The Lake

In Nebraska, there is a private lake named Lake Johnson. It is a little bit out of Lexington but basically in the middle of no where. The lake is very big and very calm. During the weekdays, the lake is practically desert but on the weekends it gets pretty crowded. For the past couple years, each summer I have come to the lake to have some fun. We own a lake house right towards the end of the lake and it is the perfect location! The house is not to big nor to small, it is just perfect. We have a nice speed boat and a pretty good jet ski. I usually come up to the house around the 4th of july because we bring up some of our close friends. The weather is nice and hot and the water temp is like bath water. During the fourth we have around 10 to 12 people here and we always are doing something. Tubing is the main thing. Here is a picture of our wood swing that sits on the lawn looking out on the lake. When the sun sets, it is like being at a beach.

Here is me water skiing. I am very athletic and I have good balance from cheerleading so when I tried skiing for the first time on water, it came pretty easy. I was on two ski's for awhile and then I tried just one. I actually made it up on the first time which is very rare. Other then that, the lake house is a great get-a-way.
I enjoy each time I get to come here because I can let go of anything I am thinking about. I get to relax and chill.

Summer Time!!

As I begin to approach my freshman year of college, I want to do as much as I can before I leave. I also want to have a great fun summer so I have something to remember. I first started my summer break 2 weeks into may. Seniors got out earlier then everyone. I had a week off and then on thursday May 20th at Red Rock's Amphitheater I graduated high school. It was a very bittersweet moment for me knowing that I am done with high school. I was happy because I was ready to move on in my life and begin college but I was upset because I wanted to stay at Mountain Vista and make more amazing memories. The good part that I took away from the experience was that I did not regret anything. As I finished high school officially, I was ready for my summer to begin! My first adventure was going to Las Vegas. I was planning on going to Mexico for my senior trip but the things going on down there were not to safe so we decided to go to Sin City!!! At the time, I was 17 years old and in Vegas you have to be 21 to basically do anything you want. At times I did get bored but it was an awesome trip! Her is me and my step mom julie sitting on the balcony at Planet Hollywood. We were able to watch the water show and see interesting people walk by!

The best part of Vegas for me was all of the different shows. Julie was able to get us O tickets and we were able to see Jabbawockeez. O is a circus show that is by far the best I have ever seen. It is a story based show that involves many tricks and acts along with a huge pool of water! For 200 bucks a ticket... It is worth it! It amazed me at how these people could perform without any mistakes! After seeing O, we went and saw Jabbawockeez. Now some people know about these guys and some don't. This group is a dance crew who was on MTV and actually won the show America's Best Dance Crew. It is a hip hop style of dance and it is very fast pace. This show was awesome! The dancing and music was crazy and worth seeing! Another fun adventure in Vegas is the Wax Museum. Almost all of the biggest stars are sculpted into wax and are identical to their match! I took many pictures with the figures. Here below is one with the Blue Man Group which is a show in Vegas as well. I have seen them before and they are awesome! Don't they look real?
We arrived home from Las Vegas and then I was able to hang out with all of my friends and my boyfriend who I missed dearly! I went to the pool a lot and also in the weeks after Vegas I cleaned out my room and started going through my things in our crawl space. I have the need to keep everything I have so by going through things, it is very hard for me to give away things I love. But I have to do it, It will not fit in my dorm! So now each day of the summer I simply go through boxes or tubs and make some hard choices! On June 17th was my 18th birthday! It was such a great birthday and I was able to share it with a bunch of people. I went to the pool with some girls and then at night, Julie, Jenna, Me, Nick, and Nick's parents went to Joe's Crab Shack! Also in our party was momma Mask's friend from Texas. That night I stood on a chair and told the whole place that I was a pretty princess... I had to do it since it was my birthday. It was fun in the end though. Cake and Ice cream was served back at my house and I was able to share the ending moments on my birthday with the people I loved:) A couple days later, Nicks family and I went to see the new Toy Story movie which was awesome. I cried at the end but it is now my favorite movie.
A great memory that I will take away from this summer is the award I was able to get for my dad. Awhile back there was a bad car crash and my dad was on the scene in charge. The person in the car was badly injured and needed to be transported to the hospital right away so my dad called in Air Life which is the helicopter service. Air Life landed and got the patient ready and as they began to take off, the helicopter ran into power lines that were near by. This caused the copter to crash and kill everyone in flight. My dad would never ever forget that day. After that day, he was being honored and blamed for the accident. People accused him of the crash because he was the one to call the copter in. In my eyes and everyone at Air Life thought he was a hero. The accident was not his fault at all. But anyways, after that crash, Air Life started two big events. One is the 5k run and another is a bike ride. This year my dad was honored at the bike ride event and was given a plaque in honor of his hard work. He is a true hero and anyone who would doubt that is an idiot trust me. Here is a picture of the plaque.
At the memorial site, there is a large plaque that is dedicated to that day. My dads name is listed there along with others who took a big role in the accident.
I took away a lot so far during my break and I know I have a lot more to accomplish before I leave! :)

