Summer in a Nutshell

Aside from the things I've already posted about, so much has happened this summer and I just don't have the time to fully expound on how wonderful each event was. So here's a little summary of a few happenings of my fantastic summer.

The best senior trip ever with the girls to Park City. It was the perfect week to eat, sleep, talk, shop, swim, soak up the sun, and basically do nothing. Thanks to Melissa and her family for letting us use their timeshare. :)

Rebecca turned 12 and was able to attend girl's camp for her first time!

My cousin Shalona won tickets to an early showing of Harry Potter 7.2 and invited me and a friend! We also went with her sister and her friend. It was incredible. And how appropriate to end my childhood with the ending of my favorite childhood series. This was also the day I cut 15 inches of my hair.

Summerfest! Mom and I volunteered one night, and Karissa and I enjoyed the dancers and music the next night. We bought matching Indian bracelets to wear and later went to a movie in the park and watched, "Tangled." It was a good girl's night out while the rest of the fam was at girl's camp.

Fish Lake. :) The Regis' are so awesome and let us stay in their cabin. It was a great few days to just relax and enjoy nature, as well as go boating and fishing a few times, too. We also took family pictures! First time in like 6 years. Wahoo!

Two days after Fish Lake, we went backpacking in the Uintahs. It was the first (and only) time I was able to go backpacking all summer and I was glad I could go. We had lots of fun, and Rissy did a great job on her first ever backpacking trip. 

Melissa, McCall, Lisa, and I spent one last morning together before we all head our separate ways around the state. We enjoyed a delicious all-you-can-eat french toast breakfast at Kneader's and didn't rush our time in the slightest. Who knows when we'll all be together again! It better not be too long... 

My summer flew by so fast I don't think I even blinked. Last night I got a fortune cookie, and the slip of paper read to me ironically, "You are just beginning to live." Tomorrow I'm headed off to college to start new adventures, and I guess, 'begin to live.' So here I go! Wish me luck as I leave the nest, spread my wings, and fly. 

Caroling, Caroling

This Christmas season has been full of Christmas cheer. Why? Because I (as well as my choirs) have been singing loud for all to hear! (Kudos if you can name that movie).

Throughout December, Xela and Phoenix have been to various places to sing Christmas carols. We've been to nursing homes, elementary schools, and ward parties, but my favorite was singing at Temple Square. We sang at the Church Office Building and the Joseph Smith Memorial building. It's been one of the highlights of my whole Christmas. I love singing, and what better than to sing Christmas songs everywhere with your friends!

{Phoenix at the Church Office Building}

{Xela at the COB}

{Xela at the Joseph Smith Memorial Building}

{Phoenix at the JSMB}

{Xela and Phoenix with Mr. Smith}

Afterwards we had fun goofing off taking pictures.

{Phoenix singing at my elementary school}

The senior choir, aka A Capella, had the chance to sing at Temple Square as well. We sang on a Sunday night at the Assembly Hall. The acoustics were beautiful, and a lot of people came in and watched us. It was an unforgettable experience.

{Assembly Hall}

{A Capella}

After singing, my family walked around Temple Square to see all the beautiful lights.

We concluded spreading our Christmas cheer at our winter choir concerts. A Capella sang with the orchestra for most of our songs, which was so beautiful. We finished by singing 'The First Noel,' then the Hallelujah chorus with the audience. Awesome. I absolutely loved it. Oh how I love singing Christmas songs. :)

{Some of the Xela altos}

{A Capella}

{Thanks to Annie and her family, again, for some of the photos}

Oh, and click here to see a fun flash mob singing the Hallelujah chorus.

After our concerts were finished, we had a Xela Christmas/Ugly Sweater/White Elephant party during class. Schwabee's mom made us a delicious pancake breakfast, and the white elephant gifts were some of the best/funniest I've ever seen. Gotta love Xela.

Remember, the best way to spread Christmas cheer is singing loud for all to hear, so be sure to sing this Christmas!

