The adventures of a BYU student...

PANIC...

2009-09-30T09:46:00.000-07:00

Exactly one week from today, I will be entering the MTC at 12:45 to serve a full-time mission. But remarkably, I am not panicking. I am rather calm about everything.

I know everything will be ok.
I know I am ready to go.
I know I will be safe.
I know there will be hard times as well as a plenty of good times.
I know I will be blessed.
I know I will learn the language in time.
I know I will still be Jacks favorite aunt when I get back.
I know San Jose is where I need to be.

I probably should be panicking over whether or not my siblings will write me.... Considering 3/4 of them don't think I am committed to serving and won't enter the MTC or think I am faking it....

The Newest Crossley....

2009-09-22T21:26:00.000-07:00

Allie Jane (AJ) Crossley was born Sept 21, 2009. She weighed in at 10 lbs 3 oz and 23 inches long! Oh, how I love her!

2nd Annual Paint War Extravaganza...

2009-09-12T13:25:00.000-07:00

So you may be wondering what I did to celebrate my 21st birthday...

Well, after I ate my teddy bear graham crackers, seriously contemplated the pros and cons of taking a nap, listened to the voicemail of my nephew singing Happy Birthday about 1 trillion times and made cupcakes, I did get plastered!.... with acrylic paint that is!

I have been blessed with many things in my life, but one of the greatest of those blessings is my friends. They are just as weird as I am, and they even think I am funny, which makes for great times. Last year, my friends decided to have a paint war to celebrate my 2oth birthday, and proclaimed that such an event had to happen annually since we had a blast. (Now you may be wondering what is a paint war? Well, you take watered down paint and spray others with it. Weird, I know. But totally awesome.) We have actually been talking about the paint war for months now, so the excitement was built and it definitely wasn't a let down. So when Sept 11 rolled around, we were ready for the 2nd Annual Paint War Extravaganza! We didn't get much actions shots during the actual paint war since someone was an Eager Beaver and started the war early, but here are some of the after shots:

We had to cover ourselves in garbage bags since we had to drive home. We didn't want to get our cars messy.

It was a great day! I am so grateful for my amazing friends that truely made my Birthday Happy. I don't know what I would do without you guys.

It's my Happy Birthday...

2009-09-11T07:41:00.000-07:00

....................Weird.

A little taste of San Jose...

2009-09-09T10:34:00.000-07:00

On Saturday, I went here:

For these super cool people: Brandon and Chantel were both able to go through the Draper temple on the same day to receive their endowments. It was amazing! It was great to be in the Celestial room with so many friends that I consider to be my second family. Brandon leaves on Sept 30 to the Ventura California (woot-woot!) Spanish speaking mission, and Chantel leaves on Nov 4 to the Domincan Republic Santo Domingo West Mission Spanish speaking, which means for a brief moment in the MTC, all three of us will be there together.

We are going to rock the world with the gospel!

Me on the Pacific coast, and Chan in the Caribbean!

While Chan, Erin and I were pondering (more like trying to hide our laughter) in the Celestial room, Chan leaned over to me and happened to mention that the temple matron and her husband served as the mission president in San Jose. I thought that was pretty cool, but as we started to leave, I realized that I couldn't walk out the temple doors without talking to them. So I tracked down the temple matron, Sis. Fitzgerald. Her and her husband, Pres. Fitzgerald (the second counselor in the temple presidency), served in San Jose from 1999-2002. She then went on to tell me about how wonderful the mission is. She said that I will be fluent in the language because in the southern part of the mission, the majority of the people only speak Spanish and alot of them work in the strawberry fields. Sis. Fitzgerald also said that the weather is almost perfect all year round, the area is gorgeous and diverse, the people are fantastic, and how there is a little garden in the backyard of the misison home that they call "The Garden of Eden". Needless to say, I am really excited to serve!

This is Pres. and Sis. Fitzgerald. I know this is a crappy picture, but it is the only one I could find of them after I searched (more like stalked) the internet for a decent picture. Apparently, no one that served a mission in San Jose from 1999-2002 wants to posts pictures of their missions.

29 more days until San Jose!

And the "Greatest Aunt" award goes to...(drum roll please)....

2009-09-06T15:32:00.000-07:00

10 reasons why I am the worlds Greatest Aunt:

1. I love chasing Jacks around the kitchen island for hours upon hours.

2. I search high and low for that incredibly small stupid toy just so I could hear Jack's squeal of excitement when I find it.

