Our Fourth of July was absolutely wonderful! We spent it with our good friends Claire and Devin and their family. We are so grateful they invited us to spend the weekend with them since we didn't have any plans! We had so much fun going to the small town parade {Holland and Irelyn's first parades!}, eating yummy food, going out on their boat, watching fireworks. and just hanging out with great company!
Holland and Ava at the parade! {Thanks for the picture Claire!!}
Race, Holland, and Ava playing in the grass {Thanks Claire!!}
Playing at the river. It was so fun watching Holland spin and dance in this gorgeous lighting!
I could stare at Irelyn's beautiful eyes all day long. Also, I love the fist sucking stage!
I accidentally stumbled upon the camera settings that create these awesome silhouette photos and I'm in love. I wish I had had Race take some of Holland and I!
Headed out on the boat to watch the fireworks! {Thanks again Claire!!}
I attempted some firework photos but they didn't work out very well since I didn't have a tripod AND I was on a boat. I am excited to try again next year though!
I am so grateful for this wonderful country we live in and for the freedoms that we enjoy!
Some Thoughts from my Oh, Life Journal Entry on Thursday:
I found out a couple of days ago that a good friend of mine committed suicide. He was dealing with depression and anxiety. I can't even imagine what he was going through.
I met him my sophomore year in an anthropology class together. I NEVER make friends at school. I'm too quiet. Mark wasn't like that. He was an outgoing, funny, smart and tall redhead. I remember saying something about being Mormon or about my religion and he replied with a snarky comment. And then he apologized for being snarky. I didn't even know what that word meant but I got the gist of it. {I may have had to actually look it up later} Every time I hear the word snarky I think of him. I just thought of it the other day. It's a part of my vocabulary now. Thank you Mark.
Mark was my one friend who I was brave enough to share the gospel with. He was my one friend who was open enough to listen. He even took a few of the discussions. I loved going to the discussions with him. He had such insightful questions to ask. I remember the first time he told me that he finally understood what Mormons meant when they said they felt "warm fuzzies" He made me look at my beliefs in a different way. He helped my testimony to grow. He read some of the Book of Mormon. He prayed. He said the best prayers. They weren't anything like how I pray. He talked to God like they were best friends. I loved that. I must admit that I laughed a little when I heard him pray for the first time because it was so different. But why don't we talk to God like he's our best friend? He is. He knows us better than anyone else. He sent His Son to die for our sins so that we could be with Him again. I hope that Mark always talked to God like that. I know that God was there with him during his hard times. I hope that he can hear the message of the gospel again.
Mark and I talked about all kind of things. Religion, relationships, politics, and lots other stuff. We would go get Einstein's Bagels or hot chocolate and chat for hours. We weren't friends for long but he was definitely someone who impacted my life for good. Thank you Mark Wooldridge for the wonderful life that you lived. Thanks for your example and for making me smile! You and your family will be in my prayers.
It is really hard losing a friend but I am so grateful for the Plan of Happiness. God seriously planned everything out so well. It amazes me. This is the first time I have lost someone close to me and it is not easy but it does make me very grateful to have a testimony of God's plan for me and for everyone on this earth. Mark, you are still strengthening my testimony. Thank you.
Finally use the wax lips Race and I bought on a date FOREVER ago.
Take pictures of everything I do in a day .
Do my hair super cute {curled, fancy up-do, just anything other than my typical high ponytail/bun}
Plan a "fancy date" with my husband.
Go star gazing.
Take "First Day of School" pictures with Race.
Stare at my gorgeous wedding ring and list {in my head or on paper} all the reasons I love Race.
Make a skirt.
Wear the skirt I made.
Plan and/or go on a group date with friends.
Play tennis/racquetball with Race.
Wear my new swimsuit {$6 at Old Navy!}
Go on a bike ride.
Get my hair trimmed or cut.
Have my sister-in-law/best friend pluck and shape my eyebrows.
Buy a new color of nailpolish.
Play Michael Jackson: The Experience with Race.
Make a smoothie.
Here are pictures of some of these activities:
1. Make a cute hair accessory for myself
I made this headband last week and I have worn it at some point every day since I made it. It's super cute and comfy and soon I'm going to make a skirt out of the same fabric! Cute, eh? Oh, and making a skirt will fulfill another one of my Fun Challenges!
