Blogging Reflection

Over the course of the year, I have thought blogging to be sort of a hassle. During second trimester it became something that i HAD to do, and not something that I WANTED to do. It seemed more like a dreaded homework assignment than a new, creative way of putting down your thoughts. I'm pretty sure I thought this because we were confined to one specific topic. Though the topic was of our own choice, mine got boring very quickly! I had thought I would be able to ramble on and on about Twilight, but I was wrong. But, during third trimester, I was able to switch my topic to things about everyday life. I liked this approach to blogging way more than blogging about Twilight, and I stayed ahead on all of my posts. I thought that this was more fun, and it was easier to come up with ideas to write about and expand on. I know that this blog was not intended to be used as a kind of diary, but that is what it turned into for me. I wrote about all the things going on in my life at the time. I would have definitely enjoyed this assignment more if I had started the year off with how I ended it. Blogging would have been much more interesting for me, and I feel as though I wouldn't have slacked off or not completed my assingments and blog posts. Overall, I was glad I blogged because it was a new experience and I am always up for trying new things. I didn't particularly enjoy blogging about one specific topic, though, and I think in future years kids should be able to just write about whatever they feel.

Thinking about College

Recently, my parents and my school counselor have been on my case about looking at colleges and thinking about what I want to do with my life after high school. During my junior conference, we narrowed the college search down to schools in Iowa and in the surrounding states, which includes a lot of colleges and really didn't narrow it down for me at all! My counselor advised me which classes I should take next year, and he told me that I will get accepted to pretty much any college I am looking at, thanks to my grades and my GPA, which is a relief. I have looked at college sites online a little bit, and I haven't really been swayed toward any particular school. I have also been getting lots of letters from all sorts of colleges in the mail, and I just end up recycling all of them because I have no clue where I want to go! There are way too many options. Some of the schools that I am interested in the most are the University of Iowa, the University of Northern Iowa, and of course Iowa State University. My parents want me to look at Luther, too, but I am pretty sure that Luther is too small for me, and I am pretty set on not going there. I am kind of interested in going to Iowa because that's where a lot of my friends are going. Plus it is a huge school, and I would meet a ton of new people. Something that would help me decide where I want to go would be figuring out what I want to major in. I have been bouncing a few ideas back and forth, but I can never put my ideas in stone. I have wanted to get into the medical field since before I can remember. I have been interested in being a neurologist, a vet, an anesthesiologist, an orthodontist, and a psychiatrist. All of these options are interesting to me, so I can't see how I will be expected to choose just one. And this decision will be one that will affect the rest of my life, so I'm nervous about making the right decision! I hope that as I get closer and closer to college it will become more clear to me what I want to do in life, because right now I feel completely hopeless. I am not sure where I want to go or what I want to do at all!

This Weekend.

This upcoming weekend is going to be very fun! On Friday I am going to a friend's birthday party with some of my girl friends. The party is going to be amazing because tons of people are going to be there and we get to go swimming! I haven't been swimming in forever, so I am really super pumped! After the party is over I am staying the night at my friend's house because we haven't hung out in forever and we need to catch up. Then on Saturday I am going to Fruitzen and then grand march with another friend. I can't wait to see how pretty everyone looks. Saturday night I am leaving home and going to New Hampton, Iowa for my cousin's graduation party on Sunday. It should be a really fun time because all of my relatives will be there and all of my cousin's friends will be there. Then I have to come back to Cedar Rapids on Sunday night because I have volleyball practice. Last night my team had our first practice since regionals, and I am really wanting to get back in the swing of things. We decided last night that we are not going to add any new members to our roster, which means that we are not bringing anybody else with us to Miami for nationals. This made me very happy because I did not want to add on anybody else. My team has been doing a great job without anyone else all season. We made it this far on our own, so we don't need another player to come along. Plus, she wouldn't get any guaranteed play time, so it would be stupid for her to pay all that money to come to Miami for nothing.

Summer Activities

This upcoming summer may very well be the busiest summer of my entire life. I have so much going on, it's not even funny. I looked at my calendar last night and pretty much every single day is filled with something!

