Adventuring Adventurers

Since the last time I posted not much has happened. Louise and Lance moved back to the valley! It's been fun hanging out with them. Louise and I are back to discussing weird things and laughing at things other people wouldn't understand.

I moved in with Grandma Baker so she wouldn't be so lonely. I don't feel like I spend enough time with her! I try my best though! She's been doing well, but I think she is bored most of the time. Grandma tries to find things to do, but she runs out of ideas fast with so much time to kill. She'll get the hang of things soon.

China stuff is going well. I'm pretty sure I'm all set to go except for orientation in July. I've been keeping up with payments which is really exciting. This is the most expensive thing I've ever paid for!

I went to California again! Billy & Hannah were kind enough to invite me on their family vacation. I really appreciated it!! I didn't get a lot of pictures because I forgot to bring my camera to Disneyland and the beach. Here's a few:On the way home we drove for quite a while along the coastline. It was so beautiful! I saw some landscapes I had never seen before. We pulled over at one point and I snapped a picture of this seagull. Then we locked our keys in our truck. Good times!We also pulled over to play in the sand at The Dunes. The girlies loved it! It was my first time seeing The Dunes, and I was amazed by the size of the sandy hills and the heat!

That pretty much sums up the pictures I got. I want to publicly thank Sara for getting my family and me into Disneyland for free! We weren't using you : ) It was fun to spend the whole day with her! I felt like I got my own personal tour of Disneyland! Fifteen (15) hours of Disneyland=awesomeness.

Louise and Lance took me on an all day adventure to Boyce Thompson Arboretum and Kearny last weekend. I freakin love the arboretum. LOVE! Some pics I took before my camera died:Dork faces. That's probably what I called them after I took this picture, but they're fun dork faces.This cactus reminds me of crazy old ladies. Don't ask me why.Sink graveyard. We saw a lot of interesting things like this. MASSIVE!
And that concludes my post. More exciting things to come...eventually!

What's Been Going Down

Life has been amazing lately. Now that I have a set plan for the next 9 months or so, I feel more relaxed and able to put my mind to something. If you read my last post, I have volunteered to go to China from August to December to teach children english. I've been mainly concentrating on getting funds for that and filling out paperwork. I'm scheduled to attend training in July so I'll be able to give more information after that.

Isn't spring in Arizona absolutely amazing?! I've basically been in La La Land since the end of February. Our family likes to take advantage of the wonderful weather by exploring the desert. Here are a few pictures from our adventures:







Poppies!! Oh my! These are one of my favorite flowers. They're a sign to me that our unbearably wretched winter is over!!

Oh Paisley. How can you be so sweet? Bringing me flowers : )

Avree was being silly...like usual!! She was being a total flirt with Hayden. Hannah, you need to keep an eye on this one.Speaking of one of my favorite cousins, Hayden got to drive the Jeep! A little scary at first, but he's a natural. I think he needs one for his 17th birfday.A couple of my good friends. Unfortunately, I didn't get any pictures or Carsyn, Nixyn, or Reed.

For Spring Break, a few friends of mine and I went to California!!!! It was so fun!! Here we are one the way there. So much anticipation! No worries. I was totally watching the road.Ashley and I hadn't been to Disneyland since we were both little, so we were feeling giddy once we got through the entrance.Because our awesome friend, Sara (left), works at Disneyland, we were able to get into Disneyland at the discount price of FREE. Also, the super smiley girl on the right is my good friend, Katy.The Adams Family (snap snap) happened to be at Disneyland the same day we were, so I was able to spend a lot of quality time with them. It was a blast!!
I was freaking out on Splash Mountain (3rd from the front)! I would definitely do it again.

I really love this picture of Jill and me. One day, we'll be neighbors and our babies will be best friends. We'll eat desserts together, gain tons of weight, and roll on the floor giggling uncontrollably pretty much all the time. Right before our trip home, we stopped by the beach for a small picnic (we were cheap and brought a majority of our own meals, a.k.a. raiding the parents' cabinet).
It was a happy ending : )

Formal Letter...

Dear Family and Friends,

As some of you may have heard, I have made the decision to become a part of the International Language Program this fall. The International Language Program (ILP) is a study abroad program devoted to teaching English to children in foreign countries. Volunteers are assigned to a school in their country of choice and assist children in learning English by playing games, singing songs, and other activities designed by ILP. I have volunteered to spend four months in China, from August to December. I am ecstatic about this opportunity and can’t wait to play a part in improving a child’s life!

ILP is a non-profit organization so the overall cost is minimal compared to other study abroad programs. The total cost for one semester is $2,520 which covers airfare, visa, housing, food, language & culture classes, pre-departure training, on-site training, and on-site supervision. Because I must pay my own program fees, I am asking for your help. If you can or would like to, any sort of donation in my behalf would be greatly appreciated.

ILP is an IRS qualified 501(c) (3) charitable organization so any donated funds exceeding $75 is tax-deductible. To make a donation, make checks payable to:

International Language Programs

363 N. University Ave. #104

Provo, UT 84601

To ensure your payment will contribute to my fees, write my name in the memo on the check or include a note along with the check. Contributors donating $75 or more will receive a receipt of contribution from ILP, verifying that their contribution is tax-deductible. If your donation is less than $75 but you would still like a receipt, you must request one.

If you have any questions or concerns, feel free to contact me at (480) 694-8101.

You could also contact the ILP office by calling (801) 374-8854 or visiting their website: www.ilp.org.