5. Paint my toenails/fingernails
I painted my toenails and fingernails tonight and it was fun until I was heading to find my nail polish and stubbed three of my toes. :[ And then I messed up my fingernail polish by setting up Scrabble. {It was worth it though--I totally won!}
20./21. Make a skirt and then Wear the skirt I make. Check the skirt out in this post. Yeah, I totally made that and then I wore it. And it's so comfy that I might just end up wearing it every day. Or making five more like it in all different fabrics. We'll see. A knit one would be comfy...
22. Plan and/or go on a group date with friends
{I don't have pictures of the date but these are pictures of the gorgeous sunset on the way to the bonfire.} We went on a group date with Kylie {who is also taking this challenge, with her own personal spin on it} and her husband TJ {I think they were the planners of the date--they are the ones who so kindly invited us :]}, and some other friends {Randon and Jerah, Aubree and Aaron, and Rachel}. Three of these girls were my roommates last year and it was a ton of fun to catch up and to get to know everyone even more. It's fun having other married couples to hang out with. On the group date we went to a bonfire out in the woods and made s'mores and enjoyed the wonderful weather and conversation.
{The 30 Day Fun Challenge was inspired by Alexis of alexislaughs.com Check her out!}
That's all I wrote in my journal yesterday.
I guess I am in shock a little bit.
I know that's not all that old or anything but I am FINALLY out of my teens.
So it's kind of a big deal!
I have been twenty for about forty hours.
Gooood stuff!
I am excited for this year.
It will be good.
But, to be completely honest I am having somewhat of a hard time dealing with being twenty.
I am not really sure why it's hitting me so hard.
But here's a quote that I found the other day that really helped and is just really good.
It says, "I have learned that I really do have control to a great degree over my circumstances.
If I don't like them, I've found there are certain things I can do to change them.
If I want to move to higher ground, if I want to have more positive experiences, I must think about life in positive terms, not dwell on the negative." --M. Russell Ballard
So, I am going to write twenty things that I have been very grateful for in the past year.
1. My parents
They have been there for me a TON in my first couple of years of college.
Always ready to give me advice and support me in my decisions.
And just talk to me when that's all I need.
2. My siblings
I have so much fun when I go home and my family always makes me feel welcome again.
Also they have been very kind as to write me letters while I'm away.
3. My sister Helena
Helena talks to me through my problems and she also asks me for advice with things she is dealing with which makes me feel good. :]
4. My best friend Jasmine
Jazz and I are SUPER different but we get along really well.
Jazz has helped me learn to be crazy and just laugh through things.
And whenever I am in a bad mood she does little things to cheer me up.
She has taught me a lot and I love that she is also now my roommate and we get to have sleepovers/camp outs EVERY night cause we live in a little TINY room (called 'the cave') with two beds and sooo many clothes that we are afraid they will soon attack us or explode throughout the entire room.
5. My friend Sterling
He knows how to make me smile. And I have learned a lot from him.
We have had some gooood chats.
6. My roommates
I moved in with four girls who all knew each other from high school.
To be honest I was SCARED OUT OF MY MIND!
And the first couple of weeks I was SUPER quite but these girls made sure to invite me to things and include me in the things that they did and we soon got to know each other and let me tell you, we have a heck of a lot of fun together!
7. Institute
My second semester of college I didn't take any institute classes and it was not too great.
The last two semesters I have taken at least two classes and I love it!
Right now I am taking a class about the first half of the Book of Mormon, a class about the
Teachings of the Modern Day Prophets, and a class about the Hymns.
I love them all and I learn so much whenever I go.
It has really helped me build my testimony and come closer to the my Heavenly Father.
8. My first motorcycle ride
My friend Ben Patterson took me on my very first ride on a motorcycle and it was lots of fun and
I felt super cool! :]
I felt like everyone was looking at us riding around and thinking we were really cool and then
I realized that I don't usually think that of people when they are riding around on their motorcycles but
I still like to think that I looked cool on the back of the motorcycle!
9. Spanish
I made it into Spanish 201 after not taking Spanish for two and a half years and
I LOVE it!
I forgot how much I love the Spanish language and
I am so happy to be learning it again.
10. Utah
I went to Utah twice in the past year.
The first time was to go to General Conference with Kylie Hassell and the Tenney boys
(Preston, Edwin, and Darrell).
This is where I met one of my future roommates, Kylie!
And I got to see my grandparents while they were on their mission in Temple Square.
This was super fun because I got them ALL TO MYSELF for a little bit. :]
And the second time was with Orson, Angus, Helena, and Jasmine.
