Ellen...

Since I'm sitting here tonight kind of bored and feeling a bit antsy, I thought I'd share a fun find. I know I've posted about Ellen DeGeneres before, but I promise I'm not some fanatic fan. I just love her sense of humor. So what a great surprise it was to me to stumble upon her instagram account and find all sorts of funny things- not like a laugh your head off funny, but a "that puts a little smile on my face" kind of funny, ya know?
In conclusion, I highly recommend you follow her, and here's some motivation:

photos from Ellen's instagram, @theellenshow

(you can follow me too if you'd like @lanenprest)

F.I.V.E.

So I was tagged by my friend Ellee to do the "5 things about me" thing that went around Instagram last month, but this time in the blogging world. Since I already did that, and I can't think of anything interesting, I wrote more of a "5 things that happened to me today" post.

Five things about me:

1) I hit the mute button with my cheek whenever I talk on the phone. It drives me crazy, but luckily Preston is so used to it that he always know when I've pushed it and can tell me right off the bat. ...Does this happen to anyone else???

2) I always get suckered into buying a .25 donut after 8:00pm at Maceys

3) I love laying in bed probably more than anyone in the world (I guess that could be translated as "I'm really lazy" but I'm not, I just love being in bed)

4) I have watched every episode of the Bachelor and Bachelorette for the past two and a half years and I'm really excited for the finale next week!! The Bachelor and The Office are pretty much the only shows I ever watch and ever have watched  ...once again I'm not making myself look very good on here - apparently all I do is eat donuts, lay in bed, and watch TV ha ha

5) To redeem myself, I did go to the gym and the grocery store, payed rent, took my car in for safety and emissions testing (which it failed) and worked at the rest home tonight- all after getting off work at 4:00.
Also another little bonus thing about me is that I have never written lists for myself. I basically try to keep track of everything in my mind, which never works because I forget things all the time (quick side story about that: My visiting teachers called the other day to tell me they were coming over that night and I was like "Oh my gosh I totally forgot!" After I got off the phone Preston told me he had overheard them talking at church the other day saying that they needed to make sure they called and reminded me before they came visiting teaching because I tend to forget things! ha ha) Anyways I was saying that I never write lists of to-do items and Preston told me that I should try that so I made a list and it's kind of consumed my mind. I'm always checking it now and wanting to be able to cross things off. It's nice because it frees up some memory space in my mind, but it's also a little annoying seeing all those things I need to do on a piece of paper :)

There you have it. Five things that have crossed my mind in the last five minutes. Now I'll go cross off my list that I did this!

Sunshine, old age, and a good quote...

It's hard to explain how I'm feeling right now- a mix between giddiness and contemplative, and if I'm completely honest I think that it's a result of the weather today. I can't say that I have seasonal depression, but I can say that I feel like a brand new elated version of myself when spring rolls around. And today feels like spring has rolled around. I know I'll be disappointed probably by next week, but I am just really enjoying this nice day today. I drove to school with the windows down and walked up to campus without a jacket- and for me, it's those small things that make my day.

It was also my last day working at Old Towne Grill. I'm actually kind of sad about it. I really love that restaurant and would have liked to keep working there if it worked better with my schedule. But, I do have another new job. I (along with my friend Shayla) am working at an assisted living house helping an elderly lady named Millie. Millie is 96 and has dementia, so we are playing music and singing hymns, doing puzzles and word searches, and doing other activities with her. As a result, aging has been on my mind quite a bit lately. It's crazy to me how life goes in a complete circle sometimes. Older people become almost as dependent as little children.  You have to help them walk, show them how to do puzzles, read to them, help them get ready for bed.. etc. What's kind of sad is that I don't think she'll ever really know me. I have to introduce myself each day to her- but, I've only been going for 2 weeks so maybe it'll change..? I don't know, but through doing this and spending the summer living with my grandparents, I do know that spending time with older people means the world to them. Even when I was living with my grandparents, (and they aren't even THAT old) whenever they would get a phone call, they would get this big smile that lasted all day. Also it was like a huge event for Sandy, my grandpa's new wife, to have visiting teachers over. They just get so lonely and love interaction with people. This is definitely something I need to work on. I always feel so bad when my grandpa has to call me because I forgot to call him. So here's my little challenge for myself and whoever is reading this- take time to visit or call your grandparents or some older person that you know. In my case, I would give anything to have my grandma just a phone call away, and I need to take advantage of the fact that I still have my grandpa.

With all that, I wanted to share one more thing and that is this quote:

I saw it on Pinterest and it really hit me how true it is. I thought of all the people out there praying that they can get pregnant, or that they could walk again or hear again, or have their mom back again... There are different things for everyone. I don't think I really need to say much else about it, but it's good to keep in mind to always be grateful for the things you have.

Well I've spent a lot of time spilling my thoughts, so I better get back to work! Hope everyone has a great weekend!