Every single day, with the exception of the weekends, I have strength and conditioning for volleyball. We have to run and lift and jump and just get really in shape for season. That won't be too bad, but having it every single morning is sometimes a drag. I hate getting up early in the summer, especially to go work out. On top of that, I have summer league out at Prairie High School every Sunday, which is where all of the Cedar Rapids area schools get together and scrimmage each other. On top of that, I have volleyball camps, some at school and some at various colleges. Plus, on top of all of that stuff, I will be practicing for my club volleyball team and getting ready for nationals. Then I will actually be going to nationals in Miami for a week. My volleyball schedule is extremely hectic, and I'm already getting stressed just thinking about it.

Along with all of my volleyball stuff, I am going on vacation to Cancun, Mexico for a week with my family. It will be nice to get a break for once, and I'm super excited to get tan! It will be my second time in Cancun, and I cannot wait to go back! The resort we are staying at is beautiful, and everything that is included in our trip is amazing. The only bad thing about going to Cancun is that we go there the day after I get back from Miami for nationals! I am going to be totally exhausted!

Then, after we get back from Cancun, I am going on a trip to Okoboji for a week with my cousins. They rent a house there every year and go boating and all that fun stuff. Last time I was there I ended up staying overnight in the hospital, but I don't really want to think about that. It should be a really fun time because my cousins are awesome, and I love being out by the water and going boating and tubing.

My parents want me to get a job on top of all of that. Yeah right.

My summer is going to be very busy, and there's nothing wrong with that as long as I get a few breaks now and then. I am probably going to be a very tired girl, but it's worth it!

Parentals

I am getting extremely stressed out about my parents trying to control everything I do. Every time I want to leave the house my mom badgers me with annoying questions about where I'm going to be and who I'm going to be with and what time I'm going to be home and blah blah blah! It is so frustrating. I don't understand why my parents can't just trust me and the decisions that I make, which aren't bad ones at all. I need to be independent and be able to make choices on my own because I am virtually an adult. I will be leaving for college in a little over a year, so I don't think that it's too much to ask for a little freedom without the hassle of having to be interrogated every time I decide to go out! I think that my parents need to have a little faith in me. Not all teenagers are bad. We just like to be with our friends and have fun without having to deal with the stresses of our home lives. It would be nice if I could come and go from my house whenever I feel like it, but I know that's not exactly realistic.

Something else that sucks big time is my parents trying to make me get a job. I had a job last summer at Granite City as a hostess, but right now I really don't feel like working! Money would be nice, but once the summer starts I really won't have any free time as it is, so I would rather be spending the time that I have with my friends and not at work. I know I will get quite a bit of money for my birthday next week, and that will be nice. The only problem is that I have to pay my mom $450 for my trip to Miami for nationals this summer. I have to come up with that money by the time we leave, which is at the end of June. I am freaking out because there's only like a month left until then, and I'm not sure what to do. I really probably should get a job. That would be the smart thing to do. But I really don't want to!

This and That

Today I found out that my volleyball team is starting practice up again on Wednesday. I am extremely excited to get back in the swing of things and get back in shape. Something I am not really happy about, though, is the possibility of having an extra member join our team for nationals. I have nothing against this girl whatsoever, but I just really don't want to bring her along. She has not been a part of our team at all this season. She had her own team. The only reason she would get to come along with us is because my team is still under Cougar Club Volleyball, which sucks. Our school's head coach is the one pushing for this girl to come to nationals, and I don't think she should have a say in the matter at all. She should not be able to enforce rules for our team when she isn't really even a part of it. She tries to get in the middle of all of our stuff and facilitate everything for us and it's making me mad. She is saying that we should bring this extra girl along with us because we will get tired and want more subs. It is true that we are a pretty small team, but I for one would rather get a little tired and have more play time and have fun with my team than sit out and let some random player get the time that should be mine and my teammates'. Even though I am upset about it, I am sure that my school's head coach will get her way and the extra player will come along with us to nationals. Ugh!