We went to Utah/Idaho on a long road trip and I learned that
I can drive more than two consecutive hours and we got to visit lots of family and take TONS of fun pictures!
11. My camera
I got a new camera on Black Friday this past year and
I was super excited about it and then we were waiting in line and
Jasmine saw that someone had put the same camera down before buying it...except for this one was RED! Which is my all time favorite color.
So I got a red camera and it has taken more pictures than
I can count in the past three months. Thank you camera for many memories. :]
12. Cute clothes/shoes
Jasmine and I have a combined wardrobe so it makes for lots and lots of cute clothes.
I love picking out outfits and then having cute shoes to match and all that fun stuff.
And I love finding cute clothes and shoes on sale. :]
I got a pair of shoes a little bit ago and they are so cute that
I just can't help looking at them lots and lots whenever I wear them.
(I'll put a picture up sometime...)
13. Interesting Classes
So I need to be better at picking my classes but
I have had some good ones in the past year.
Some of my favorites have been Psychology,
Developmental Psychology, World Religions, and Public Speaking.
I like when learning is enjoyable and these classes helped a lot with that.
Oh, and Spanish but I talked about that earlier.
14. Missionaries
I have a couple friends out on missions and they are very good examples to me in the dedication that they have.
And the faith that they have.
And of course it is fun to get letters in the mail!
15. Cute sister-in-laws--
I now have two sister-in-laws and they are cute and fun!
On my birthday I was talking to my mom and she asked me if my brother
Neal called me and I said "No, but Nikki texted me."
And then she asked if my brother E.B. called and I said
"No, but Jackie texted me." Haha. Thank goodness for brothers with sweet wives. :]
And Nikki is super skilled and makes way cute hats and she made me one and sent it to me in the mail.
It was beyond exciting to get it and it is my all time favorite hat!
16. Phones/Skype/Chatting
I am super grateful for all the different forms of communication we have these days.
I love long phone conversations and fun web chats.
I remember dreaming about seeing the person
I was talking to on the phone and now I can do that...weird (and awesome)! Haha.
17. Blogs
Blogging helps me let people know what is going on in my life
AND I love reading other people's blogs.
They are so fun and creative. :]
18. Learning about myself
I have been learning to analyze myself and define myself.
I am not quite to defining myself...it has been harder than
I thought it would be but I am learning lots about me and what I want in life.
It's gooood.
19. Changing my major
I changed my major from Elementary and Special Education to Psychology.
I am not sure if I will stick with that as my major yet but I am thinking that I want to go into either Occupational Therapy or Recreational Therapy.
So we'll see where my life heads.
20. And last but not even close to least...THE GOSPEL
I am so grateful for the gospel and all that I have learned this past year.
And that my testimony has been strengthened.
I am grateful for the love that my Heavenly Father shows me in so many different ways.
Through music, through my friends, through my family, and through my church leaders.
I am grateful for the scriptures and what
I am able to learn from them when I take the time and really read and ponder them.
I am grateful for the teachings of the modern day Prophets and Apostles and for the hymns.
I am grateful for the organizations that are set up through the church like institute and seminary.
I am grateful for the Restoration of the gospel and that we have the Priesthood on the earth again.
I have been blessed by the power of the priesthood so many times in the past year.
I am also grateful for the power of the Atonement.
There are so many things to be grateful for in the gospel.
In the Hymn With All the Power of Heart and Tongue it says,
"I'll sing thy truth and mercy, Lord;
I'll sing the wonders of thy word.
Not all thy works and names below
So much thy power and glory show."
I know that there is no way that
I am able to thank the Lord for all that he has done for me because there is so much.
But I am grateful and hope to always be able to recognize the guiding hands of the
Lord and the presence of the arms of His love in my life.
Twenty will be a good year. :]
Just like nineteen was!
I am going to make it that way with a positive attitude and a smile on my face!
"It's even enough to smile when life goes along like a song, but the [woman] who's worthwhile is the [woman] who can smile when everything goes dead wrong."
(Not to say that everything is going to go dead wrong but hey, if it does I will find a way to smile through it!)
This was written on my desk in humanities last semester and it made me smile :) I normally think it's really dumb when people write on desks and other things that aren't meant to be written on but I made an exception for this little message. I know that it wasn't written for me but it still made me feel good. So I took a picture and sent it to some people in hopes to brighten their days as well. I think so often we focus on our insecurities and bad qualities and forget who we are...Sons and Daughters of a loving Heavenly Father. And we are all beautiful and unique. I am grateful for that little note and for the beautiful people in my life.
