Tag: Family

Spring Break 2019

Just like that, another break goes by. I don’t get it. I’m at school for a week and it feels like five months. I come home for spring break and it feels like three minutes. Time flies when you’re having fun! And it also flies when you’re not worried about chemistry 24/7 (gotta love being a bio major for that one!).

My spring break started last weekend after Colorado was hit by that interesting bomb cyclone. I got two snow days as a result of that one. Haha thanks Colorado State University and a big thank you to my biology professor for postponing our exam this past Thursday!

There was a lot of tennis played and it felt so good to get back on the court again. I had the opportunity to watch my sister win her first match at 1 singles for my old high school too which was really fun. Go Allyson! 🙂 Hitting with my dad was really fun as always, and I had the opportunity to hit with some of the ladies at the country club my family plays out of.

Being with my doggies again for a longer amount of time was also wonderful. And of course, being with my bird was also a lot of fun. All of the the animals in the Horvath household were happy to be with me again.

I also babysat for two of the days during my spring break. Watching a two year old can be exhausting but man is it fun! Being with kids is just so much fun, even if they can be a bit too crazy and too energetic sometimes. It was really nice to make some money this spring break and it was also just really fun to hang out with a super adorable kid. He always makes me smile and I love that family.

By the time my spring break was coming to a close, my aunt from New Mexico came to visit to celebrate my sister’s birthday a bit late and also just to spend some quality time together. It was a bummer that my uncle couldn’t get work off to also come visit, but I know that I’ll get the chance to see both of them again very soon, like in May when Allyson graduates high school. Woohoo!

This past weekend with my aunt was spent eating (we ate SO much food, I’m not even kidding), more tennis, and good company. We went to Denver to get lunch at BurgerFi and I got to try their chili cheese fries which I TOTALLY recommend. My sister also gave us all a tour of Regis University, which is where Allyson has decided to go for college. The campus was super pretty and super cute. I’m happy she decided to go there. We also walked around Denver a little and got to show my aunt the new premium mall that was just built not too far from my house.

Great weekend, great spring break, and just great people. I feel so lucky to be able to have the opportunities and experiences I do and be with all of the people that I am around in my life. Spring break may be over and that does make me sad, knowing that I have to get back to the books now, but summer will be here before we know it! Have a good week everyone! 🙂

March 24, 2019
A Much Needed Break

That was a WONDERFUL break, oh my goodness. I hope you all enjoyed time with family and friends this past week, and especially on Thanksgiving. I sure know I did!

When I first got home from school last weekend, I don’t think I’ve ever seen Marty, Boo, or Bobo so excited. I’ve been home for weekends, but I think they could tell I was staying for a longer period of time, which was adorable. My mom, dad, and sister, were excited too of course! I really missed seeing them every day. 🙂 I love my family and I’m so glad I chose to attend an in-state college. I don’t know what I would do if I couldn’t come home on weekends.

At the beginning of the week, I got back into the swing of tennis which was amazing. I played like I haven’t played in a few weeks so it was quite the scene, but I enjoyed it. Hitting with my dad and sister again was so much fun. Just in general, not having to think about chemistry and my typical pile of homework was FUN!

As usual, my family and I went to New Mexico to spend time with my aunt, uncle, and grandpa for Thanksgiving which is always a great time. I’m sad we had to come back early this time around though. The weather was crummy yesterday and I had to be back to school today, so we drove back yesterday.

The time I get to spend with family is always great though. Even though it’s short, we make the most of it. Thanksgiving itself was filled with A LOT of great food and of course, my favorite, pumpkin pie. I get a little too excited for dessert on Thanksgiving because I absolutely love pumpkin pie. I’m pretty sure I ate an entire pumpkin pie by myself throughout my weekend in New Mexico. My family and I played fun games, ate some more, went on a ride with my grandpa (he loves going out to see the airport), and caught up with my aunt and uncle.

And of course, there was homework for me to do too. I had a speech to write, project to watercolor, and a gigantic post lab to finish for my chemistry lab. I got it all done, but doing homework over break really sucks. I can’t wait for winter break! There will be no homework for six whole weeks and when I come back to school, I’ll be in totally different classes. I’m pumped.

Only two more weeks til finals and then it’s winter break! Once again, I hope you all had a great Thanksgiving and if you were on break, I hope you enjoyed that too. 🙂 Have a great week everyone, and remember to find something to be thankful for every day.

November 25, 2018
Senioritis is Kicking in Hard and It’s Not Even Winter Break Yet

So finally Thanksgiving Break is upon us and I couldn’t be happier. School has been wonderful so far, I just always feel the desire to not do anything. Lately, I’ve really just been wanting to sleep and if I have homework that’s due but not due the next day, I typically don’t do it. I’m still working super hard in classes and my grades are the best they’ve ever been, it’s just that I’m pretty sure senioritis is upon me.