"Crazy For You"

This year, my high school put on the musical production, "Crazy for You." It is a Gershwin musical comedy with classic music, crazy tap dancing, bright colors, fun costumes, and lots of energy. The story is about a man named Bobby Child. Bobby's family owns a bank, but Bobby wants nothing to do with it. He wants to sing, dance, and act. Despite his wishes, his mother wants him to go to Deadrock, Nevada and take a theatre that has not paid its mortgage. Bobby goes to Nevada and immediately falls in love with Polly, the only girl in the town, who is also the owner of the theatre. She falls in love as well, until she finds out who he is. She realizes he's there to take the theatre and gets upset. In order to win Polly back, Bobby dresses up as a man named Bella Zangler, and brings his follies with him to Nevada. He teaches the cowboys to act and dance, and attempts to put on a show in the theatre to pay off the mortgage and win Polly's heart. The musical is filled with mistaken identities, comedy, and romance, and of course everything turns out right in the end. I had such a fun time learning how to act (I've never done something like this before) and learning all the different dances and choreography. I've also made a ton of new friends. More than I ever thought I would--love it. We spent many hours rehearsing and preparing for the show, and it definitely paid off. We had great audiences and every show ran smoothly and wonderfully. We could not have done it without our amazing director, Angela, as well as our many choreographers, costume directors, stage crew, and Larry, our choir director. The talents these people have are so incredible. The following pictures are from the show. Most of the photo credit goes to Annie, and some to my parents.

{Bobby and Zangler's Follies in "Can't Be Bothered Now."}

{Bobby (Taylor) and Polly (Jenna) dancing soon after they first meet.}

{The "Girls Enter Nevada" after Bobby has his brilliant idea to become Zangler. (I'm the one in pink and blue in the mid-left-ish.)}

{"Dis iz Deadrock, Nevada, yah?!"} 

{The showgirls teaching the cowboys how to dance.}

{"Slap that Bass!"} 

{Polly and Bobby (dressed as Zangler) in "I've Got Rhythm."}

{"The Real American Folk Song"}

{Bobby and the real Zangler mirroring each other. This was my favorite scene because it was so funny.}

{Bobby and Zangler, grieving over their hard-to-get girls in, "What Causes That."} 

{"Stiff Upper Lip." We had cool chair flipping actions in this scene. And as a side note, on the back of our chairs we had our names written on a slip of paper. Whoever wrote mine put, "Jesson" as my name, and I have since then been known as Jesson throughout the musical. Funny thing is... I still don't know who wrote it.}

{Finale!}

{Grandma and Grandpa}

{I had much love and support from my family and friends, especially from my Mom. Thank you all! You are so wonderful!}

{Bobby, me (aka Lola), and Zangler! In our next production, "Cinderella," these fine fellows are my son and husband! Details to come later.}

~Behind the Scenes~ 

{My eye makeup and super long lashes.}

{Sara, Grace, me, Jane}

{Chante and Me}

{Me and Erica (aka "My name is Shelly!"}

{Me and Erica on her "on" night as Bobby's mother. I love her. :)

{Grace!! Don't think I would survive musical without her.}

{The lovely Miss Emily D!}

{Trisha and me. We are counterparts for the part of Queen Constantina in "Cinderella."} 

{Hayden (the other Bobby) gave all the girls roses on closing night. How sweet is that? :) 

{After Hayden's closing night we went to Chili's (it took an hour to get our food, and an hour to get our check. This put us home at 12:30am... bleh.) Anyway, Natalie and I shared this divine treat. Other nights we went to In-N-Out and Village Inn. Yummy! I love cast parties.}

I've gotta admit that I almost didn't do musical. I had my schedule changed four times, and eventually decided during the summer to do it. I definitely do not regret making that decision. Musical has been one of the greatest things I've ever done. I have discovered talents I didn't know I had, have created friendships that will last a lifetime, and have added many things to my 'high school memories'-- when I look back on my senior year, I will remember how much fun I had thanks to musical.

Honestly, I'm a little relieved, but sad, Crazy For You is over. As a cast we put it to 'bed,' and are now starting to work on Cinderella, which I'm super excited for. Prepare yourselves to see the 'ch' in cheesy!