Disney World

Disney World is the happiest place on earth. I can agree with that statement because whenever I am there I get to be with my mom. This was our place. Each year we would get to go to Disney World and we would go to our special spots and just relax together. Even though she is no longer with me today, each time I go she is really there! Me and my uncle Brian one year for christmas went down to Disney World and brought along some of my moms ashes. We hid it secretly because it is illegal to spread anyones ashes there so we used candy bags as the hiding place. The mission was a success because we were able to get the ashes into the park! Now each time I get to go there, she is right there with me. This was a picture taken when we were in Disneyland my freshman year, right before she has passed away.
We took the trip during spring break and both Nikki and Michael my cousins came along with my uncle Brian. We had such a great time together doing everything you could possibly do at Disneyland. We rode all of the rides...twice. We ate Churros, ice cream, and all the junk food that was present in the park! During the night we would sit and watch the amazing firework show that they put on behind the castle. Probably the best firework show I have ever seen! Then the next day we would repeat everything! I love being with my moms side of the family because we go crazy! Here is a picture of all of us together in front of the castle.

Both Disney parks are different, such as the castles. The one is Disney World is much taller with a different color to it where as the Disneyland castle is wider and shorter with a pink tint to it. The Disneyland castle was the first ever built so it is the original Cinderella castle.
This is the Disney World castle. I took this picture when we went down for christmas. The decorations that are up all around the park are just amazing. I can tell it takes a lot of time and work to do that because everything is so detailed. I mean every decoration has to have a mickey somewhere on it! At night when they light up the castle, they put a ton of lights all along the castle so it really glows!
Alright, now this was the best moment ever. We were able to get into a character dinner with Winnie the Pooh and friends and well we came up with a clever idea. After a long day at the park, my uncle checked in his pockets because that is where he kept my mom and some of it had leaked. Ew. Well anyways, my moms favorite character of all time was eeyore so my uncle grabbed some of the spilled ashes and once eeyore came walking over he rubbed her on his back!!!!!! I know it is so funny but really cool because I know my mom would have loved to be with eeyore all the time.
While the fireworks were going on, we were able to sneak a good spot by the rose garden where there was really no one. We picked a perfect rose bush and decided to put a majority of my mom there because it was near the castle and it was a perfect view of the fireworks at night:) I took a quick pick of the view.
Here we have the rose bush. We moved some of the mulch around and made a nice like area to sprinkle her around and then covered it all back up like it was never touched. The mission was very good and hey we did not get arrested! Cause if we did I would not be with my family, I would be in a Juvy center by myself.
Each time I go to Disney World I always think of my mom. I get a little emotional though because I wish she could be with me in person. She showed me everything in that park and she taught me so much about Disney in general. I miss her so much but I know right about now she is having a blast in Disney World being healthy and well just being mom! One day I hope to bring my kids there and teach them everything that my mom taught me. Disney will never ever be forgotten.

Arizona Biltmore

During this part of June, only one thing comes to my mind. The Arizona Biltmore. This is a 5 star hotel located in Phoenix Arizona that me and my dad spent a lot of our time at in the summer. Each year, my dad was invited to a fitness conference at this hotel and he always brought me along with him and usually a friend of mine to keep my company. I started coming here when I was about 4 or 5 years old and loved it from that moment on. I could never get bored or mad when I was there. I could go to the pool, play checkers with there human size checker set, or beg my dad for a manicure at the spa:) Whatever I did, I had a blast. My freshman year was the last time I was there and now I truly miss it every time june rolls around. Although going there now would not be the same without my dad because this was our place. One thing he introduced to me was a mexican restaurant called Los Olivos. This is a small hidden place in downtown Scottsdale that is by far my favorite restaurant. They have the best homemade salsa and chips that I enjoy so much! Me and my dad love the chips and salsa so much that we actually bought a container and put the salsa in it so we could enjoy it at home. That was gone in about a day. Here is the sign in front of the place. Kinda old but unique.