I’ve already applied to the four colleges I’m looking at and I’ve been accepted into three of the four (still waiting to hear back from the last one). So at this point, it’s just the scholarship applications, yay?! Those are honestly, so much more work than I expected, but that’s okay. I’ve already written so many college essays and additional essays and stories about my life and extracurricular activities, that this feels like nothing. But I just wanna be done! Done with all of the writing and the stress that comes with it. That’s senioritis for ya.

All I can think about is going off to college next year and what it will be like living without my family. I plan on only going to college about an hour’s drive away from my home, but the thought of living without Marty and Boo, my dogs, and my parents, and Allyson, my best friend and my sister is odd. Life will be so different. I think about what it will be like to live in a tiny room with another person that I’ve most likely never met and spend a whole year with them. I’m sure we’ll get to be great friends and it’ll be awesome. I think about what classes I might take and how that will get me into dental school so that I can eventually become an orthodontist.

I’ve truly stopped caring about what other people think of me and spend most of my school days in leggings with a comfy t-shirt from a tennis tournament on. Freshman year, I told myself, “Ana, you’re not going to be like those seniors that stopped trying to dress nice and cute senior year. You aren’t going to be the senior wearing leggings and a t-shirt almost every day.” I laugh thinking about that, because that’s exactly what I became. I still have my days where I wear a cute dress, display my array of Alex and Ani bracelets, or wear some cute jeans with a nice top and some boots. I also have an increasing amount of days where I just don’t care what I look like. Frizzy hair? It’s fine. Same pair of leggings in one week? Honestly, no one will notice. Wear that shirt too much? Not an issue any more. That’s senioritis.

I know I’m gonna miss the people I’ve made friends with and I’m going to miss the amazing school I’ve called home the past four years, but it will be great to spread my wings and see what the world has to offer. I think I’m ready for it.

November 19, 2017
My Sister, My Best Friend

My sister, my best friend. From the minute she was welcomed to the world, our friendship and bond would sprout from the earth, growing bigger and more beautiful each day. We’d run into our boulders and steep mountains, but we knew that life was meant to be conquered together.

I vaguely remember having my sister sit on my tiny almost two year old body and bite my thumb. Who knew that little sisters could be painful! I remember the day I told her that regular chairs served the same function as rocking chairs and this caused my sister to crack her head open on our fireplace, oops. I remember the year at Halloween when we dressed up as a pair of princesses from our favorite Barbie movie and pranced around our living room singing with sheer joy. I remember playing with dolls and stuffed animals and pretending to be fairies and different animals for hours and hours in our backyard and really just anywhere we traveled.

Together we discovered that hair doesn’t grow back on Barbies and that gum doesn’t make a good headband and that a bottle of Coke makes a good explosion if it’s shaken up enough. We’ve learned that tables make good hiding spots from heel-nipping dogs and that I’m a good hairstylist when it comes to chopping off bangs. We’ve seen that tennis rackets can cause major damage to the face and that becoming good at roadtripping is crucial if eight-hour car trips come as a perquisite of being in the Horvath family.

Allyson and I learned to treasure our time together when I moved to a new school as a high school freshman. We learned to be thankful for our health and good fortune when I hurt my ankle and couldn’t play tennis for almost two years. Allyson and I learned to fearlessly navigate the rough waters of high school and life together. We learned that being each other’s best friend is the most wondrous part of our lives.

Sometimes, people ask my sister and me how is it possible that we get along so well. They share stories of how they tease and fight with their siblings, and even hate them. Some people yearn to be away from their brothers or sisters and some wish they were not related. It should never be this way. I tell people that it takes time. It takes time to get to know our brothers and sisters. Siblings should support, love, and care for each other. They act as the cheerleader, the coach, the tutor, the Devil’s advocate, and one of the closest people a person knows in life.

Regardless of where I go and what I do in life, my sister will always be with me. She may not always be right beside me or just down the hall, but she’ll be in my heart. Her goofiness and curiosity and outgoing personality have left a permanent mark on me like the mark we inscribed on the giant peach tree in my grandpa’s backyard. We will forever be tennis doubles partners, dish-washing partners, traveling companions, video directors, best friends, and most importantly sisters.

October 15, 2017
On Fam: A Word I Absolutely Hate

It’s lit, fam. You’re the best, fam. There’s no better fam than my fam. Oh, I’m sure there is and I’m also sure that there’s a better word to describe those we refer to as family. Fam is a word I despise and every time I hear it, I cringe. It’s like hearing styrofoam rub against a cardboard surface, ever, so, slowly, making me shudder and causing the hairs on the back of my neck to rise. Fam strips away the elegant characteristics and harmony of the beautiful painting created by the word family, and transforms them into a disarray of ugly browns and greens.

