November 24, 2012

a day of thanks.

wow. i have so many things to be grateful for. my heavenly father blessed me with an amazing life. really i {should} never have any complaints. a family that loves me. the true gospel with a living prophet. supportive friends that are always there for me. a loving missionary that makes me smile even thousands of miles away. several places that i can call "home". my great health. a great university where i can learn & develop. modern-day conveniences. my talents and abilities. & etc etc. those are some terrific blessings that often times i take for-granted.
so my goal: to live each day in thanksgiving for something i have in my life. take even 30 seconds to acknowledge & truly appreciate whatever that may be.

here's a few pictures from the family walk that we took on our day of thanks:


Kipton is just the cutest thing thing ever. he is getting so big 


just playing around at the park



my family is the greatest. i am so grateful for them. 

November 23, 2012

Congrats shay!

i have neglected to post about my dear friend and roommate, shaylee, on getting her mission call. last friday she opened that big white envelope and was shocked to be called to serve in.... Hong Kong, China! i am so excited for her and incredibly honored that she invited me to watch her open her call. her reaction was really priceless. you can view her thoughts and watch her video here! do it. 

congrats shay. i know you will do amazing things in china and really learn to love the people there. the lord will bless you for all your sacrifices. i am so beyond blessed to have a best friend like you to look up to all the time! i love you!

November 14, 2012

The snow has come!

snow. snow. snow!

so for an arizona girl.... this is a big deal. last winter in utah {from what my roommates have told me} was very mild and more like fall. {what???} so what people are trying to say is it gets colder? with more snow? yes. that's exactly what they are trying to say. & it manifested itself this past weekend.
three best friends loving the snow together. i love this picture.

roommates (& mogan who is missing here)


erin, megan, and meghan came to visit in utah this weekend and they froze their butts offfff!! brrrr....
but i had the best time with them & so grateful they stayed with me! :)

erin is going to have to get used to this snowy weather since she will be moving up here and being roommates with me next semester in january! can't wait... well now off to class & then studying! but... i am finished with anatomy lab!! my final was yesterday & its never felt so good to be done. 

p.s. 39 days till christmas... im excited!




November 8, 2012

happy hundred days

hundred days down. six hundred thirty to go.

okay so i know it's not that monumental. but its my first mile-stone day. so let me have a reason to celebrate deal? so it's really strange.. sometimes i feel like the past three months dragged on.... & i thought to myself "two years is never going to come, just stop your count downs". & then sometimes i reflected back on the months and it seemed like summer was just last week {the whiteness of my skin would like to suggest otherwise however}.  so did they go by fast? yes and no. i feel like i just meet him & fell in love but then.... i feel as though its been forever since i've been in his arms. oh the joys of missionaries. {so that sounded sarcastic but actually there are a lot of joys} let me share with you what i have learned the last three months:

  • writing letters is a stress reliever
  • receiving letters is like being given a new shiny present every week
  • i am really good at making packages {yes, i am tooting my own horn right now}
  • pictures mean soooo much when you don't get to see the person you love everyday
  • words are powerful & meaningful 
  • surprise packages makes that day seem like it suddenly has a heavenly golden glow about it
  • & christmas has an extra excitement added to it :) :) 
but maybe the most important thing i still know to be true is this: i love this boy & i love the joy that he brings to me everyday even when he is over two thousand miles away. happy hundredth everyone! do something to celebrate... i give you permission.


November 7, 2012

late night thoughts

well, clearly school has been taking up way too much of my time recently. and honestly, i feel like so much has changed in my life in just these short couple of months that have passed. where do i start?

missions. its been the topic of discussion for many weeks now. well, at least at byu campus. it was like a huge shock went though the lds community. soo... to answer those of you who are wondering...{you might be shocked} no, i am not going on a mission. why? its never been in my plan. and at this point in my life, i honestly feel like completing my education and getting a degree is what is most important. i feel good about my decision. yes, three of my best friends/roommates are going. my roomie, morgan, has her call and is called to serve in the chile, concepcion south mission. she reports to the mtc decemeber 19th. wow. fast huh? i am going to miss her bunches but she is going to spread the gospel to those wonderful people of chile (and trust me, they don't know how lucky they are...yet). shaylee just got her papers turned in yesterday! hooray! i can't wait to see where she goes. and haley is planning on starting her papers very soon.

so let's be honest.. ya? i am so extremely proud and excited for these three ladies that i love dearly to be serving the lord for eighteen months. but {this is where the honesty comes in}that doesn't mean my heart isn't totally breaking. seeing steven leave to go on a two year mission was hard enough. after i spent an amazing summer with this boy and practically spent all day, everyday with him, it was heartbreaking to see him leave. i didn't know saying goodbye was going to be that hard. and now.... all my best friends are leaving too? just rip my heart why don't ya! its true, a part of me will be missing until all those i love will be back... but. i realized that the lord needs those i love more than i do at this time. the work of the lord needs to go forth. and let me tell you... it's going forth in full force with all these sister missionaries storming the field!

so congrats, morg, haley, and shay. i love you more than anything and i am over-joyed with your decision to sacrifice eighteen months of your lives and give it over to the lord. you are truly needed where the lord asks you to serve and i can't wait for each of you to discover why. each one of you are an example of righteousness and obedience to me everyday. i feel so extremely blessed to call you my best friends and roommates. in the past year and half you have helped me grow, mature, learn, and become a better person. you have been my shoulders to cry on, my support team, my counselors, my partners in crime, my goofy best friends and my family here at college. now, i can't imagine my life without you three. how did i get along before you were there? thank you for all that you have done and continue to do for me. i love you. let the letters begin. {the post office will learn to love me}

is it pathetic that i am bawling like a baby now? probably. but everyone should know that i am emotional by now. so although this past month has been difficult, long, and sometimes depressing.... i finally feel content with life. i don't know everything that is going to happen in the future. i don't have everything figured out {like i usually do}. each day brings surprises. sometimes bad things happen. sometimes i break down and cry. sometimes people hurt my feelings. sometimes i get a bad grade. sometimes it's too cold here and i miss my az sunshine. sometimes i miss my family a lot. and sometimes i miss steven so much my heart aches. but everything is going to be okay. life throws you some crazy turns and obstacles but in the end, you get through them and come out stronger. so continue onward with a smile on your face and think of all the blessings you have. all the people that love you. and how much heavenly father wants you to succeed. life is good.