Moving on to a less stressful topic....haha. Today, May 10th, is Mother's Day. I especially like Mother's Day because my mom is truly amazing. She goes above and beyond and works extremely hard every single day of her life. I honestly appreciate everything she does for me, and I think that she is the best mom in the entire world! I wouldn't trade her for anything. Anyway, it was extra hard to pick something out to get her this year. My sisters and I procrastinated until the last minute...literally. We hadn't gotten anything for her, so my dad just told us to make a coupon that is good for a fifty dollar gift. It wasn't all that thoughtful, but none of us had any ideas! We all made her pretty cards, though, and that made up for it. My mom loves everything we make her, and it really is the thought that counts!

Another thing I am happy about is that my birthday keeps getting closer and closer every day! There are only twelve days left! Ahhhhhh yay :)

Tomorrow, bright and early, I have my AP Biology exam at the KTOS building next to Carlos O'Kelly's. I have not been doing well in that class all year. It is extremely hard, and I probably wasn't putting forth as much effort as I could have been. In class last week we took a practice exam and I got a 2. A 2 is pretty much the same as a D for a letter grade, which sucks! Therefore, I am pretty positive that I will not do well tomorrow on the real exam. Great! But, even though I will not do well on the AP Bio exam, I am going to do very well on the AP Psychology exam which is on Tuesday. I love AP Psych, and I have been working hard in that class all year long. It is so interesting and fun, and I am honestly considering studying psychology in college!

It seems as though everything is starting to wrap up. Teachers are giving out less homework, AP exams are taking place, prom is next weekend, and the weather is amazing! I am getting more and more anxious for summer break! I just want school to be over so I can enjoy myself for three whole months without the worries and stresses of homework and tests and school in general. I want to be free!

May

This whole month has been extremely stressful so far, and it has barely even started! I have not been doing so well in my classes, I had show choir tryouts, my dad is leaving in a little over a week for a business trip in Australia for a whole month, volleyball practice for nationals hasn't started up yet, and boys suck!

I had callbacks for show choir last night. I was on the soprano list, so I showed up with all of the sopranos. Ziegler taught us a warm-up and we all had to sing it individually. It was way too high for me, and I'm pretty sure that I completely screwed it up. Then we had to learn part of the ballad for next year's show. I messed that up as well! Then one of the girls spoke up and said that she had no idea why she was here because she is an alto. I raised my hand and said the same thing, and about three other girls did the same. So, I stayed after the soprano callbacks for the alto callbacks. I was way more comfortable this time. I did alright on the individual warm-up part, but my voice cracked once. I also did pretty well on the ballad part that we learned. I hit my notes and I felt good about it. I am crossing my fingers that what I did is good enough to get me into Happiness. It's my last opportunity to be in show choir, so I really don't want to miss out.

Moving to another topic, my dad leaves on May 15 for a business trip in Australia. He will be there for three whole weeks, and I have no idea what I am going to do without him home! My dad is the one who lets me go out and do what I want on weekends. My mom is more strict about those things and she always questions me about everything, which i hate! It's also going to be very hard without my dad around because my sisters and I are involved in a ton of activities. We are always running around to dance, soccer, volleyball, show choir, tennis, swimming, piano, or whatever else we need to be at. My mom and I are going to have a tough time transporting people everywhere they have to be. I am anxious and stressed about these upcoming three weeks.

Something else in my life that sucks right now is that volleyball practices haven't started up again for nationals yet. My team has been on a break since regionals, which were at the end of March. I really want to start again because I miss my teammates! A couple of them go to Prairie High School, so I never get to see them. Plus, I just miss volleyball in general. Playing volleyball is my favorite thing to do in the entire world. I just want to get going and start preparing for nationals. Nationals are going to be amazing! Ahhhh I'm pumped!

Though all these stressful things are going on right now, something to look forward to is my birthday. It is on May 22, so it's coming up here pretty quickly. I am going to be seventeen years old, finally! The only bad things about my birthday are that the Happiness list goes up that day and my dad will still be in Australia. But other than that, I am very excited for it!

Almost a Senior....

