Estes Park, and drove through a canyon. At the other side of a canyon there's a famous store, known for being by a dam site. There they sold a lot of sasquatch collectibles. My favorite, it may have been a T-shirt said (It's okay Big Foot doesn't believe in you either.) Of course before leaving we had to take a picture with our Sasquatch brethren.

  Next, around lunch time we stopped at Sonics. As kids my brother and I went to the same Sonic twice before for lemon slushes. We only had ever been this specific Sonic, so we had to visit once again. This time I got a chocolate/oreo shake.                                                                                  

We wanted to spend some time in Denver, but the traffic was horrific, so we had to think of a different plan. So instead we went to lookout mountain. Another road up a smaller mountain/more like hill. It was also the place of Buffalo Bill's grave, which we also checked out. Lookout mountain overlooks Golden,Colorado. We got dinner at a Moose themed restaurant near Denver. Then headed to the airport. At the end of the airplane ride we experienced turbulence. They shut down the Milwaukee airport because of a storm, so we had to circle around Dubuque. After awhile our pilot decided to fly into Milwaukee. I guess most. if not all the airplanes flew into the Chicago airport instead, so we got lucky. We got home around 2am.                                                                         

                                                                                       

                                            

                                                                                                                                         

                                                                                                  

                                                                          

                                              

                                                                  

                                                                     

                                               

                                                               

                                                                                                          

                                                                                              

CareNet Family Resource Center

     As some of you may seen or have heard, I am volunteering with an organization known as CareNet. Before this, I had never really volunteered at least not to this extent for any other organization. Since beginning volunteering with this organization in mid-April I have fallen in love with it. I go there, and I'm actually sad when it's time to leave. That can be hard to find, especially when you're not being paid for being there. The reason for this post is written for three reasons. 1) To bring awareness, about this organization and what they do. 2) To encourage some of you to come check CareNet out for yourself. 3) Why this organization is worth supporting. This Saturday there will be a 5k, and my goal is to raise $200 by then.

      What is CareNet? CareNet is a non-profit organization that specializes in providing pregnancy options counseling, pregnancy education, parenting classes, free pregnancy tests, and ultrasounds. We provide bible studies as well. The organization doesn't just provide these things, they make sure that the client feels accepted as they are, and that they are provided as much help as we can give them. In special circumstances the organization can actually pull young girls out of the sex-trafficking world, or abusive relationships.

     Where is CareNet located? CareNet is a international organization, so it is not just a local organization. The ones in Wisconsin specifically are located in Kenosha, Racine, and Madison. I am personally involved with the Kenosha and Racine locations. Of course there are other family resource centers available not just CareNet.

Kenosha Address                   Racine Address              Madison Address
6105 22nd Avenue                740 College Avenue       1350 MacArthur Rd.
Kenosha, WI 53143              Racine, WI 53403           Madison, WI 53714

    

    What is options counseling? Options counseling is usually done, when a woman comes in for a pregnancy test. Before the test is given, the woman is given a 7 minute informative video that goes through your options as a pregnant woman. These being abortion, adoption, and parenting. (This organization is Christian-based, so yes the volunteers are Pro-Life, but ultimately we know it's the woman's decision, and we are conscious of not being judgmental on whatever she ends up choosing.) Jesus loved all people no matter the circumstances, and we want to share that love with the clients.

     What do parenting classes look like?  This section involves pregnancy education as well. CareNet offers a wide-variety of different topics you can learn about, basically most parenting topics you could probably think of. You can take these classes up until your child is 2 years of age. Each class is an hour or less. During this class, a client meets one on one with a volunteer peer counselor. The peer counselor and client watch an informative short video on whatever the topic has been selected for that client for the week. Some topics include: dealing with tantrums, bathing an infant, or even infant CPR. While the video is playing the client has a fill-in-the-blank sheet to fill out. Once the video is over there might be a discussion on the topic. After this the counselor will go over the video answers. For attending classes you are given fake money (baby bucks) to spend at a baby boutique. Baby bucks are earned by attending classes, having homework from the last session completed, and just for showing up. (This makes up a total of 3 baby bucks, which is the maximum an individual can get each week.) The parenting classes don't just have to be for women, they can also be for men as well. There is a whole curriculum on fatherhood. A woman may also bring a family member, friend, or boyfriend along with them to these classes as well. These people can also earn baby bucks to spend on themselves or give to you. 

