Zoe's New Do!

Zoe's last day in Salt Lake was on Wednesday and I wanted to make sure she had some nice pictures of her before she went home. It took me all semester to persuade her. But luckily, it was not too late.

We did a before and after session.

Before her hair was done.

If you're like me and think that she's a model, wait till you see what's next.

After we went to the salon.

This one is my favorite. I think someone could find a new career in modeling. 

Oh her eyes, her eyes

Make the stars look like they're not shining

Her hair, her hair

falls perfectly without her trying

She's so beautiful 

And I tell her everyday

'Cause you're amazing

Just the way you are!

~Bruno Mars

Day Sixteen

Take my amazing friend to the airport so she can be with her family for Christmas

It was a sad/funny/good moment. Sad because I had to say goodbye to my dear friend Zoe early this morning. Funny because she had so much stuff! Let's just say, we went shopping a lot. I'm so glad that we did though and I know she won't regret it. Poor Kevin came with us to the airport just to carry the bags. With four fifty pound bags, we needed the muscles. Thank goodness he's my CEO (Carry Everything Out). 

Leaving was completely different than arriving in Salt Lake. When Zoe arrived, she didn't have a single friend or knew anyone. She didn't even have any idea where anything was or where to go. All she knew was that she was going to school. It was tough. At least when I was in Brazil, someone always came to pick us up or find us. Sure, I didn't know where I was going and it always to a few days to adjust but I always had someone with me. 

For this reason alone, I know that Zoe CAN DO ANYTHING. She can make her way in a foreign country all by herself. All of us are going to miss her! But at Christmastime, the right place to be is home which is wherever your family may be.

I gave Zoe my I Can necklace for Christmas to remind her that she can do anything.

You can find this and other treasures here.

I'm going to miss my sweet friend. We've been on many fun adventures over the semester. I'm really glad that we had two classes together and were able to spend a lot of time together. It finally hit me today that Zoe was gone when I sat in her spot in Michelle's class. But our papers are turned in and finals are over! I'm cheering because Christmas can begin. I have a long list of things to do and people to see.


Zoe, I don't know what I'm going to without you next semester. Who's going to study with me at the coffee shop because my apartment gets to be claustrophobic sometimes? I'll miss those days. I hope you have the best Christmas ever and I'll see you somewhere down the road.

Last no makeup/early morning/up late studying (packing) tired picture at the airport.

We love you and will miss you!


In the quiet misty morning
When the moon has gone to bed,
When the sparrows stop their singing
And the sky is clear and red,

When the summer ceased its gleaming
and the corn is passed its prime,
When adventure's lost its meaning-
I'll be homeward bound in time


Bind me not to the pasture,
chain me not to the plow
set me free to find my calling,
and I'll return to you somehow.


If you find it's me your missing,
if you're hoping I'll return
to your thoughts I'll soon be listening
in the road, I'll stop and turn. 


Then the wind will send me racing,
as my journey nears its end,
And the path I'll be retracing 
When I'm homeward bound again. 


Bind me not, to the pasture,
chain me not, to the plow,
set me free to find my calling,
And I'll return to you somehow.


I'll return to you somehow.
~Marta Keen Thompson

Music Playlist at MixPod.com

Day Fifteen

Take a friend to get their 

hair done

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My sister-in-law told me a hair horror story not too long ago. She had asked a friend where she could get her hair cut and it turned out horrible. They cut her bangs way too short and her hair was dyed much darker than she would have liked. I think I would have cried. But I also have plenty of hair horror stories that I could share. I'll save it for a later time. 

However, I did not want that happening to Zoe. I made sure that she was going to be given first class salon treatment at the right price. We headed over to the Landis Lifestyle Salon off of 9th East and 13 South, SLC. It's my favorite because with everything you get done they help you de-stress. Doesn't a shoulder and scalp massage sound nice to go with your hair cut? How about not paying extra for the service? I love it (especially after all those finals).

Zoe is now ready to head home to the UK all dolled up and relaxed. I'm not allowed to show pictures yet as she wants to surprise everyone back home. Come back on Friday. :) 

Come back on Friday and you'll see the dramatic change. She looks like a model.  

You're only as good as your 

last haircut.
~Fran Lebowitz

Zoe's Surprise Lunch

Clockwise: Zoe's surprised face, Margherita Pizza, Sean and Katie, Maddy and Zoe

Some cute friends of Zoe's planned a surprise lunch. All of us told her that it was "Madi's birthday." It really wasn't and facebook almost spoiled the surprise. For the most part, it worked.