This school year has gone by extremely fast! I feel like it should still be first trimester. As far as grades go, my GPA was raised quite a bit first and second trimesters, but this last trimester I feel as though school is kicking my butt big time. I have no motivation whatsoever to do any work, and it is ruining my grades. When I go home, I barely even do any homework anymore. It's pathetic! I go straight up to my room, turn my TV on, and plop down on my bed to take a nice long nap. School is pretty much my last priority right now, which is not good because this year is very critical in terms of getting into college. I just want this school year to be over and I want summer to be here. It will be kind of weird when the year is over though, because that means that I am a senior. I am really excited to be a senior, but also kind of sad about it. The current seniors have been at Kennedy ever since I have, so it will be weird not having them around anymore. I will definitely miss a lot of them that I have become close with over the years. Another reason it will be sad to be a senior is that the year will be filled with lots of "lasts". I will have my last homecoming dance, my last volleyball games, and pretty much my last everything that I do in high school. I don't want to leave all of my friends and family and Kennedy! But, on the other hand, I really really want to be living on my own, without restrictions from my parents. College is going to be good for me. I can't wait to get started on the path to adulthood! :)

Show Choir!

On Tuesday I decided to try out for show choir! I never thought I would try out again, but I guess I really missed it. It was REALLY scary and I was extremely nervous during the singing portion because it was only second hour and my voice wasn't warmed up. Ziegler and Sands were really nice and talkative, so that helped me calm down a little bit. I think I was so nervous because I felt like they would hate me for not trying out last year. I have been a part of show choir every year since seventh grade, minus last year. I am anxious to see how things turn out. My dance audition was after school from five to seven. I really wasn't all that nervous or anything about that part because I can usually pick up a dance pretty quickly. Jacey went with me to try out which was cool. We got done trying out pretty quickly because both of us were in the first few groups. We both thought we had done a pretty good job. I am very excited and super nervous to see how things turn out. I really hope I make it because this is my last chance to take part in show choir and I miss it so much!

After the dance auditions Jacey and I went to check out the girls' soccer game. We only stayed for like five minutes, and then we decided to head back home. When we went out to my car, Jacey noticed that someone had written something on my back window with car paint. We figured out that it was Kyle and Connor, so I called them and yelled at them for doing it. The two of them came back to the parking lot, and I thought they were going to apologize, but then they ended up putting more paint on my car! All of my windows and mirrors were covered with car paint, and I was really mad because I knew I would have to clean all of it off! And, sure enough, when I went home my dad was really mad about the whole situation. This was an eventful night!

I WANT SUMMER!

Initially, school was moving by extremely fast. But now that it's third trimester, it feels like summer will never get here because of how slow the days are going by! I am definitely slacking off in my classes, and I'm for sure not putting forth all of my effort toward school work. All I want to do is head to the pool or lay out or grab a Very Berry Fruitzen cup! I dream of summer. It is my favorite time of the entire year. I love not having to go to school and starting preseason workouts for volleyball every morning! I enjoy heading out to Palo beach with friends, and I like being able to hang out with all of my friends whenever i want!

This summer is going to be one of my more memorable ones for a few reasons. First, my volleyball team is heading to Miami for a week to compete at nationals. Second, the day I get back from Miami my family is leaving for Cancun, Mexico for a week. Third, when I get home from Cancun I am going to Okoboji with my cousins for a week.

I have so many exciting things to look forward to that I can hardly wait for school to be over! I just want to be free! Something kind of sad about this summer, though, is that it is my last summer as a high schooler :( I have to worry about senior pictures, and applying for college, and actually choosing a college very soon! I'm excited to leave home and get away from all of my parents' rules, but I am definitely going to miss all of my friends and family. I know i will cry when the time comes for me to leave, but the tears will be a mix of happiness and sadness. There are so many things for me to look forward to, but I will miss a lot of things about being in high school and living at home.

Nattys!

My favorite sport in the whole entire world is volleyball. I play school ball and club ball, and right now it is club season. My team this year is actually pretty dece and we have won all of our tournaments except for two. A couple of weeks ago we went to regionals, which is located in Des Moines every year. It is a tournament that lasts for the whole weekend. Hundreds of teams from all around Iowa come to compete at regionals to get a bid to nationals. This year my team played at Drake both Saturday and Sunday. We were in the qualifier's bracket, which means that if we get first, second, or third place we get an automatic bid to nationals. Everyone advances to the second day, but on Sunday it goes to double elimination. My team played like crap on Saturday, but on Sunday we stepped our game up big time. We ended up getting fourth place, just like last year. Only one place from going to nationals! But thankfully Six Pack ended up winning another qualifier, so their regional bid went to us! My whole team is extremely excited about going to nationals. Some of the girls who I play with are seniors, so it is their last chance to go. Nationals is in Miami, Florida this year, and we get to go down there for a whole week! I am looking forward to going so much! It is going to be the highlight of my summer. My teammates are like my sisters, so I know I will have an absolutely amazing time with them. I CAN'T WAIT!!!!!!!!!!

