I'm Alena

Welcome to my blog everyone! I wanted to start out by saying thank you to everyone who has supported me so far with creating this blog. It really means a lot to me to know that people understand why I am creating this. I have decided that I will post every Sunday, and hopefully most Wednesdays depending on my schedule. If there are any specific topics you want me to talk about, go ahead and let me know!

Anyways, if you do not know me, I'm Alena. I want to make this get to know me kind of fun so I am going to create a graphic. I want this blog to be visually appealing and I want to work on my content creation which includes graphic design. This is just a brief and general overview of my life but you will get to know me more as I continue to post more. Enjoy!

Let me just say that this took me like 4 hours to make. I'm still perfecting my Photoshop techniques and speed of creation. Laying out and choosing photos took a while, and I had to switch computers 3 times because they kept crashing. Love that for me. But alas, here it is and I actually like it a lot. I'll try this style again soon to practice.

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Of course, all these pictures are of me, but each represents something that makes up my personality. I will walk you through each of them

Dance/Cheer (bottom left corner): I have danced for forever. I competitively danced with a dance studio in Washington for about 12 years. I learned ballet, tap, hip hop, jazz, and contemporary. I loved every minute of dancing at the studio. The teachers, my teammates, and the lessons it taught me. Flexibility, leadership, and teamwork. My junior year in high school, I tried out for my school's cheer team and made it. It was a tough decision to leave my dance studio, but I was able to participate in school events, and cheer came naturally to me as a large portion of it was dancing. I was a back-spot, and the girls in my stunt group quickly became some of my best friends. My senior year, I even got to choreograph a dance for the whole team to perform at a school assembly. Cheer helped me become much more spirited and excited to participate in events as well as taught me patience with teammates. Not going to lie, it is strange to not dance much anymore. I am taking a tap class in college which is a great outlet, but I do miss dancing a lot.

Music (left middle): I have played the piano for as long as I can remember. I also played the flute and french horn in middle school. but piano was consistent. My mom had me and my siblings all learn how to play. I used to hate playing the piano and practicing. Like a lot. My mom would push me to continue practicing and I cried over it so many times, but in the end I am very grateful that she encouraged me to keep playing. Music has brought me so much peace since coming to college and I have really learned to appreciate it. I even taught piano lessons a couple months before I came to college! Currently, I am my ward's choir pianist and have had the opportunity to play in front of my ward many times as a special musical performance. The piano will always be a huge part of who I am and I am excited to keep playing and developing my skills.

BYU (top left corner): I currently attend Brigham Young University in Utah. This is of course a large part of who I am. For those of you reading who do not know, BYU is a private institute owned by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. It is here that I am able to receive an amazing education while also be spiritually strengthened. I am surrounded by people of the same faith and standards as me not to mention that the campus is so gorgeous especially at sunset. I am currently a Pre-Business major and hope to get into the Marriott School of Business for marketing while also pursuing a minor in communications.

Laughter (middle top): I have learned throughout the last couple years of high school that I am kind of dork. I make fun of myself, make weird noises and faces, and am known for just being quite energetic sometimes. Most of the time, people will see me just dancing and flailing my legs around while walking around with my friends. I was not always as care-free as I am now though. I used to care a lot about how people perceived me and I was afraid of being myself. A lot of people didn't even get to know the real me in high school or middle school. Luckily, I came into my own when I met my best friend in high school. She helped me realize that true friends will love you for who you are. In my opinion, my quirks are what make life and relationships with people interesting! Honestly, if people didn't have any quirks, it would be a very boring world with very few things to laugh about.

Disney (top right corner): Now this one is mostly just a fun fact. I really love Disney. I constantly want to be in a Disney park. The magic and happiness I feel while in these parks makes me feel like a kid again. Plus I really love roller coasters. My favorite Disney princess is Mulan which also has the best Disney movie soundtrack.

Seattle (right middle): I was not born in Seattle, but it is the only place I remember as being home. Truth be told, I love the rain and the cold. Hot weather really is not my thing for a prolonged period of time. I love the trees, lakes, and diversity that I experienced there. Living in Utah has made me appreciate the Pacific Northwest so much more. So if you ever need places to go to in Seattle, I would be happy to help!

Travel/Experiences (bottom right corner): This picture you can't tell at all because of the cutting, but it was taken in Japan. This past summer, I had the opportunity to travel to Japan with my family to experience the country where my sister served her 18 month mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. This particular picture was taken in front of the bamboo forest in Kyoto. I have been blessed to travel a lot with my family, and I hope to travel more in my future. My two favorite places I have been to are Thailand and France both of which I want to go back to and take better pictures. That being said, my new dream vacation is Greece or Cabo.

Adventures with friends(bottom middle): Bad example again with the picture, but the photo has a story. Basically, a couple of my friends and I decided to all travel to Arches National Park together. It was about a 4 hour drive from campus and so much happened. In the end though, we all became a lot closer to each other and I have cherished that memory since. Friends have become really important to me since coming to college. I have figured out who my real friends are and come to the conclusion that for me, having a small number of close friends is better than having a lot of acquaintances. They help me stay sane, positive, and I would not be where I am without the people both in Washington and in Utah.

Bonus Fun Facts:

1. I am half Thai but no I cannot speak it

2. I used to be obsessed with cupcakes (I made a cupcake book with drawings, stickers, and recipes)

3. I really enjoy doing my and other people's makeup

4. My favorite movie is The Princess Diaries

5. My first concert was Hannah Montana Meets Miley Cyrus

6. I have hyper-extended arms

7. I love going out and having mini photoshoots

8. I am a Ravenclaw

9. Favorite TV show is The Vampire Diaries (Hence the title of this post...iconic introduction of Elena)

10. I have yet to pull an all nighter at college

And with all of that, I hope you all know a little more about me than you did before! I had a lot of fun making this post despite almost crying at the library when the computer crashed but I'm fine, it's fine, we're fine and I did it.

Like and comment anything you would like me to write about for upcoming posts!

-Alena