     What's the baby boutique? The baby boutique is made up of donated baby products from people from the community or local churches. Within the boutique their is baby clothing that ranges from newborn-2T, diapers, wipes, other accessories. Even bigger items including: strollers, cribs, and pack n' plays as well. The boutique is usually updated each week with new donated products. The best part of the boutique is the fact items are easy to obtain. For example each outfit is 50c so if you only attended one parenting class you'd still be able to go home with six outfits, or three bundles of diapers. The bigger items usually range from 8 baby bucks - 20 baby bucks which is three-four parenting classes. Expensive items, yours free for taking 3-4 hours out of your schedule.

      How can I help? To help out CareNet you can make a donation of any amount of money as well as a donation of baby products to one of the centers. You can also help out by spreading awareness about CareNet and what it does. 

    Other Things: Based on the information that a client chooses to give us, we give them information about resources in the community that can help out with their situation. Resources such as: counseling, insurance information, food banks, pregnancy support, child care, and local churches if the client is interested. 

   Knowing this information, will you help make a difference in the lives of women in the local communities, and within the US?  

   You can help by donating here: https://secure.ministrysync.com/ministrysync/event/website/?m=3917110#0

   

Why Am I Single?

       As it is nearing four years since my last relationship if you can even call it that (it wasn't much of one.) people sometimes wonder why I'm single. Saying four years is a long time. Maybe it is. Society is so messed up though, into making us think that we are not valuable if we are single. There must be something wrong with us, if we've been single for even a year.

     Society has taught us to rush into relationships, just to be in one. Because it is so wrong if we're not, because we'll get looked down on. Rushing into relationships that don't work, because they're not with the right people, and people wonder why there's so much heartbreak in the world. People would love to feel loved by anyone willing to love them, that it doesn't seem to matter who it is. That isn't what I want.

      If not accepting being a girlfriend to every boy who asks me out is high maintenance to you, then that's fine with me. Marriage is one of the most important decisions you will make in your life, so I'm just making sure I'm going to pick someone who I think/know will last. Is that such a crazy idea? I'm not asking for the impossible. I've met guys who I know will be great husbands to their wives someday, so I know they're out there.

      People also ask if I'm single because I'm waiting for a guy who looks semi-perfect. Does he have to have abs? This is very laughable to me. I don't think any of the crushes I have ever had in my life, have been on guys with abs. When it comes down to it, I like someone who really loves Jesus, someone who is kind, committed, and fun. (Important: The person must be attractive to you in some way, if they're not there's no reason to go any further. You may want to give the person a chance, but God created attraction for a reason. If your not attracted to someone its probably a flag that it won't work out.

    Another misconception about single people, is the only reason people are single is because they want to be. Maybe for a very few people this could be true, but its not so with me. I would like to love and be loved, it's something I really desire. To get married, and have a family. I fear staying single for life. Jealousy is an ugly thing but I do find myself kind of envious of those around me. So many people I know are in devoted relationships, engaged, or already married, it's hard not to want what they have.

   Conclusion: I will stay single as long as it takes, for someone who God has chosen to come into my life. Until then, I'm not going to go into a relationship just because someone thinks I'm attractive. If God has chosen me to be single, then I'll be single.

   I believe it actually takes a strong person to be single. It's easier to be in a relationship, even a broken one. People in todays society are afraid to be single even for a moment, even if they know it's what is best for them in a season in life.

   It is lonely, and I do often joke about it, saying things like "this is why I'm single." or think about how certain situations might be easier, like always having that someone to talk to. But the real goal is to find contentment in singleness while your in it.  I am not interested in a relationship that isn't worth it, or hook ups. Contrary to popular belief, you can survive without having sex and being single and it's not hard.

     
    This is important too: As a relative for example, an uncle, you might want to tease your niece and ask her if she has a boyfriend yet. I know this isn't meant to be harmful, but if she has to truthfully answer no every single time, its damaging. She, like me, begins to wonder why after all these years whenever you ask the question she doesn't have one. (When I was younger I always pictured going to high school and having a boyfriend, because that's what the world told me should happen,.. it didn't.)