We went to Sea Salt, a fun Italian place with yummy pizza. I also highly recommend the cheese sampler.

It was nice to have most of Zoe's friends all in one place.

All the girls plus the Seans.

Left to right: Me, Devon, Jill, Maddy, Zoe, Patricia and Katie

Zoe sometimes tells me in the car when we're going somewhere how hard it was to start out without knowing anyone. Well, I think she did just fine. There are a lot of us who are going to miss her.

Strangers are just friends waiting

to happen.  

~Rod McKuen

Day Twelve

Share the joy of music and make a homemade breakfast

I had to make sure that Zoe had the chance to hear the choir sing. Kevin and I took her to see Music and the Spoken Word. It's absolutely beautiful and the longest running radio broadcast. Plus, in my family and many others, it's a tradition to listen to the choir every Sunday.

The choir is now singing in the Conference Center all of December. It's really something inside with all the decorations.

My Daddy on the second row. He was especially happy that we came to hear him sing.

The message was what I needed. I'd like to share it with you too and hope it will touch your heart as it did mine.

"During this season we celebrate "peace on earth,” yet some of us find it the most busy and stressful time of the year. We worry about decorations and decking the halls, gifts and gatherings—and the many other things we feel we need to do. And, very often, amid all the hustle and bustle, we have a quiet sense that we want to make our celebrations a little different, a little more meaningful than they have been in the past.

This year, rather than focusing on everything we need to do, let us consider what we can offer. Some offer talents in singing carols or playing musical instruments; others offer time as they visit loved ones and share memories of Christmases past. Some offer resources and labor, doing acts of service to help the less fortunate. No matter what our offerings are, if our intent this season is to make someone’s life happier, Christmas will be for us a time of peace and joy.

Children teach us much about making heartfelt offerings. Not long ago, a little girl stood to tell her class some sad news. Her grandmother passed away, and as she related details, she became overcome with emotion. Not able to say anything more, she walked toward her chair. A little boy got up from his chair and sat down beside her. Filled with compassion and a desire to make her feel better, he gave her the only thing he had: a little toy that he had smuggled into class. He did not pause to wonder whether it was good enough. He simply and selflessly gave from the heart.

Something deep and meaningful happens within us when we make such offerings. We feel connected to those around us. We feel a love that we may not have known we had—the love of that babe in Bethlehem, whose pure offering, given so long ago, still fills the earth with "peace, [and] good will toward men” (Luke 2:14)."

Me and Zoe by the tree at the Conference Center

I love this picture of the two of us. I'm going to miss her when she goes home this week.

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Those of you who really know me, I'm no cook which is a little sad. But I really wanted to make a nice breakfast because Kevin and I hardly have time to eat breakfast, let alone make it. Zoe came with us back to our little apartment and I made my favorite, french toast. Something interesting? People in England don't put syrup on french toast. It's not supposed to be sweet. Mine on the other hand, is supposed to be VERY sweet! 

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Along with our french toast, we watched The Bishop's Wife. What a fun classic, here Dudley (Carey Grant) shares a story with little Debbie.


"Singing loud for all to hear is the best way to spread Christmas Cheer!"
~Buddy, The Elf

Day Eleven

Spend the day with my mom and take her somewhere special

We've never been to Dicken's Christmas Festival before. This year when I heard about it on the radio, I thought it sounded like a lot of fun. My mom then said that she really wanted to go. What a great idea! And so we went. I even decided to bring Zoe along to join in the Christmas Spirit.

My mom and Zoe outside the Scrooge building. They also had an Oliver building.

There a lot of vintage decorations at the festival. This was one of my favorites.

A man playing the harp on the left and more festive decorations.

A beautiful playhouse that any little girl would adore. Sad part, it costs just as much as Kevin's car.

Rotisserie chicken, little French dancers, Zoe trying on a Christmas tree hat and a woman making yarn

The mini play of Scrooge with Marley and each of the Spirits. 

My mom's favorite part, Old World Dancers. 

It was a great day. Everyone was in the Christmas mood and spoke with a British accent. There was even a stand that sold "toad in a hole." Zoe claimed that it really wasn't the official version, but I still loved how it was part of the theme.

"I will honour Christmas in my heart, and try to keep it all year. I will live in the Past, Present, and the Future. The Spirits of all three shall strive within me. I will not shut out the lessons that they teach."

~Charles Dickens

A Christmas Carol

Day Ten

Take a friend to one of my favorite places for a treat

We went to visit the fairy, of course. 
They have the best cupcakes in town.