Being the artistic catastrophe it is, the word is quite a hideous one. It can be understood that in a world drowning in technology and shortcuts to an easier, simpler life, people would want to shorten their speech. But to shorten words that carry importance and value? I don’t think so. Family, as a word, dances with grace and poise over those who know the word well. It makes us feel loved, supported, at home. Fam, on the other hand, is a lump of mystery meat handed to us by the lunch lady at school. Disgusting.

People want to show love and acceptance by those they hold close to them, but calling them fam is throwing them the weak, brittle twig to grasp onto when they’re waist deep in a bottomless pit of quicksand. Calling them fam is being the querulous toddler tugging constantly on his mother’s jacket at the grocery store, whining for his favorite chocolate bar. Calling them fam is being the person that won’t stop asking, “Are we there yet?” on a never-ending road trip. Calling them fam is finishing the bowl of popcorn while watching the big Sunday night football game and not having the “energy” to get up and go get more. Using this word makes a person sound uneducated and lazy because the word itself sounds lackadaisical, aggravating, and straight up ridiculous.

Then again, after a long day at school, when I’m feeling drained, I might turn to the more slothful side of me. When I trudge in through the front door I’ll greet my fam, tell my fam how lit my day was, and then head upstairs to make a dent in my pile of homework. Sounds like a plan? Absolutely not! The people I call family and the people I call friends deserve a more beautiful word, and a beautiful word like family deserves to be used for the people I cherish in life. Our friends and our families mean much more to us than an atrocious three-letter word, so we should use a more righteous word to demonstrate that.

January 29, 2017
Merry Christmas!

I know it isn’t Sunday, but it definitely is Christmas. So, Merry Christmas!

Christmas isn’t all about the presents under the tree, it’s about the birth of Christ and the quality time you get to spend with the people you love. It doesn’t matter how expensive or fancy a gift is, it’s the effort and thought into it that makes it special. Gifts are nice because they give you the opportunity to show your appreciation and care towards friends and family, but your attention and time are much more important and valuable.

Today is a great day to eat good food, make new traditions, play in the snow (if you have any), be silly, relax, play games, and have a good time. My family gets together in New Mexico every Christmas and we’ve been doing a fun gag gift game for the past few years. This year my aunt and uncle started a ping-pong tournament which was super fun, got everyone involved, and it is something we plan to continue doing every Christmas from here on out. Traditions like these are what make time with family and the holidays really special for everyone.

Anyways, I just wanted to wish you all the best today. Stay warm, or cool (depending on where you are) and enjoy yourselves! I hope you and your families have a fun, memorable, and wonderful day. Merry Christmas and Happy upcoming New Year!

December 25, 2015
Thanksgiving Break

It has been really nice getting to have an entire week off from school for Thanksgiving. A week off allowed for me to relax, do homework, spend time with friends, goof around with my sister, and visit my family in New Mexico for Thanksgiving.

Getting a week off from school was great and I didn’t realize how much I needed it until the break arrived. I was able to sleep in, work on homework, read, and relax. Two of the books I read over the break were Land of Stories: Return of the Enchantress and Happily Ever After. Happily Ever After is a book that accompanies The Selection series by Kiera Cass (my favorite book series by the way). Land of Stories: Return of the Enchantress is the second book of the Land of Stories series by Chris Colfer. I recommend both series to anyone who enjoys romance and fairy tales.

Thursday morning, my family and I packed up our car and travelled to Farmington, New Mexico to spend time with my aunt, uncle, and grandpa. On the way to New Mexico, we heard “Alice’s Restaurant” which is a Thanksgiving traditional song three times. Oh boy. There was plenty of wonderful food to eat when we arrived at my grandpa’s house and we had a good time together. In my opinion, spending time with family is very important, especially during a holiday. You get to catch up with one another and have a good time together. I definitely did not go Black Friday shopping, despite the good deals many businesses offered. To be honest, Black Friday shopping scares me. It gets so intense and personal for some people!

On Saturday my family and I were out and about running errands and visiting family friends. When we had time, my mom, sister, grandma, and I went to the local mall and found a great ugly Christmas sweater. It’s pretty ugly, but the ugliness almost makes it cute. When dinner time rolled around, my entire family drove to Zeb’s which is a buffet restaurant where you can pick a meal from the menu with a side from the salad bar, a meal from the meat bar, or the salad bar as a meal. I ordered a Alpine Burger that had a burger, mushrooms, Swiss cheese, and sour cream on it (I added that from the burger bar). In the end, the food was good and we were all stuffed. Zeb’s is a wonderful restaurant that has a large variety of delicious food and great service.