3. I love digging for worms with Jacks just to hear him say "Where are you, Mr. Wormie?" and "Oh, look at the cute little one!" Even if it means digging up Grandma's beets in the vegetable garden.

4. I am more than willing to help Jacks take a bath, brush his teeth, take care of the nasty diapers or now, when he has an "accident" in his underwear, and clean up after his up-chuck.

All of which I have done.

5. I have driven the one way hour drive just to babysit him, on a Friday night, for a few hours so his parents can get out for a while.

6. I can play a mean game of tackle football, soccer and "The Green Latern vs. Spiderman".

7. I am not a typical girl. I don't mind getting dirty or sweaty. So when Jacks needs to be entertained for a good chunk of time, I came to the rescue with this:

8. If he asks, "Where is my house?", "Where are my tools?" or "Where is my red train?", I know exactly what he is talking about, where it is at, and take Jacks to go find it.

9. I have no shame. So when Jacks wanted to play with my computer, we did this:

And I then told all of my friends how awesome my nephew is when I showed them this picture.

10. Who else is willing to miss their classes right before finals, work (which they only get paid hourly), and hanging out with friends just to be with this kid:

As you can see, I am the worlds Greatest Aunt!

*Bonus Reason*: I have given the newest Crossley the nickname of Ladybug. She should be making her grand entrance into the world next week, and I couldn't be more excited!

P.S. 32 more days until San Jose!

Breeze in my hair, sun on my face, and spines in my hand?...

2009-08-16T19:04:00.000-07:00

Wow! What an amazing 8 days I just had!

It all began last Friday at work when I got a call from Steve asking me if I wanted to go camping with a bunch of other people from the ward that night at Capitol Reef. Of course I said yes! How could I refuse? That night we headed down to the camp site, which was about a 4 hour drive total, but it was worth it. We had a great night looking up at the stars and throwing anything we could in the fire to make it bigger. The next morning we woke up, and headed straight to Burrow Wash Trail to do this:

(I am in the middle of the pic with a gray shirt. Pic courtesy of Ammon Dietz)

We spent about 3 hours hiking into Slot Canyon. We came across so many obstacles that required climbing rocks to get around. One part in particular, you literally had to wedge yourself between the two walls of the canyon and shimmy your way across a large puddle of putrid water. However, I wore shoes that are literally older than my nephew and had no traction on the bottom, and it was impossible for me wedge myself. Steve, still wanting me to continue in our hiking journey, gave me directions to climb up and over the canyon to meet the group on the other side. He told me to back track a little bit and told me to take a right to climb some more rocks to meet him on the other side. I returned to the area he was talking about, but I took the wrong right. When I got about half way up, Steve caught up with me, and I had realized my mistake. As I was climbing back down, I started to slip (due to my shoes lack of traction) and as I leaned back to catch myself, my hand happened to make friends with this plant:

Yep, you are right. That is a cactus (not the cactus, but the best image I could find using Google, because I forgot my camera). As I started to slip, I leaned backwards, hoping to find a rock to hold on to, but I found a a cactus with my hand instead. I had so many cactus spines in my hand that I spent about 5 minutes trying to pull them all out sitting on the rocks, but I wasn't able to get them all out. I still have some of them in my hand now, because they are so hard to get out. All in all, I had a great time and I really enjoyed getting to know more of the people in the ward.

The next day, after church, I headed down with the Ficklin family to Lake Powell for the week. The week was full of: swimming, laying out in the sun, reading, eating, wake boarding, tubing, cliff diving, jet skiing, slip-n-sliding, boat riding, playing games, hiking, and sleeping. But at the same time, I didn't do anything, because nothing was required of me, and it was FANTASTIC! I did work on getting an awesome tan that I am proud of! Here are some of the memorable pictures from Lake Powell:

The sunglasses aren't mine, so save the jokes.

So I may or may not have had trouble getting onto the jet ski directly from the boat, which resulted in both Chan and I falling into the water.... I will let you decide...

This is known as "Big Sand Hill". Yep, it is a giant hill of sand, and we hiked it to the very top.

This picture was taken after we hiked to the top. Chan looks like she is about to kill.

Picture of the entire group that hiked to the top.

The calm before the storm...

After the storm, there was a beautiful sunset and rainbow. GORGEOUS!

Chan and I listening to her cousin sing on the last night.

Taking things easy (part 2)....

2009-08-02T11:55:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, I went to this INCREDIBLE place:

For this BEAUTIFUL woman!

