A Warm Welcome, a Couple of Sad Goodbyes, and Some Goals

2009 is here at last. To celebrate the coming of the new year, I first had a nice fondue dinner with the family, including my cousin Aubrey and her husband. Next, I went to my friend Alexis' party. There, we talked, played Wii, talked, took a nice stroll, and talked some more. I left at about 10:00 because I didn't want to sleep over with the girls. I had a bad experience at a sleep over before, so I don't usually stay the entire night at those kind of parties. No offense to anyone. So my dad picked me up when he was coming home after dropping off Aubrey and Curtis at their hotel. They had to fly early in the morning, so they didn't stay up. Then, at home, I played Yahtzee with my mom and dad. I had to wake them up for the count down because they ended up snoozing!

My dad left back to India for the next month. For those who are wondering, he comes back for good on January 30. It was nice to have him over for the holidays.

I am dreading having to go back to school. For one, finals are coming soon. Second, I am getting a new Spanish teacher. I loved my old one; he was so relaxed and we didn't have to do a lot, but we still learned a ton. Mr. P (this is abbreviated) had to go to Mexico to help his dad with his business. We'll miss him! I don't know who my next teacher is going to be, but they would have to be very good to beat Mr. P.

For this year, I have a few goals to help me succeed. My top ten are:

1. Keep my room clean.
2. Be grateful.
3. Go to bed early (on school nights).
4. Watch less T.V.
5. Practice my piano and guitar.
6. Hang out with friends more.
7. Eat healthy (like everyone else).
8. Play tennis and golf more.
9. Read 5 new books (The Jungle Books, The Power of One, Life of Pi, Friday Night Lights, and The Last of the Mohicans).
10. Actually keep my goals.

If any of you see me slacking on these goals, help me get back on track! ☺

Back to Tennis

This morning, I went to play tennis with my friend. It has been a while since we've picked up a racket so the first few minutes were a bit messy. It was a lot of fun and a great start to my day.

Last night, my family was invited to watch Shrek 3 in a friend's backyard. The weather was perfect and we all had a great time! I think I might actually do the same, invite some friends over and watch movies for a Halloween party.

Me holding up a glow stick and chilling in a chair.

I received my report card a couple days ago. I am so happy; my lowest grade was a 96!!! I was also voted top cat, top overall person on my school team. =) My school divides the students into teams based on their classes. Each team has over 100 students. That same day I received a flu shot. So far I'm not having a reaction. I also finished A Long Way Gone and resumed Three Cups of Tea, an account of a mountain climber who builds schools for children in Pakistan. A really good read! Be happy, it's a three day weekend!

The Race is On

As I said in another post, I am running for Vice President of my school's Student Council. Little did I know that 4 other people are doing the same thing. The election is on the 23rd (my half birthday!!!) so I have a busy weekend ahead. I am making T-shirts for me and my friends to wear, posters to hang on the wall, and pencils to hand out that say "Vote Madi B. for V.P." I am just so anxious to get this over with. I am tired of students coming up to me and saying, "I'm not voting for you!" O.K., I don't care if your voting for me or not, but please get out of my way. On top of the election, I have to talk in front of my church, play piano accompaniment for a choir, do homework and projects, babysit, blah, blah, blah. Oh yeah; tomorrow I get to wake up at 5:45 in the morning to go to a party. It's going to be fun, but why not 7:00, or 8:00. This is where my handy optimism comes in. Hopefully it will be enough. I can tell already this is going to be a no-nap weekend.

Madi B for VP