Emmett and Rosalie

Emmett and Rosalie are part of the Cullen clan, although we generally don't hear about them very often. Emmett is the big, strong, macho man kind of vampire. He really likes to tease people and he has a good sense of humor. Rosalie is kind of reserved and very stubborn and opinionated. She likes things to be her way or else she gets upset. Rosalie was added to the Cullen clan before Emmett was. She was supposed to be a mate for Edward, but Edward never had any interest in Rosalie. Rosalie's human life story is a sad one. She was the most beautiful girl anyone had ever seen. She dressed gorgeously and she meticulously did her hair. One day she met the man of her dreams. He was a royal, which meant that he was extremely rich as well as handsome. It seemed like everything was going right in Rosalie's life because this man had asked for her hand in marriage. She accepted, of course. Everything was fine until one night she was out visiting her newly-married friend in the villiage. She had married a carpenter, and at first Rosalie had felt bad for her. That was, until she looked at how much the two of them loved each other. They had had a baby, and Rosalie was surprised to find that she was extremely jealous of this marriage and this baby. She left, and on her walk home she saw her fiancee and some of his friends. They had been drinking, and as she drew nearer they attacked her and beat her very badly. She would have died if Carslile Cullen had not found her body in the road. He bit her and she made the transformation into a vampire. She was not happy about being a vampire. She would now never be able to have kids. And, on top of that, Edward was not interested in her one tiny bit! Never in her life had Rosalie ever been rejected from a boy or a man! She was always used to getting what she wanted. One night, while she was hunting, she happened to come across a man being mauled by a bear. She decided to save him because the man's dark curly hair reminded her of her former friend's baby. It was a good choice to save this man and turn him into a vampire because he became the man of her life, Emmett. They are perfect for each other, and they are two of the most beautiful vampires in the world. And, even though Rosalie can have an attitude some of the time, she has a good heart, and she truly cares about her family and Bella, even though she doesn't want to admit it.

Are Vampires Real?

In fact, some people truly do believe that vampires are indeed real. http://www.angelfire.com/biz4/vampyreresearch/faq.html says that the kinds of vampires in the movies are not real, but that there are pretty normal "people" out there who have a severe hypersensitivity to sunlight and who have the need to consume blood. When talking with these so called vampires, they say that they consume about a shotglass full of blood during each time they feed. So, the myth about them draining whole bodies of blood is in fact not true. These vampires also do not burn up and die in the sunlight, but many are susceptible to sunstrokes and sunburn. They also do not avoid garlic, although many have digestion problems that keep them from eating or being around garlic. Another interesting fact is that crucifixes and holy water do not kill vampires. It is said that all of these vampires come from all different kinds of religious denominations. Another myth about vampires is that they are said to be immortal. In reality, they have not been proven to be immortal, but they are said to have stronger immune systems and they age slower and have longer life spans than the average human. Many vampires do not sleep in coffins like movies and shows suggest, but they sleep in normal beds just like normal people. They do tend to prefer a traditional mattress over a waterbed, though. Vampires do have reflections in mirrors and they can be depicted in photographs and on cameras. All in all, vampires can be real depending on what you believe. I personally do not think I believe in vampires, but I'm still hoping that there is and Edward out there for me! :)

DVD Release!