For dinner, the family celebrated this WONDERFUL brother's 24 birthday:

Then, I went to this FANTASTIC movie:

with these ADORABLE girls:

I LOVE summer!

Taking things easy...

2009-07-31T18:56:00.000-07:00

I went here yesterday:

With these awesome people:

Now I am reading these books:

And I get to go here:

with these AMAZING people (aka my second family):

in 10 days!

From frustration to motivation....

2009-07-22T12:24:00.000-07:00

I have worked at Wasatch Mental Health for the past three years. I have enjoyed my time there and it will be a sad day when I have to leave. But for the past couple of weeks, I can't help but feel that I am being slowly "phased out". I am rarely needed any more; I no longer attend staff meetings because of the schedule change-which makes it hard to stay informed about clients and other changes, I am no longer receiving assignments from my boss, my co-workers hardly ever come to me with questions anymore- they ask the full time secretary because she has all the informaiton from all the meetings, and I hardly ever talk to my boss anymore- when I do see him its a simple "Hi" and "Goodbye" which makes it hard for me to talk to him. I understand that I will have to be phased out since I am going on a misison, but that isn't for another 2.5 months. I often leave work frustrated and wondering why I am continue to work at a place that in all actuality doesn't need me.

But then there are a few moments throughout my week that makes my job worth it. Today, right before we were to about to serve the clients lunch I over heard the following between BOB* and MARY* (Names have been changed):

MARY: Hi. Are you staying for lunch today?

BOB: Yeah, I am.

MARY: Would you mind if I sit by you at lunch?

BOB: Oh, I would be honored. Let's go pick a spot at the tables to sit at.

This simple conversation, even though I wasn't involved in any way, calmed my frustrated thoughts, and reminded me of the reason why I love working for WMH. The 60+ clients that I deal with on a daily basis have lived a difficult life (multiple mental illnesses, abuse, addictions, homelessness, etc.), but they are still able to display acts of kindness and love, like BOB did today, that I haven't seen demonstrated in others who have lived a much simiplier life.

Today, I would like to thank BOB for motivating me to be a better employee. If I am going to want to feel needed, I am going to have to create that need. I can not wait for my boss or others to give it to me. Even though I may still get frustrated, I can still act with a level of respect and kindness towards others that would benefit the office.

Thank you.

A day at the fountains...

2009-07-18T16:38:00.000-07:00

Today, I was so fortunate to be able to hang out with my favorite sister-in-law and my favorite nephew for a couple of hours (my brother decided not to join us in the family outing, so he gets negative brownie points). We decided that a trip to Old Navy to find some baby girl clothes for the soon to be born *Taylor Grace Crossley* was definitely needed (PS. Carren, I need to talk to you about that). And since Jacks came along, we also visited the fountains at the Gateway. Here is the evidence:

And of course I had to have my chance playing in the fountains! Jacks can't have all the fun.

This is one of my favorite pictures of Scott and Jacks. It looks like Scott is reading Jacks a story, but nope..... He is showing him the applications on his new phone :)

New and Improved....

2009-07-18T16:28:00.000-07:00

Due to popular demand (aka my sister), I have finally taken the time to "spice" up my blog. It will take some time to finally get it to my standard of "perfection" (just because I lack the interest to do so in one sitting), but it will be done by the time I head to the MTC (because I am sure my sister would love to "decorate" my blog (and I am sure she will) once I am gone since she has graciously volunteered to keep it updated with my letters).

Look forward to more changes ahead!

The Greatest Gift....

2009-07-02T23:51:00.000-07:00

"The greatest gift you can give someone is your time." - Chad Hymas

That is why I have accepted the call to serve a LDS mission in San Jose California Spanish speaking! I will be entering the MTC on October 7, 2009!

Life is good....

2009-06-19T08:02:00.000-07:00

Reasons why I am not complaining:

Spring semester is over! I am officially a junior majoring in Psychology.
My mission papers are in!
I have a great paying job working with great people!
I am planning a trip to San Diego in August to see Wicked for the 3rd time this year!
I finally have time to get more than 4 hours of sleep a night! That is a Christmas Miracle!
I recieved a LARGE Bonus at work this week!
I FINALLY have time to read a book without feeling guilty about neglecting my homework!
How can I look at this face and not be happy?

Pure bliss....

2009-04-20T21:28:00.000-07:00

Days in class: 70

Papers: 24

Mid-terms: 9

Final Projects: 1

Finals: 4

Going to New York for 6 days knowing that school is over: Priceless

Nicknames..