Like my sisters...and I'll add Asae Bodily in there even though she isn't technically my sister.
And my brothers...
And my parents (I'm only putting up a picture of my dad but they are both wonderful!)
And my best friend
And my roommates (and this isn't exactly good pictures of everyone sorry Kylie and Aubree...I'll find better ones soon :))
And my extended family (thank you Sam and Grandpa for representing everyone)
There are so many more beautiful people who have influenced and bettered my life and I am grateful for each and everyone of you. "You are beautiful!" And to pass on that message I wrote "Smile! You are beautiful!" On a mirror in one of the dressing rooms at Old Navy a few days ago. So spread the love and let someone know they are beautiful. Even if it's a stranger.
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
Above is my cute little study room at Cline Library on NAU campus. The picture is a little bit deceiving because I like to sit/lie on the floor rather than sit in the chair using the desk but you get the general idea.
They have a whole row of these and so far I think I've used each one at least once and some a couple of times. These little rooms are my new favorite places. After and between classes I head over to the library to get my homework done, read my scriptures, and meditate (I'm going to write about meditating in another post). I get so much done in a waaay shorter time than I would back at the apartment when I go to a study room. You see, I get distracted really easily and when I am at the apartment and I don't want to do something I cook food, clean, watch movies, get on facebook, read a book, play a game, slide down the banister or basically anything to get out of working on my homework. And I'm sure you all know that that does not turn out too great for me in the end. So these little study rooms are my little focusers. And let me tell you, they do a dang good job. :)
Right now I think I'm locked out of my apartment so I am in my cute little study room lying on the floor and finishing up some homework and catching up on my blog. Dang good stuff!!
So today, I am grateful for study rooms. :)
Oh, and I would like to add in that Elder Skylar Pond is officially in the MTC! And he is going to be an awesome missionary. Here is a picture of Elder Pond and I just before he got set apart. (Sorry it's sideways...it's from my phone and I'm not sure how to change that. I'll figure it out eventually though.)
So for Christmas I bought Jasmine a book called "How To Be An Adventurer Of The World". It's a fun book with silly activities and things to do to get you thinking and observing the world around you. On the back of the book it says, "At any given moment, no matter where you are, there are hundreds of things around you that are interesting and worth documenting." So, Jasmine and I did a few of the activities at church on Sunday (yes, I know we should have been paying better attention...haha we're working on that).
The first one we did was called Right Where I'm Sitting. You had to observe ten things from where you were sitting that you hadn't noticed right when you sat down.
This was my list: 1. Messed up hymn books. 2. Warm (almost too warm and there is no room to take off my coat). 3. Smells good (but the smell comes and goes or I'm just used to it now). 4. Crayon on floor (blue, under pew, rhymes!) 5. Green thing on floor (gum wrapper possibly?) 6. Crying kids (unlike the SILENT singles wards) 7. Jazz is sitting way too close! Haha. 8. I can hear the speaker (not too loud though). 9. Blue and redish maroon design on pews. 10. Our pew is smaller than the one in front of us. So that was my list. Then Jazz and I exchanged our lists. It was interesting seeing the differences in our lists.
Here is Jasmine's: 1. The bench in front of me is made out of purple material instead of the usual odd green they have at church. 2. They decorate with wreaths at this church which I've never seen that before in the chapel. 3. This is the kind of thing Knowlton does at school. This must be the page in the book he read when Emma showed him. 4. There is a blue crayon on the ground. 5. The exit sign is red not green. 6. The baby next to me has a sister with a really big bow on her head. I'm surprised she doesn't fall over. 7. The missionary talking is boring. 8. There's a camera or projector in the very back of the room. 9. There is a sweater on the bench next to us and it matches with the bench. 10. Emma is really antsy about me finishing. Hopefully she doesn't make fun of my spelling.
So those were our lists. It's funny to notice that I stuck mostly to things super close to me (usually within a couple feet) and Jasmine branched out a lot more. And even included some of her thoughts that had nothing to do with the things around her.
The next thing we did was answer five questions that they had in the book. They were: 1. What is your current favorite book? 2. Who would you like to have dinner with? 3. What super power would you most like to have? 4. What food would you eat every day? 5. What is your favorite smell?
