Travel Week!!!

Why is it that the week before traveling always seems so hectic? You don't really have that much more to do except maybe pack a bag, and yet there are a thousand and one random things to check off your list before the awaited travel day. I'm sure everyone knows that Thanksgiving is just a few days away, which means that I'm in the crazy pre-travel days right now!

I'm trying to finish my homework and pack my bag and clean my room and eat up all my food before boarding a plane tomorrow afternoon! Uff da! (That's Norwegian slang for "Oh my goodness!" or "Woah!" or "Holy Cow!"...you get the idea!)

I'm also trying to balance all of this with choir practices. We're getting into the intense last two weeks before the "Christmas at Luther" Concert, and it's crazy! All choirs have to be back on campus on Sunday for a SIX hour rehearsal. Uff da!!!

Don't get me wrong- I love the holidays! This will be my first time home, and I'm so excited! I'll get to see my family and my friends for a very special "first time back from college" reunion! It'll be great! I do believe all my girlfriends and I are planning out a big slumber party! (Because that's what adult mature college women do!) And who isn't excited for the greatest holiday meal ever!!! Oh yeah, the travel is worth the stress!

I hope everyone has a very joyous, safe, and thankful break!

~Anna

"Shout for joy to the Lord, all the earth. Worship the Lord with gladness... Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise; give thanks to him and praise his name. For the Lord is good and his love endure forever; his faithfulness continues through all generations." -Psalm 100

My Spring 2009 Schedule!

Hey everybody!

Some sweet things have happened this week...

Tuesday we had a final volleyball meeting. It's so weird to have the season over. I really miss seeing everybody but the extra time is nice! Some of the girls and I have started going to kick boxing classes in the evenings- I can't believe how hard we work, but it's also a ton of fun!

On Thursday, I registered for classes! I'm taking "It's a Conspiracy" over J-term which is a three week class we take in January. It's a class that analyzes conspiracy theories in American history- I'm psyched! Next semester, I'm in more Paideia, more math, more Latin, and Intro to the Bible, a religion class which should be interesting....over all I'm really happy with my schedule! I'm still debating a classics major, a history major, a math major, or multiple- we'll have to wait and see!!!

Tonight is the first mass rehearsal for the "Christmas at Luther" concert in early December. I'm so excited to be a part of it! This is the first time that all the choirs will be together to really hear what the pieces sound like!

Oh, and I'm still freezing. Evidently it will be like this for a while, and could quite possibly get even worse. (Although these are just rumors; no one can say for sure!) ;)

I hope ya'll have a super duper great week!

~Anna

"The Lord has done great things for us; of which we are glad." -Psalm 126: 3

My Spur of the Moment Adventure & Phonothan!

This past week has been awesome!

(My fellow callers and I at the right. I'm the tallest in the back!)

Allison (who is also a blogger) invited me to accompany her St. Paul to watch her high school volleyball team in the state tournament. I dropped all of my plans spur of the moment on Friday to have a fun girl's weekend with her! We met her mom for the first game on Friday. We stayed at a cute little hotel near the capitol. The next day we went from shopping to more volleyball to more shopping.....the night ended with an adventure through Rochester as we hunted down a Starbucks before heading back to Luther. We also sang the entire ride home for one killer weekend!

Today I worked hard to get all of my homework done early because tonight was Phonothan! Ten girls on our floor in Brandt volunteered to call alum asking for donations through the Luther College Phonothan! It ended up being a ton of fun! We decided to dress "crazy and gaudy" to get us in the right fun mood! We looked hilarious- big hair, crazy clothes, and tons of makeup! Definitely the best dressed there! We called from 6:30 to 9:30, and it went really well. Christy even got someone to donate $1,000, and we surpassed our goal for the evening! Plus, I got to call a lot of my family which was really neat!

The last two days, we've seen continuous snow which is crazy considering the 70 degree weather at the beginning of the week. It finally feels like I'm in the north! I can't believe I have five months of this- here we go!

I hope everyone has a warm, fun week!

~Anna

"Your beauty should not come from outward adornment, such as braided hair and the wearing of gold jewelry and fine clothes. Instead, it should be that of your inner self, the unfolding beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit which is of great worth in God's sight." -1 Peter 3: 3-4

A Change of Plans...

I've been looking forward to this weekend for a long time. It should've been a blast! A super great time with awesome memories...

Saturday was the JV Conference Tournament. We were 7-1 this season, so we were pumped up to go to Waverly yesterday in hopes of coming home as champions. It didn't turn out quite as planned though- we placed fourth with two wins and two losses. It's a respectable record, but not the one we had hoped for. On the up side, my leg held up, and I had playing time in three out of the four matches.

We left for the tournament on Friday so that we wouldn't have to leave really early on Saturday morning to get there. I was pretty bummed to miss Halloween on campus because lots of children from the town of Decorah come to Brandt Hall for trick-or-treating. I was really excited to dress up for them and to hand out candy, until I realized we wouldn't be there...But, we stayed at the house of one of the sophomores on the team, and I ended up getting to hand out candy to adorable kids anyway. Plus, we had a great home-cooked meal that night! And it was awesome to be with the team one more time before the season ends. It was like having a big sleepover with fifteen girls- quite the bonding experience! :)

When we got home on Saturday, some of the girls and I rushed around, getting ready for a costume party that was going on last night. I was psyched! I had a great costume planned out- Audrey Hepburn in Breakfast at Tiffany's! I felt like a princess in my jewelry and long black gloves! It should've been a spectacular night!

However, we only stayed at the party for about ten minutes. By the time we arrived, it was already winding down and switching locations. Our group split up, and I ended up driving around town with a couple girls. Total bust right?

Not even close! I had the time of my life last night! I spent time with some great girls, getting to know some for the first time and getting to know others that much better! We looked hilarious, and I don't think we ever stopped laughing!

Like I said- I was really looking forward to this weekend; it was supposed to be a blast... and it was!

I hope y'all had a fun, safe Halloween!

~Anna

"I am still confident of this: I will see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living. Wait for the Lord; be strong nad take heart and wait for the Lord." -Psalm 27:13-14