Today my family and I packed up and are currently on our way home. Eight hour car trips are the perfect time to work on blogs, haha. It’s been pretty cold so far and there’s some snow up in the mountains.

Overall, I had a great and productive Thanksgiving break and look forward to more trips to New Mexico, time with family, and breaks in the future. I hope you and your families had a wonderful Thanksgiving. Have a wonderful week!

November 29, 2015
How to Have a Happy Dog
Dogs are a man’s best friend, or in my case, a girl’s best friend. Haha. In case you didn’t know, I have two silky wire-haired dachshunds named Marty and Boo. They are super energetic and the most adorable little dachshunds I’ve ever met. Dogs need to be loved, played with, and cared for. Happy dogs are the best kind of dogs. Here are a bundle of tips on how to have a happy dog:

My sister and I with our dogs Marty (right) and Boo (left).
1. Keep your dog active. Take your dog for regular walks and let them enjoy get fresh air. Dogs love to be able to get up and out. This can also help keep your dog at a healthy weight and a dog at a healthy weight is much happier than a dog under or overweight.
2. Play with your dog and give him/her attention. Our tail-wagging companions need attention. This can be several things like playing games with your dog, taking it to the vet for check-ups, brushing it, washing it, giving it belly rubs, rubbing behind their ears or neck, buying a new collar, and the list goes on. Your dog is a part of your family, so why not give it the same amount of love and attention that you give your mom or your sister?
3. Give your dog treats. Dogs love treats, especially after good behavior, so why not reward them? Find what kind of treats your dog likes and give the treats to your dog when you can.
4. If your dog is lonely, get them a friend. Having one dog works out well for some families and sometimes it doesn’t. Some dogs need another buddy to help them get through the day, mostly when they’re home alone for quite some time. From personal experience, this was true for my family. When Marty, our older dachshund, was about a year old, he got kind of lonely at home when no one else was there so we got his half-brother, Boo, the next summer, and they haven’t been lonely since then. Two dogs keep each other company and look out for each other and make the house a lot more fun.
5. ALWAYS be friendly to your dog. Dogs can get upset when you’re upset or unfriendly to them. If you don’t like to be yelled at and treated poorly, then you should know that dogs are the same way. They love to be treated with kindness and by a friendly, happy person.
So I hope these tips can be used to help make your dogs happier. They deserve it! There are so many wonderful ways that can also help make your dog happy and they can be found in books, from other owners, and even online. Dogs are a part of your family and they should really mean a lot to you so why not make them as happy as can be?
October 5, 2014
Family, Mountains, Pancakes, Oh My!
There are some things that you never forget in life, like long road trips, time with family in the mountains, and eating brunch at a restaurant where the pancakes are very big. This past weekend, my family traveled about four hundred miles to Farmington, New Mexico. We spent time with our aunt and uncle and grandpa. From our trip, I learned many things about family and traveling.
- When you have something as big as a pair of crutches, DON’T FORGET THEM! On Sunday, about ten minutes out of Farmington, my mom got ten texts and several calls from my aunt saying that we forgot my crutches. Haha. That was an exciting beginning of our road trip home. So we found a place to turn around and met my uncle at a Dairy Queen in Aztec (which is a town very close to the state border). I got my crutches back and life was good again. Moral of the story is, before you get ready to go back home, double-check and even triple check to make sure you have everything you brought.
- When visiting family, it’s always good to go and do something fun together. All seven of us (me, my sister, mom, dad, aunt, uncle, and grandpa) went to Hesperus, Colorado to eat breakfast at the Kennebec Café. Yummy! Later on, we drove up the bumpy La Plata Mountains trail. We all did some exploring and there was a lot of picture-taking. Doing this kind of stuff is really good bonding time and you can get some really great pictures.
- I’m sick of pancakes. When we went to the Kennebec Café for breakfast, the pancakes were HUGE! They tasted amazing but I think I’m going to take a break from pancakes for a while.
  So done with pancakes…
- When traveling by car over a long distance, keep yourself entertained. It’s truly not that fun to just stare out the window for eight straight hours and you can only take naps so many times. My sister and I learned that staying entertained helps the ride seem shorter most of the time. You can do this by watching movies, playing on an iPad, listening to music, talking, and so on.
- Any family time is good family time. Getting the chance to make memories and have fun with your family is worth it. Even if you aren’t doing the most exciting thing ever, you are still bonding with your family.
To wrap things up, we all had so much fun this past weekend and the ride home was safe. As a family we made a bunch of great memories. Happy Birthday Dad and Jan! (Today is their birthday.) I can’t wait to go and visit again! And did I mention the pancakes were huge?!
August 10, 2014