I AM SO EXCITED! Why? Because Twilight the DVD is going to be released to the public this Saturday, March 21st! This is going to be a huge event. I am 99.9% sure that within the first couple of hours of being in the stores, Twilight will be sold out. There are so many crazed fans that are just as anxious as I am. I am so glad that i finally get to own this movie for myself! It is sooooo good, and I am absolutely obsessed! Plus, I'm not gonna lie...I am extremely happy that I will be able to stare at Edward, played by Rob Pattinson, as much as I want! Twilight is my favorite book series and movie, so I'm sure you can understand that this is a big deal for me! Another good thing about the release of Twilight is that it means that the showing of New Moon is getting closer and closer every single day! Even though New Moon was my least favorite book from the series, I am still as excited as ever to see the movie! I was impressed at how well Twilight the movie portrayed the book. I definitely thought that it was going to be terrible and that it was going to ruin my love for the series! I have watched interviews of the cast and crew, and I can see that there was a lot of work put into the making of Twilight the movie. Stephenie Meyer created such a complicated story, and it is incredible that they were able to not ruin everything that Twilight is supposed to be. They were able to create amazing effects with the vampires. For instance, they showed that the vampires were very fast by having the actors walk on a moving sidewalk coming directly at the camera. This created a very cool image. They also showed the vampires' sheer strength by showing Edward stopping the van from killing Bella and showing Edward climbing up a tree with Bella on his back. They showed that vampires have a very keen sense of smell during the ballet room scene with all of the blood. And they also showed that vampires have amazing hearing especially during scenes in the lunchroom and during the scene when the Cullens were playing baseball in the field. Altogether, the cinematographer did a wonderful job with creating perfect shots and scenes for Twilight. I don't think they could have done a better job!

My Opinion On Blogging

When we first learned that we would be blogging for class, I thought it was going to be a very fun, easy, quick way to receive points. It was simple to choose my topic (Twilight) because I can ramble on and on about it. It is my favorite book series and one of my favorite movies. I started off being able to think of good ideas for blogs, but I soon realized that it was harder than I thought to keep talking about Twilight even though it is one of my passions. So, it became more tough for me to be able to sit down and blog three posts of 250 or more words per week. I soon began to lose most of my interest for blogging, which is pretty sad, because I'm sure it has reflected in my grade. I wish that I could just blog about anything I want for every single post, even if each time it is about something different. I think that next term when we resume our blogging, I am going to change my topic to something that I know for sure will not be hard for me to write about for a long period of time. So, all in all, I do enjoy blogging, but not when I can't find anything to say about my initial topic. I will be ready next term!

HOT, HOT, HOT!

Top Ten Things About Edward Cullen:

1. He dazzles in the sunlight.
2. He doesn't drink human blood like most other vampires.
3. He is clever and extremely witty.
4. He has a wonderful sense of humor.
5. He doesn't sleep.
6. He doesn't need to breathe.
7. He is crazy fast and unthinkably strong.
8. He is absolutely gorgeous and has a rockin' body.
9. He knows exactly how to treat Bella.
10. He is the most amazing guy/vampire out there!

Top Ten Things About Bella Swan:

1. She is very sarcastic.
2. She has a mind of her own and doesn't feel the need to conform to others' ideas.
3. She is very smart.
4. She seems to attract people very quickly.
5. She is a danger magnet.
6. She doesn't like to talk about her feelings with her dad.
7. She has an unreadable mind.
8. She falls in love with the most gorgeous boy on earth.
9. She wants to become a vampire.
10. She is best friends with a werewolf.

Every little quality about both Edward and Bella is intriguing and fascinating. I never get bored with reading about the two of them. They are such opposites that they are bound to attract. In the first book, Twilight, you get to experience their love taking off in full bloom as they get to know each other and begin to spend time with each other. At the end of Twilight the two of them know that they are in love. During the second book, New Moon, other plans take place. Edward thinks that he is being selfish by staying with Bella because he feels as though he is risking her life. He decides to leave and pretend like he had never been a part of her life. Both Bella and Edward went through a phase of depression after Edward decided to leave, and pretty soon Edward couldn't handle it anymore so he had to come back and check on Bella. When he came back, what he saw scared him. Bella was doing all kinds of reckless things with her new best friend Jacob Black, the werewolf. Vampires and werewolves have had a strong hatred for each other since before anyone can remember. Anyways, Edward contemplated the situation and decided that he would once again rejoin Bella. At first, Bella thought that Edward was a hallucination because she hadn't seen him in such a long time, and it was completely improbable that he would come back. But, after time, she realized that what was happening was real, and she was ecstatic. Bella and Edward started off their relationship again, although this time around Charlie wasn't very keen about Edward anymore. He didn't trust him, and he didn't want to see Bella suffer like that ever again. As time went on, Bella and Edward fell even deeper in love, if that was possible. They were very fond of each other, and could not ever imagine being separated again. In the final book of the series, Breaking Dawn, Bella is transformed into a vampire after giving birth to her and Edward's child, Reneesme. After the transformation is complete and Bella gains full vampire abilities, the Cullen clan is surprised to see that she is a natural. Bella is graceful and swift, and she doesn't seem to crave blood like most newborns do. They think this is because of how much time Bella spent with them when she was a human. Through their married life Bella and Edward stay just as in love as they were when they first laid eyes on each other, and this would never change. Not in a million years.