Since my dad was there for the conference (which was hosted by the Phoenix Fire Department), they had daily activities going on in the morning and one of them was climbing the Piestewa Peak which is a large peak that overlooks the city of Phoenix. Me and my friend Kayla volunteered to climb this peak and actually made it to the top! I took this picture at about 9 in the morning before the heat took over and thought it was an amazing view!
The hotel rooms at the biltmore are fabulous! The beds are so cool and soft and the architecture of each building is quite unique. This was a view from out suite we had one year and with each set of buildings, there are individual pools. The hotel actually has one large pool which includes three large pools lined up and one big slide.
The pool at the hotel is by far my favorite part because the water is at perfect temp and there is so much going on. First, there is a slide. Now this slide is not the coolest slide for a teenager/adult but it is pretty awesome if you pick up enough speed. Plus, it has a waterfall pouring down on you when you exit the slide. Second, on certain nights, there is always a water balloon launch and a dive in movie. With the water balloon launch, two of the employees are holding a sling shot and the goal is to launch the water balloon over the entire building where the slide is or hit a target that they give you and then you get free dip n dots. I always hit the target so dessert was free for me on those nights. With the dive in movie, they would pass out huge water tubes and you could sit in that tube and watch a movie at night while they play a movie. Then after you can go to the fire pit and make S'mores:) The last but certainly not least best part about this pool is the under water bar. Now I cannot drink yet but I enjoyed drinking virgin fruity drinks in the water while playing on the chairs.
Here is a picture of me and my dad going down on the slide! So much fun and yes when I was a freshman we still both went down together :)
Here is another picture of me and my dad at the best restaurant in the world! Also, in front of the place there is a wooden donkey. We always took at picture next to the donkey! It is a tradition:)
I hope to eventually go back to the biltmore and enjoy everything there. It is a good getaway and very relaxing. It will never be the same without my dad though. I want to take some of his ashes and spread them there in memory of what he showed me and taught me there. Eventually when I get to be older, I want to rent out a suite there and go there whenever I want to and know that that is where my dad will always be:) Also to go to the spa. :)

High School Years

As many people do say, high school is the best four years of your life. In my opinion, I can agree. I just graduated from Mountain Vista High School and the last four years of my life have yes been fun but yet difficult. I was a very active person at my school and being able to go to school and participate really helped me get through the rough parts. Starting off freshman year, I was scared and very worried about what would happen to me academically. My parents were smart so I knew they could help me with my struggles. My mom at the time was doing great and life for me was good. I tried out for the Varsity Cheerleading Team and made it! Our team was very talented and ended up winning the 5A State Championships along with getting 8th in the nation at the UCA National High School Cheerleading Championships. In a nutshell, my freshman year went very well. I did great with my grades and awesome with my sports.

My Sophomore year was when the tables began to turn. Two days before I started my first day, my mom passed away. My feelings and emotions at the time were all over the place but I had to remain strong. Cheer practice was a great way of getting out my anger and going to talk to my counselor helped me control my emotional break downs. As each month passed things began to get better and I focused more on school and cheer. As the month of December came along, I was thrilled and shocked at the same time. I was thrilled because my high school cheer team won a second state championship and shocked because my dad was then diagnosed with the brain tumor.
After the diagnoses in december, I then continued on with school and also my other sport Track. I also participated in Track my freshman year and was able to High Jump at varsity meets. I progressed well in Track my sophomore year. I was able to tie our school record at 5'0 and was close at making the state championships.

I finished my sophomore year well but with a lot more hope. I began to pray more for my father because I wanted him to stay with me forever. He had a great mind set which made me confident so I started to not worry as much. I entered my Junior year saying whoa I am getting close to being done! I am now a upperclassmen and am ready to take on bigger and better things! Well taking the ACT was not my idea of "better" but hey it was required. I was on the cheer team again but this year we did not do as well as hoped. Me, my dad, and his girlfriend Julie went to ClearWater Beach Florida and had a nice relaxing vacation during my fall break.

