"I'm On A Horse"

Dear Grace,

I have a few lovely things to share with you today, but first! I realized that I never shared any photos of my new apartment with you!

Behold! The view from our lovely balcony:

(We sometimes like to scope out the hot tub for attractive people we can go down to meet) 

Also, the only photos I've bothered to take of my place so far were for bragging rights about the Halloween decor, courtesy of yours truly. You're welcome.

I like living at Raintree, but I must admit to some homesickness for Cinnamon tree. I think I just need a little more time to grow to love this place and the people just as much :)

Speaking of the people, meet my new roomies! (Again, I wanted to play with my camera, so I dragged them all up to Squaw Peak for a roommate fall photoshoot)

(Left to right: Cassandra, Kira, Makelle, Jamie, & Meghan) 

Something awesome that happened recently was that Cassandra contacted me a few days before general conference to tell me that she had a couple of extra tickets to the afternoon session and wanted to know if Hannah and I wanted to come. Hannah and I were like, "HECK YEAH we wanna come!"

It was such privilege to have the opportunity to go, and what an honor to be there for the sustaining of the new apostles!

I greatly admire Cassandra. She's a very energetic and passionate personality, with a laugh that I find completely infectious. I'm so grateful I get to have her as a roommate this year.

Here, I have a confession to make. About a month or so ago I got in touch with an old guy friend of mine, and we dated for a little while. I'm very grateful to have had that experience and for everything that I learned from it, but one of my greatest regrets is that I let myself get so caught up in spending time with him that I neglected getting to know my roomies, and I also started to neglect my friends and family.

Things ended up not working out between he and I, but in spite of my neglect, my heart is full at the love, acceptance, and understanding my dear friends have shown me. They had every right in the world to be angry with me for basically ditching them to chase after a cute boy, but they have shown me nothing but love and welcome since he and I broke up.

(First girl's night out in a while!)

I'm shifting my focus now, and although I'll be working through the healing process again, I'm looking toward my future with a lot of hope for new opportunities to learn and grow.

Recently my dear, dear friend Madeline got married, and I had the opportunity to be a bridesmaid and attend her wedding and reception.

(Meghan and I share the joke at our apartment that we're married, and jokingly call each other "Wifey")

The reception was fun, because we five summer roommates got to have a little reunion and take a photo together.

(Left to right: Yours truly, Jarumi, Madeline, Meghan, & Rachel) 

Madeline and Rafael have been an interesting couple to watch through the progression of their relationship. On more than one occasion I went to Rafael for relationship and dating advice, and was deeply impressed with the deep respect and love he and Madeline have for each other. Watching the way they interact with and speak to one another...I guess all I could think was "What must it be like to have someone love and care about you like that?"

I think the thing that really got to me more than anything else was when I went to Madeline's bridal shower, and they were playing a game where they asked her questions about Rafael. They got to the question "What would you say is your favorite quality he has?"

Madeline looked at the floor to ponder this for a moment, and then she bent her head and covered her face with her hand. Presently she looked up, with tears in her eyes and said, "The respect with which he treats the women in his life."

I felt a knot in my own throat and I looked away. Her words have stuck with me. What must it feel like to be treated with that level of respect by the one you love? I'm so grateful to know that she has such a good man to build her life with - I know they will be very happy :)

I'm happy to say that things have been progressing in my relationships with my roomies lately. We've been going on random adventures together of late, and I've very much been enjoying getting to know these girls better. Roommate Jamie will be leaving us in January to serve a mission in Rome, but I hope to get to know her better before she goes.

My last adventure of late was this weekend. Hannah and I had made plans to drive down south to visit Zion's and go to Vegas, but things kind of fell apart at the last minute and we ended up staying home for the weekend, much to my disappointment. So Hannah, being the chipper and cheerful little rosebud that she is found us an alternative for Saturday: horseback riding.

*Sigh* Sometimes I have no idea why Hannah puts up with me when I'm being such a grump, but again, I'm grateful that she does, and once again I'm so grateful to call her my best friend :)

("I'm on a horse." #oldspice)

That's all for today, but I love you, Gracie, and I hope you're doing well.

<3 Katie Jo