Cast of Twilight the Movie

For the movie Twilight, it took a long time to figure out who would play each role. It was hard to find people to portray vampires because they are described as the most beautiful people in the world. But, in the end everything worked out wonderfully!

Cast:
Kristen Stewart as Bella Swan
Robert Pattinson as Edward Cullen
Billy Burke as Charlie Swan
Ashley Greene as Alice Cullen
Nikki Reed as Rosalie Hale
Jackson Rathbone as Jasper Hale
Kellan Lutz as Emmett Cullen
Peter Facinelli as Dr. Carlisle Cullen
Cam Gigandet as James
Taylor Lautner as Jacob Black
Anna Kendrick as Jessica Stanley
Michael Welch as Mike Newton
Christian Serratos as Angela Weber
Gil Birmingham as Billy Black
Elizabeth Reaser as Esme Cullen
Edi Gathegi as Laurent
Rachelle Lefevre as Victoria
Sarah Clarke as Renee Dwyer
Ned Bellamy as Waylon Forge
Gregory Tyree Boyce as Tyler Crowley
Justin Chon as Eric Yorkie
Matt Bushell as Phil Dwyer
Jose Zuniga as Mr. Molina
Solomon Trimble as Sam Uley

Those are the main characters, and all of them are credited in the movie. These actors and actresses worked their butts off to make one of the best movies in the world! Twilight the book series can never be portrayed exactly the same in a movie, but in my opinion, this group of people made it somewhat possible. They did better than I had expected they would do, and it was a nice surprise.

For the next movie, New Moon, the producers are keeping all of the same main characters that were in Twilight. I know there was some discussion about replacing Taylor Lautner because of how young he looks, but that is all cleared up now. He will indeed be back in New Moon.

Check out what the characters look like at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f4jW1WxOdTU

True Love

Although some people may think that a love story between a vampire and a human sounds entirely stupid, they are so very wrong. The tale of Edward Cullen and Bella Swan meeting and growing closer and closer is a story that could melt anybody's heart. Their love is beautiful and complex, and words cannot describe it. They are perfect for each other and they were meant to be together forever.

Even before Bella knew that Edward was in love with her too, Edward would come into Bella's bedroom at night just to watch her sleep. It was fascinating to him to watch her (in a very non creepy way). When Bella found out that he had been coming into her room for a couple of months without her being aware of it, she wasn't even freaked out. She actually liked that he had come to see her. She didn't fully understand why he had chosen her, but she was okay with it. Now when he would come visit her she would be awake waiting for him. The two of them would have long conversations about everyting there was to talk about. They loved hearing about each other. Very rarely would the two of them spend a night apart. They were now totally inseperable.

All of the other boys who had crushes on Bella were very upset that she was now dating Edward Cullen. They resented the fact that he was able to capture her attention and make her fall head over heels for him. Most upset of all was Jacob Black, Bella's best friend. During the time they had spent together when Edward left contained some of the greatest memories of his life. Jacob had also fallen for Bella, and he didn't think it was right that Edward could just come back home and have Bella again the same as before.

Charlie, Bella's dad, also didn't like the fact that Edward came back either. He also didn't like it that Bella forgave him right away and gave him all of her trust once again. He didn't understand their relationship. All he was aware of was the fact that Edward had broken Bella's heart by leaving her, and he never wanted to see it happen again. She was depressed for a good long time when Edward was gone, and he didn't feel it was right for Bella to be with Edward again.