A big part of my junior year was cheerleading. I was participating in two different teams, one being a competitive gym called Peak Athletics. I was on their Level 5 team and was very busy traveling and practicing for one competition. Worlds. Eventually, we were able to get a bid to that competition which was PAID! Yea I did not have to pay anything :)
Once cheer and track were over in the spring, my junior year was a lot calmer and relaxed. My grades were not as good that year due to my consistent traveling but I did not fail. One of the biggest highlights of my junior year was when I won the MMCYA Youth Award. I was nominated by my teacher Mrs. Brown and I was lucky enough to be one of the chosen winners. This award was based on students who have gone through hardships but have still given back to the community. I was honored to have been given this award while having my dad still there to watch me receive it :)
2010. My graduating year. I was now officially a senior in high school. YES! Wow these years sure flew by! Senior year was the best year by far. My dad however, was not able to take in the happiness with me. His tumor began to grow rapidly and he was changing into a different person. Without the home stress, school activities really made me feel happy! Powder Puff being one. I was the quarterback and was pretty good :)
After a long hard battle, my dad did pass. I was not going to let my emotions take over though. This was my senior year and I wanted to make the best out of it. I was nominated again for another award and was able to get it! It was the CHSAA All Star Award which was given to high school athletes who have gone though hardships. I was able to get scholarship money which will be used for my college books. Below is a picture with Marsha Neville who was sitting at my table that night I received the award.
The last semester of my senior year finally approached. I wanted to make sure that there was no regrets. I had a bunch of fun that semester with track and with friends. The best part of the semester was Prom. Our prom was located at Red Rocks and was an amazing night! I went with my boyfriend Nick and he made my night even more amazing. I was able to get Prom Queen as well which was a plus! For all those people who voted for me I want to say thank you because that right there shows me how many people really liked me as a person.
My last semester of senior year flew by fast! I was now graduating and moving onto college. I wish my parents could have been with me to share this moment but I knew they were watching above. My graduation was very hot but special. I had a fan club cheering for me as I walked across the stage to get my diploma (which by the way I just got the cover not the diploma). As I walked out of Red Rocks I thought about my years at Mountain Vista and did not regret one thing. High school for me was the time of my life and I am so happy that my parents got to see me get through it in one piece.

Introduction P.2

I figured out the picture situation better this time. Alright so onto the next part of the introduction. So I ended with the story of my mother and now I move on with my father. My father was such an amazing guy. The best dad in the entire world! He was a Battalion Chief for the Littleton Fire Department and was a very active man. Probably the healthiest guy I knew. After my mom has passed away I then was living full time with my dad. I loved it a lot, I mean I was his #1 and no one could take that away from me! He supported me through every sport and every school activity I did! He was my fan club.
After my mother passed away, things started to become back to normal. My mom passed away 2 days before school so the beginning was a little rough but it did get better. As fall came about, I was cheering non-stop and doing schoolwork non-stop. Life was getting back to normal and I was mentally getting better until I hit a brick wall. In December I was told that my father had a stage 4 brain tumor also known as a Glioblastoma. My life stopped in its tracks. So many things were running through my head at once and I could not believe this. Well, the doctors did remove this tumor which was good but since I was so oblivious and no one mentioned to me that this tumor could not be cured I was hopeless about the surgery even working! The tiny micro cells of cancer were still in his brain and they would begin to feed off the blood and grow. I know I am getting technical but for my senior project I researched this bad boy and became more knowledgeable about the Glioblastoma. Anyways, my dad was still strong and he took the treatment well.
My dad was not an emotional guy at all. He was always positive and strong and was never negative about this cancer beating him. He still worked out everyday and did his normal routine like nothing was wrong. Now lets fast forward about a year and a half so I was beginning my senior year of high school. That summer the tables turned and everything went downhill. My dad was now a whole different person. His speech was beginning to fade and his memory was too. This tumor was pressing on so much that he was no longer Jeff Christ. The fall season pushed on and eventually, my dad passed away peacefully with his family by his side along with other close friends there with us all.

After my dad passed, I no longer had parents. I know that may sound bad but it is true. Both of my closest family members died and I was left with a big question mark ?

Introduction

As I begin to tell my story about my life and how I cope today, I should spill on everything that has actually happened to me. Now, this is not going to be depressing or sad but I want to be able to show that I am a very strong person. I have a lot on my mind and being able to write and talk about it really explains how my mind works. So beginning in 2003, I was a regular girl. Parents were divorced and I was happy. My mom and dad got along great still. It was close to Valentines day and my parents sat me down. As I was fiddling with my Mickey and Minnie V-Day cards, I was told my mother was diagnosed with breast cancer. I was only 10 years old at the time so I did not really grasp the idea of "cancer." So after that day my mom received Chemotherapy and had surgery. Both breast's were removed and everything from there would be a straight shot to becoming cancer free... so we all thought. My mom went through so many treatments and was actually doing very well! This women was amazing. She was caring, smart, athletic, and very giving. She was determined to beat this cancer.

In 2005, my freshman year of high school, was when things started to rapidly go downhill. The cancer had spread to her liver. When she was told that it had spread, I had no idea. She decided that we should go to our favorite place Disney World:) By then I knew something bad was happening. As we approached summer time, things were really getting worse. She became very weak and very different. She was not the same women before and it was very heart breaking for my family. Time flew by and I tried my best to spend as much time as I could with her. It came down to August and my mom was put into Hospice care. Each day I would be with her and talk with her to make sure she was doing OK and that I would be OK. My mom then passed in peace with me, my dad, and my uncle brian right next to her.