14 Things I'm Proud of in 2014

(1) Started Crossfit: In January, my parents took me to their crossfit gym, FIT/Park Meadows Crossfit for my first time. Honestly, I had no idea what to expect. However, I caught the bug and have been crossfitting since then. It's been a great way to get stronger while at the same time meeting friends and coaches that I wouldn't have met otherwise. This gym has been a major part of my year and I am very appreciative of the community there. (I went 20 times this month and did this workout today!)

I completed the Manitou Incline with some of my friends from the crossfit gym.

(2) Finalist for the 2014 Sophomore Falcon Award: In May I received an invitation for a special awards night. I didn't realize that this awards night was for one of the awards that our school gives out to some of the top people in their grades. I was nominated for the Falcon Award by one of my favorite teachers and was lucky enough to stand up on the stage next to two other girls and three other boys that are leaders in our grade. What an honor!

(3) Golf Season: My sophomore year golf season was full of fun things. In March, I broke 100 for my first time at Highlands Ranch Golf Club. Then, I broke 100 for my first time at a tournament in April. I made a birdie at practice one day and got the chance to play in 4 varsity tournaments. All of this was accompanied by the friendships developed from my awesome team.

(4) Summer Golf: I played in two two-day CJGA tournaments, broke 90, made 4 birdies from May and beyond, and just got better overall. My mind has become stronger from all of the golf and I can't wait for next golf season to show my improvement.

(5) Q-Man Classic: In January, I agreed to be a codirector for a 5K race called the Q-Man Classic. This year was the 5th annual race. The Q-Man race is dedicated to a runner that went to Highlands Ranch High School and unfortunately passed away during cross country season when he was a sophomore. All proceeds from the race go towards Autism Speaks, so it was for a great cause. Being able to co-direct was different, exciting, and fun. I felt like I made a difference!

(6) License! I got my license this year on my 16th birthday. The weather that day was pretty awful and I still passed. I've been driving safely ever since. Having the freedom has been very nice and my life has changed for sure!

(7) Junior (Girl) MVP for Girls Cross Country: This cross country season was wonderful. I had an amazing time hanging out with everyone and set myself a new personal record. Our team worked together, and we had two freshman girls go to state! Being junior MVP was just the cherry on top of a fun season.

The girls team for HRHS Cross Country.

My collage of the season- it was a fun one!

(8) Volunteer Work: This year I picked up Link Crew, senate, NHS, and Sociedad Honoraria Hispánica (Spanish Honor Society). These three organizations gave me the chance to experience some new volunteer service. My favorites from the year included being a helper on the first day for freshmen, helping out at the "Out of the Darkness Walk," a suicide prevention walk, the Denver Rescue Mission, and making blankets for Project Linus.

Out of the Darkness Walk

Denver Rescue Mission

(9) DECA State Qualifier: DECA is "Distributive Education Clubs of America" and it prepares students for careers in business. I participated in the district competition in the event "Principles of Business Administration." At the end of the competition, I learned that I qualified for state and actually won the event for my whole district.

(10) Memorial Day Workouts: In picking up crossfit lies a workout called "Murph" that honors a military hero named Michael P. Murphy. (Learn more about that hero by clicking here) I completed that workout, scaled, the day before memorial day. It was, for time, 1 mile Run, 100 Pull-ups, 200 Push-ups, 300 Squats, and another 1 mile Run. Although difficult, it was worth it. The next day, the family ran the Bolder Boulder and I set myself a PR by 30 seconds. Both workouts were more than just workouts and it felt really good to honor some heroes and improve past times.

After the Bolder Boulder!

(11) Travels: In July, the whole family traveled to Italy as a family. This boosted my worldly knowledge and allowed me to see some very cool sites (see all blog posts from July 2014). I also got the chance to ride my first airplane alone when I traveled to San Francisco with my dad in November. We had an excellent time and visited UC Berkeley and Stanford. See this post for those pictures!

Accademia Bridge - Venezia

Tower of Pisa

Firenze - Il Duomo

Lucca d'Italia - family bike ride

Trolley in San Francisco

(12) College Visits: This year, I started visiting colleges. It's hard to believe that by this time next year I will have applied to a few of these (and hopefully heard back!). I visited UC Berkeley, Stanford, CSU, CU Boulder, and DU.

On top of the Berkeley Campanile

In the Main Quad- Stanford

CAM the Ram at CSU

Ralphie at CU Boulder

(13) Junior Senate: As a part of senate this semester, we were in charge of putting on an event called "Midnight Madness," a basketball fundraiser for the family of a teacher that HRHS unfortunately lost this semester. Our event had a staff basketball game, a staff cheer team, and 3v3 student competitions. It ran smoothly and we raised over $1000 for his family in one night.

(14) My Grades: This year, I challenged myself. My goal was to get straight A's both semesters and that is exactly what I did. My second semester of sophomore year, I had three honors classes, two math classes, and an AP class. However, I pushed through and still got all A's even with golf season. This year, I encountered a little more of a struggle (2 AP classes, Spanish 4, Chemistry, and Marketing, Senate, All of my activities) but figured out a way to manage my health. All of this led to lettering in academics (see picture with Mr. Goings below) and earning a 4.1 my second semester of sophomore year and a 4.2 for my first semester of junior year. My mom took me to the Melting Pot to celebrate.

As always, I am very grateful for my friends and family that helped make this year amazing. I am so looking forward to 2015 and I hope that everyone has a wonderful year. I almost forgot: we also got a new puppy in 2014! Stella and Duffy want to wish everyone a very happy new year as well. (Duffy is the big one- 5 years old, and Stella is the little one, 8 weeks old)

QOTD: “Tomorrow, is the first blank page of a 365 page book. Write a good one.” -Brad Paisley

See you next year!

Amy