Although other people may think that Edward would just leave Bella again, both Bella and Edward both knew that would never happen. They were desperate for each other's love. They promised each other that nothing of the sort would ever occur again, and they always keep their promises to each other. From here on, their relationship flourished and began to grow again into what it was before. Bella and Edward were again inseperable, and things were great!

The next books, Eclipse and Breaking Dawn, will be summarized in later blogs.

New Moon

The first book in the series, Twilight, made me never want Bella and Edward's story to come to an end. So, when New Moon came out, I was ecstatic! I was thrilled that I would get to read on about all of the experiences the two of them had to face together. These books are truly unexplainable. They are THAT good.

Anyway, I started reading New Moon, and only a few chapters into the book, Edward leaves Bella because he thinks its better for her to be without him and live a normal life as if he had never existed. He took away all of her objects and possessions that would remind her of him, and he left. This literally crushed Bella. She wouldn't move, she wouldn't speak, and she rarely acknowledged anyone. Her life as she knew it was over.

But, soon enough, she was reunited with her old friend Jacob Black who lives down in La Push. Bella would visit him often. Going to Jacob's soon became her only activity. They would always hang out in his garage while he would work on fixing up an old car. Jacob easily became Bella's best friend. She was very grateful to have him around to keep her company after Edward had left her. Jacob was easy to talk to, and he lived on the edge and did dangerous things sometimes. When doing some of these dangerous activities with him, Bella learned that she would hear Edward's voice telling her to stop and to take care of herself. Bella needed to hear his voice so badly that she kept putting herself in these dangerous situations just so she could hear a couple of words from Edward's voice.

At some point, Edward didn't think he could handle being away from Bella anymore so he went to check in on her without her knowing. He saw how terribly miserable she was without him and he didn't know what to do. He was caught between doing the right thing and going back to his true love to spend forever with her. In the end, Edward and Bella are thankfully reunited. They now both knew that they would never ever leave each other again no matter how wrong their love is. They needed each other to survive.

Intro to the Cullens and More

The Cullen family, created by Dr. Carslile Cullen, is essentially a coven of "vegetarian vampires. Edward was the first one to be brought into the group. He was dying of the Spanish flu around 1917. Dr. Carslile saved him from his death. The other members of the clan, Esme, Alice, Jasper, Rosalie, and Emmett, were all created later on. Esme is Carslile's partner, Jasper is Alice's, and Emmett is Rosalie's. None of them were turned into vampires unless they were near death. Edward is the only one of the group to not have a partner. He just wasn't interested. That is....until he met Bella.

Edward first experienced Bella in Biology class at their school. She was to sit next to him and be his lab partner. Bella was very excited about this because Edward intrigued her. But, from the moment she sat down next to him, Edward was very tense. It was like he had to hold himself back from hurting her. This was, of course, because Bella's blood was the greatest thing he had ever smelled. He wanted to kill her so badly just to get a taste of it. But, staying true to his morals, he held back. He tried to switch out of Bella's class, but there were no openings. He just had to deal with it.

It got easier to be around Bella as the days went by. Edward grew accustomed to her scent, and since he was around her more often it made it more bearable to see Bella as a friend and not as a snack. He really started to like her not only because of her scent, but because she was the only person whose thoughts he couldn't hear. This was upsetting to Edward because his little talent had never failed him before. So, he took up the hobby of getting to know as much as he could about her.

Edward and Bella soon fell in love and became completely inseperable. They knew all of each other's secrets and they had very deep trust in each other. They knew that they would be together forever. Nothing else mattered. Bella was persistent in trying to get Edward to bite her and change her into a vampire. He just wouldn't agree to it though, because he wanted her to think very carefully about it. He did not want her to give up her human life and all the experiences that came along with it. He wanted her to be able to age and to change as life goes on. But, no matter what Edward told her, Bella would not change her mind. Now that she had Edward in her life, she could not go on without him. No human life could ever amount to the same thing as a life with Edward, even if it made her a psycho, bloodlusting freak. They were in love, and no matter what, neither of them could change that.