2009-03-19T14:55:00.001-07:00

These are a few of the nicknames I have had over the years:

Janna Banana

Fontana

Nununanny

Nana

The jolly green giant

J-Bug

JVC- Janna Very Crossley

Ethel

And my personal favorite...

Juholla- the Goddess of Gentle Giants.

I love to get nicknames, and I love to give nicknames, even though I am not creative and they usually never stick. HOWEVER.... do not call me by a nickname when I don't know you. The worst of these nicknames...... Janna Banana. I absolutely hate it when people first realize that my name rhymes with a fruit and they will say it over and over again. It just makes me want to say, "Congratulations, Dr. Seuss! No one has ever called me that before!"

I especially hate it when people use "Janna Banana" at work. Now, if I have known you for quite sometime and we have established a personal connection, feel free to use it. You've earned the privelage. But when people use it every time they talk to me at work, such as, "Thanks, Janna Banana", "Janna Banana, you're the greatest!", "Did you get that paperwork faxed over, Janna Banana", or "Janna Banana, can you do this for me?", I can feel my eye start twitching, and that my intelligence is being reduced to that of a five year old.

Last time I checked, my legal name did not include a fruit at the end.

Foaming from the mouth....

2009-01-17T10:00:00.000-08:00

I am the messiest toothbrusher ever! It doesn't matter the kind of toothpaste or toothbrush, but I always manage to get toothpaste everywhere. My roommate can testify of this....When I go to brush my teeth, I put toothpaste on my toothbrush, get it wet and start brushing. At first, everything seems to be fine, but then I notice that some toothpaste foam is dribbling from my mouth. No big deal, right? Wrong! That dribble soon turns into a tidal wave of foam and before I know it, toothpaste is everywhere. I happen to get it on the bathroom counter tops, mirror, and all over me. It is not uncommon to find dried toothpaste foam down my shirt, on my face, on my hand and down my arms (I mean from the hand all the way down to the elbow). Why does this happen? Is it my brushing technique that is creating all this unnecessary excessive toothpaste foam that makes it look like I have rabies?

My famDAMNily...

2009-01-16T22:10:00.000-08:00

*Disclaimer: This is a really long post!*

This year is going to be full of new experiences for me. I am terrified for them to come, but I know I will be a better person at the end, and because of that, I can't wait to get going! With these new experiences approaching quickly, I have been thinking a lot lately about a few things, one of those things is my grattitude for my family. So without further ado, I would like to dedicate this blog to my family with a paragraph about each member.....

Marmee and Poppsie's engagement photo

Poppsie....What to say, what to say..... My poppsie is such a great man! He is so dedicated to everything he does, no matter what it is and how much stress it causes him: genealogy, remodeling the basement, his job, his church callings, etc... One thing I absolutely admire about him is he is always a worthy to hold the Priesthood. I love knowing that no matter the day or time, I can call upon him to use the Priesthood, and he is able to. I have to admit that my father and I don't have much to talk about, and sometimes we don't see eye to eye on certain things, but I know he loves me, and he knows I love him. The last thing in this world that I would want to do is to make him disappointed in me. Poppsie-in the words of Mary Poppins, "You are practically perfect in every way!"

Marmee.... My marmee is an amazing women! She has been such a great friend to me when I have needed her to be my listening ear, advisor, and shopping buddy (she won't admit it but she hates shopping with me because I am picky). She tries her hardest to be the best she can in all the various roles she takes on. She knows her doctrine and has a firm testimony in the gospel. She has been a great example to me, especially when it comes to enduring trials because she has had her fair share of them. She has taught me how to be an independent woman and how to think for myself. Marmee- I love you infinity plus one!

Renrac and I in London, 2005

Renrac....My sister and I are 100% different in almost every way and growing up with her was difficult, for me at least, because I didn't know how to interact with her without getting into a fight, which usually resulted in me crying :) Now that I am adult, I have realized how incredible she is! I love her determination for things; she knows her goals and the steps required to achieve them, so you better get out of her way. She is also THE most craftiest person I have ever met! She can make scrapbooks that are out of this world! I love spending one on one time with her because she has a way of making you feel loved and valued. Renrac- Thank you for everything you have done for me! I know I have accused you in the past of being a terrible sister, but that's all a lie. You are truely a great sister!

Scooter- Isn't he precious?!