Zoe tried a strawberry shortcake cupcake. She ate the strawberry off of it before I could even get a picture up close. :)


I chose this peppermint brownie. It was ohhh sooo good.

We then made our way to one of our favorite stores, 
Hip and Humble.

Can't you see why? It's all so cute.
Make sure you visit them at 9th and 9th in SLC or at 
Colonial Square in Bountiful.


If "ifs" and "buts" were candy and nuts, wouldn't it be a Merry Christmas? 
~Don Meredith

Convergence Text Story

College Students Need Healthy Options

by Ryan Agnew, Lisa Jones, Blakely Richmond and Zoe Cooper

We've all heard the term, "Freshman Fifteen," the declared title regarding college students and weight gain. Studies have shown that 3/4 of college students gain weight their freshman year, learning unhealthy habits that remain with them the rest of their life. These unhealthy habits will impact their weight for years to come.

Being that we ourselves are college students, we know the influences that fast food has on our busy lives. A lot of college students work while they are going to school, making our lives full of deadlines and a rush-rush attitude. For instance after working an eight or nine hour shift at work, it's late in the evening, the typical college student still has to head home and do homework or study. It was a long day and most college students are starving constantly, so given the option of going home and preparing a meal that will take time and effort or just stopping by a convenient drive thru on the way home, the majority of students would probably take option two.  Most students know that fast food is not good for them but with our lives in constant motion, we often suppress our nagging conscious and give in to the evils of fast food.

"Whether students like to admit it or not, many college students find themselves gorging on quick, convenient fast food on a regular or semi regular basis throughout their college years. Male students in particular choose to frequent fast food restaurants, due to its easy accessibility and relatively cheap price. Female students also were guilty of eating at fast food joints but they did not go as much because most female students were conscious about their weight and how many calories they were willing to ingest. Aside from being convenient and relatively inexpensive, research studies revealed that peer pressure also led many students to find their way to fast food. The study showed that when students friends wanted to go get some late night fast food, they felt compelled that they needed to follow the pack and often indulge themselves while there, even if they didn’t necessarily want any fast food to begin with."

With more than 30 percent of college students falling into the American College Health Association's obese or overweight categories, it's easy to see our concern. Too many students just may not have the healthy options available or accessible. At the Heritage Center here at the University of Utah, nutritional facts are not provided in the dining hall. There could be a difference for many students, in what they choose to eat, if they know what's in their food. 

While weight gain is the main concern on most of our minds, let's not forget that many students suffer from other eating disorders such as anorexia, bulimia, and binge eating. According to the Massachusetts Eating Disorders Association, 40 percent of female college students have eating disorders and 91 percent of female college students have attempted to control their weight through dieting. These statistics focus on women, which does not mean that eating disorders are not common for men and women alike. Eating disorders are more common than we realize and the hard part about being away from home is that for college students the eating disorder goes unnoticed. 

This happens to work both ways. Our bad habits that we gain during our college experience whether gaining or losing weight, will almost always go unnoticed at school and our friends may be in denial from their own disorders. Some may not even know the signs of an eating disorder. 

What can we do about this? It seems that too many students are at the extreme when it comes to eating. Yale University has set the example by providing healthy options to their students along with the information on what's best to be eating. They have even taken out white bread from their cafeteria.  Some schools such as Lincoln University are even making all obese students take a fit for life class. Experts say that the thing to do would be to make everyone take the fit for life class in the future to start making a difference. 

Statistically, 66 percent of college students don't consume the recommended amount of daily fruits and vegetables, 50 percent of all students get enough fiber intake, and 60 percent eat too much saturated fat. 

Starting bad eating habits now will almost guarantee bad habits for the future. Do you want the future of college students to be the next Biggest Loser contestant? It's time to bring the word healthy into college. 

Day Six

Take an amazing friend on an adventure of their choice

Zoe decided that we would take a day trip to the Great Salt Lake.

To tell you the truth, I was a little worried because of the fog yesterday and Kevin said that it might snow. But we were pretty lucky, it rained in the morning and was clear the rest of the afternoon.

I've never been to Antelope Island in the Winter but it was quite a treat.

Nice and quiet, perfect time to relax and take pictures.

We even saw this little guy on the side of the road.

It was a fun day with an amazing friend. I'm going to be a little sad and a little glad when she has to go back home. Sad for me because she'll be gone, glad for her family that she'll be home for Christmas.

In the meantime, we're going to have lots of fun together.

"The most I can do for my friend is simply be his friend."  

~Henry David Thoreau