Thank you so much for taking the time to read this message!

Love,

Alicia Baker

6,227 Miles-- About 4 Days, 13 Hours

As some of you may or may not know, I LOVE TO TRAVEL. I can never get sick of being on the road. I honestly want to be a trucker. Now that I'm an adult (sort of) I desperately want to go on a long LONG road trip across the states. I don't really care where I go, just as long as I visit some major cities, strange towns, and some church and American historical sites. Here is a rough idea of where I would like to go:

Okay, the picture is blurry, but so is my plan. It doesn't matter which direction I start in since it's just one big circle. I wish I could weave through all the states, but that would probably be a road trip overload.

List of states:
Utah (Salt Lake City)
Colorado
Missouri (Macon--I have some friends there)
Illinois (Nauvoo, Chicago)
Ohio (Family, Church History)
Pennsylvania (American History, Authentic Philly Cheese Steak)
New York (Church History, Historical Landmarks, CBGB, New York City)
Washington D.C. (Our Country's Capitol)
Myrtle Beach, SC (BEACH!)
Athens, GA (Home to a lot of good bands)
Atlanta, GA
Memphis, TN
Oklahoma
Santa Fe, NM

And that concludes my rough outline. Specifics about exact locations and everything will come about when I'm bored and have more time to waste. Also, I need money. Pretty much this trip won't happen without money. But that's what dreaming is for, right?

Maybe I should throw the Grand Canyon in my plans. It's really sad that I've lived here my whole life but have never seen it.

BABIES!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I missed my baby friends while living in Thatcher! Pretty much the babies are the only subject in my photographs. This post is dedicated to Louise since she doesn't get enough baby time.

The first couple pictures are from a Baker Family Party. The rest of the pictures are from a trip we took to Queen Valley to see the wash running and get a closer look at the snow covered mountains (we didn't actually get up close and personal with the snow).

Nixyn! Little Nikki-Bum. Sadly, this is the only picture of her in my post. Look at her little teefies! She turned 1 yesterday! Happy Birfday!

Pai pai! She's a pig.

Cheesy Smile!

Grouchy Face! This isn't her real grouchy face. After taking the first picture of her, she asked,"Leesha! Grouchy Face!" So no, I am not a mean aunt who takes pictures of her nieces when they are upset.

Sleepy head! She was out within 30 minutes of the drive to Queen Valley.

I love Carsyn's smile! It's exciting when nieces will actually smile and pose when you ask them! The river flow was so strong! I've never seen so much water in the desert.

Paisley was enjoying the drive.

Avree got a little stuck in the muck
...all the girls did.

Paisley was a little concerned...

...about the wet sand getting all over her hands and face.

It got really chilly at one point. It started hailing right after I took this picture.

Look at that! There was so much snow!!

This is the usual result of a long day of trail riding: one baby asleep in the arms, another baby on the lap, and a dog climbing all over the babies.

I love spending time with these girlies! I can't wait to have some nephews to mess around with, too!

In remembrance of 2009....

So another year has come and gone, but 2009 wasn't like any other year. It was a big one for me: first road trip, two siblings getting married, little Nixyn was born, new friendships, graduating from Higley High School, attending Eastern Arizona College, and getting to know myself better. This past year was overwhelming, but I have learned so much about growing up. I'm sure most people go through this stage at my age, but it's a different experience for everyone.

It was tough to say goodbye to friends I have known for most of my life. All of us went to different schools. It's been fun to reunite and share our first semester of college experiences. I already have one friend who is engaged! I'm waiting for the day when there seems to be a wedding every weekend. That will be weird. I also have a good friend who left on a mission. It's been fun to hear about his experiences in the MTC and in Panama.

Graduating from high school was crazy! I was so ready. It was sort of emotional, but the anticipation for the future helped me forget that another chapter of my life was through. I miss the simplicity of high school, but I don't think I could survive another day.

My first semester of college was eye opening. I loved it! I made a few friends and I miss them dearly! It was hard to leave Thatcher (surprisingly) but I'm excited for my classes at MCC.

It's weird how much I have learned about myself. I thought I was comfortable in my skin, but once I was put into a totally different situation, I questioned a lot of things, but it lead me to realize a lot if things which has made me a better person. That's probably a really general statement, but I don't really know how I can explain it. Overall, I'm happy my parents forced me to leave for a semester.

Looking towards the future...
I'll now be attending MCC for two of my classes, the other two being online through MCC. My online classes are Psychology 101 and Computers 105. I will be taking a Clothing Construction class and Commercial Baking class at MCC. I'm hoping to finally figure out my major or a career path this semester so I might know if I should go to Southern Virginia University.

I was reading Paula and Evan's blog and decided to make a one word resolution for myself: happiness. I know it's generic and boring, but I need a little happiness in my life. I need to be happy with the choices I make. I need to be happy with my life. I need to be happy with myself. I need to be happy with my body image. I was talking about this with my wonderful friend, Katy, and she pointed out that I should make it a goal to bring happiness into other people's lives as well as mine. I love my friends : ) They are inspirational to me.

I hope the best for everyone in this upcoming year! I hope it is a memorable one!

I like to make things...

So I took a watercoloring class and I really enjoyed it. I'm not that great, but it's so fun! I thought I would share a painting I made. It's a watercolor of a picture I took of some old buildings in Salt Lake, Utah.
Here is a close-up...

Don't judge! I'm just learning, okay!