Nineteen Years Young

I am finally nineteen!! (: I can finally say I'm the same age as my classmates.. for a few months lol

I had the most exciting day ever. Honestly, it was the most exciting week ever.

Last Friday, I left Lawrence on a Greyhound and headed for Wichita! I spent the long weekend with my family in Branson as a mini-vaca. We went to Silver Dollar City and my mom and I got to go out on the boat with my aunt and uncle for an afternoon. We also did a little shopping, but that just goes without saying. Tuesday, I left Branson and began an eight hour bus ride home... If I didn't love to travel, it would have been awful. But I thought it was really fun and it was good chillin' time. :)

On our way to Branson!

On the bus to Wichita!

The 4th was amazing; best holiday of the year in my opinion!! I spent the day with Hadley, one of my co-workers and good friend. We went out to Clinton Lake to soak up the sun and sit on a sandy beach. Who doesn't love that?! After, we went to Subway to get dinner and came back to watch Iron Man (very patriotic, right?), and finally, FIREWORKS! We went to the town's firework display and they were great! I'm not one to complain about fireworks, however, so I may not be the best judge of how awesome they were!

Clinton Lake!

It was a secluded beach; perfect for anyone just wanting to relax!

Fireworks!

The next two days were filled with work and school. Mostly. I happen to have the coolest coworkers on earth, so we also went out to celebrate my birthday a couple times. Lots of ice cream has been eaten recently, but again, no complaints. :)

Friday night, I decided to do something crazy with my hair, since, traditionally, I dye it the day before my birthday. Red and Blue KU streaks were what I have been wanting to do for ages, so I asked Hadley if she'd do it, and she agreed! So that's how my 19th birthday began... rinsing dye out of my hair. ;) Honestly, though, it turned out great! After, Hadley made me s'mores as a late night snack and then it was off to bed to rest for the adventure to KC!

I love the city so much and I love exploring it and going to new places. I have been hearing about the plaza for YEARS, but I had never been. Jess hadn't been either, so I figured it would be a perfect place to shop; it so was!! It's soooooo beautiful and there are so many stores to go into, and it also has the largest Barnes and Noble and Forever 21 I have ever been into. I almost cried when I walked into the Forever 21 store. It was two stories of clothes, shoes, and more clothes. The B&N store? A measly four levels.... no big deal. We spent all afternoon there shopping.

The ASG baseball! And my Royals!

Fabulous picture!

One of the best friends I could ever ask for!

As we were leaving, we decided to pop in on Claire, since we thought she was working. We didn't know which theater she worked at, so we stopped at her house to ask, and it turned out she was home! We proceded to sneak up to her room and as we walk in, we were welcomed with a very loud, "WHAT THE HELL!?!?"  There is no better welcome. :) We stayed and chatted for a while, then Jess and I made our way back to Lawrence. I walked in the Hash front door at 11:59.50... The desk assistants wished me a happy birthday, and that was the end of my 19th birthday.

All in all, it was a fantastic birthday. I couldn't have asked or even dreamed of a better one. While it was the first that I was away from my family, and as I get older, I'm sure it won't be the last, I still had an amazing day with my extended family. What more could a girl possibly ask for?

<3

PS- I wish I was going to the All Star Game, but I'm not. :( I'll have to ask one of my coworkers all about it!