Scooter... My oldest brother is a unique man... I only say that because there is no other words to describe him- and I mean that in a great way. Just like poppsie, he is a dedicated worker. He knows what needs to be done, and he will always make sure it is perfect before it is complete. He's extremely willing to help others out when ever they need it. There have been several occasions when I have been over at his house when he comes home from work, only to throw on some old clothes and help one of his neighbors move or do some construction on their house. He has a weird sense of humor, that I can't understand sometimes, but he is always good for a laugh. He has a kind heart that is sometimes hard to see, but I know it's there, full of love for his family, the church, and God. Scooter- I hope you know how much I love you!

Scooter and L-Train's wedding, 2001

L-Train...I absolutely have the best sister in law in the world! I believe I can speak for the whole family when I say that we were all blessed when she married Scooter! She is so sweet, and thoughtful. I love that I can talk to her about anything, and she always knows exactly what I am going through or feeling. I love her attention to the little detail in life that truely matter. For example, when I was a freshman in high school, she played volleyball in the backyard with me because she knew I loved the game. She was in college at the time, but she took the time out of her day to spend it with me playing in the backyard. I will always cherish that! She is also THE greatest mom! She makes sure that the infant phenomenon knows how to say his prayers and who Jesus is. L-Train- I don't say this enough, but I love you!

The infant phenonmenon!

The infant phenomenon... Oh, how I LOVE my nephew! He is 2 and a half, and already quite the character. He loves to "remodel" his house that Grandpa Bear gave him with his tools (he knows the difference between a Philips head screwdriver and a flat head), and eat out of his McQueen bowl that Grandma gave him. He is so funny! I love chasing him around the house and tickling him while he giggling and screaming at the top of his lungs. Whenever it is time bless the food, he is always the first one with his hand up ready to say the prayer. I thank God every day that the Crossley family was blessed with this little guy!

Pops giving me a hug.... or trying to squeeze the life out of me....

Pops... My brother is such a giant teddy bear! He knows how to be serious when it is time to be serious, but for the most part, he wouldn't hurt a fly. He is such a social person! He can go up to a complete stranger, and immediately start up a friendship with them. He is always willing to help out anyone in the family. He has called me several times to see if I needed anything, or just a ride to a family event. I appreciate everything he has done for me. I feel like he has been one of my greatest supporters throughout life by telling me I can do whatever I want if I felt like it was the right thing to do. He has listened to me complain, a few too many times, with an open heart and ears and given me great advice. Pops-even though you smell and have a face that looks like a monkey's butt, I sure do love your guts!

Pops n' Chellor

Chellor...Chellor isn't officially a Crossley yet, but we all consider her a part of the family. I can't imagine the Crossley family without her. She's an extraordinary women! She has passion for so many things in life, which I find very admirable about her. She is constantly looking for opportunites she can be of service and always genuinely asking about the lives of others. Plus, she also has a great style! Chellor-about 99.9% of the time, I am jealous of your clothes!

Triple-D and I- proof that we actually did like each other at one point in time!

Triple-D... How to I even begin describing my last brother?... When you first meet him, he is somewhat shy, but out of the entire family, he was the greatest personality! We will all be sitting around the dinner table having a conversation, when he will chime in with a hilarious comment that will get the entire family laughing! When he was gone on his mission, family events were not the same because his sense of humor was missing. He knows so much about the scriptures, which is a trait that I desire to have. Out of all my brothers, I believe he has the kindest heart. He is very considerate of everyone around him, and will go out of his way to help someone. He is incredibly smart! Oh, he also can play one mean bass on Rockband. Seriously, where does this kid get his skills from?! I love you, Triple-D!

So long story short... I love each and everyone of these crazy people! With them, I know where I belong, and without them, I wouldn't be who I am today.

I curse short girls...

2009-01-12T13:12:00.000-08:00

Ok. So I really don't curse short girls but I sure do get frustrated with them sometimes.

Today, I was walking across campus when I saw a couple. He was tall (taller than me-very unsual) and she was short (she didn't come up to my knee caps-or so it seems). Whenever I see this type of couple walking together, it just makes me want to shout out to the girl, "OH, COME ON! Date someone your own height!" The only reason I feel this way is for the fact that he was taller than me. There are only a handful of guys in this world that are taller than me, and over a trillion other guys that are shorter. When it comes to the dating scene, I perfer to have the opportunity to date someone that is taller than I am, and not left with someone that is 5'4" because all of the taller men have married someone that doesn't even reach my knee caps.

Now, if I could only get that one tall guy to realize I existed......