I said: 1. Nineteen Minutes 2. My Grandma Usher 3. Elastigirl powers. 4. Potatoes 5. Apples
Super random, I know. But fun to think about. The final thing we did was to write down every thought that comes to our minds. It is harder than it sounds because our minds think crrrazy fast. We did this for a while and it was pretty interesting and funny.
Here are my Small Thoughts:
1. I still don't like Jazz's green bag.
2. I suck at paying attention in church recently.
3. This guy has a really deep, kinda weird voice but he doesn't speak too fast. That's good.
4. His voice doesn't match his looks.
5. He's kinda cute but lots of missionaries are. And who knows if his personality matches his looks. (yeah I know I shouldn't be thinking about missionaries like that. I promise I don't ever go after them)
6. I wonder if he has a good singing voice or one of those annoying deep opera voices. (sorry to anyone who has an opera voice...)
7. I wonder what Jazz's weird thoughts are.
8. Skylar took his suit jacket off. I wanna take my coat off but there's no room.
9. Bishoprics are always funny to watch. They look so bored sometimes. Or like they are trying REALLY hard to look like they're paying attention.
10. My hand hurts.
11. I'm coming back to Flag on Thursday I think. For New Years.
12. Hopefully we can find something to so.
13. I love having lots of quiet time to read. I forgot how much I love reading.
14. Nineteen Minutes is a good book but it sounds like they might make it seem okay that this kid shot people at school just 'cause they've always teased him and I don't agree with that.
15. I can't imagine raising a kid who did something like that. I would feel guilty even though it wasn't my fault. Or would it be my fault?
16. Jodi Picoult really makes me think about controversial stuff like that.
17. The Lovely Bones was a weird book. I liked it though.
18. I love my big black bag. I can fit so much stuff in it!
19. So many people have been and are getting married! Super exciting!
20. My hand still hurts.
21. I skipped over some of my other thoughts. Is that cheating? (Jazz says it is.)
22. I wonder if we're gonna stay for one, two, or three hours of church.
23. One more minute.
This is a super interesting activity and a fun one to do when you're bored. I did it a few times in my classes last semester and it's always funny to go back and read them later because daaang do we humans think some random stuff. Anyway, there's a little glimpse into what Jasmine and I do when we're bored and a little glimpse into my brain. I hope you enjoyed!!
I am home for the holidays and it is absolutely wonderful! :]
In the Bible Dictionary under the word temple it says: "Only the home can compare with the temple in sacredness."
Each and every time I go home I am reminded of this phrase as my parents have done such a wonderful job making our house a HOME.
Today I was sitting at our extra-long kitchen table that we've had forever
looking at our white board/bulletin board and noticing all the little things that have been stuck to it/written on it over the years: Family engagement pictures, pictures of new baby cousins, a picture of Jackie we've had up since before E.B.'s mission, a dollar bill, a picture collage Gelsey made when she was in kindergarten (or maybe it was Solomon), notes on the whiteboard, new cell phone numbers; just lots of random things that have little memories connected to them.
I love my family and being at home around them all the time despite all the chaos.
Over this break I decided that I am going to work on being "More Diligent and Concerned at Home" as Elder David A. Bednar challenged us this past October General Conference.
I am going to work on:
1. Expressing Love and Showing it.
2. Bearing Testimony and Living it.
and
3. Being Consistent.
There are lots of things to focus on during the Christmas season and
family is a very important one.
I hope that I can share my love and my testimony with my
family through this season and through the coming years.
I have been blessed with wonderful parents and siblings who do this for me and
I want to return the favor. :]
So far this Christmas season I have taken the kids to get their hair cuts for my brother's wedding this Saturday. This turned out.....not so great. Here are some before and after photos...the boys' hair honestly did not look very different. And my mom was not too happy about that. But I'm not a mom so I didn't know what to tell the hair cutting people. :/
So here's the before. I love how they are all sitting the same. Hahaha. And I told them to look mad. Gelsey did an acceptionally good job.
Here is the after picture.
Uhh yeah the boys' hair does not look different.
We might take them in to get it fixed before the wedding this weekend...
But Gelsey's is nice and cute and short though. :] Like mine! GO SHORT HAIR! Also over the break I have taken kids Christmas shopping. It is our first year doing Secret Santa with the whole family (now that the kids are all old enough to earn some money with chores and pick out presents mostly on their own) so I get to cart the kids around to all different stores to get this final shopping done. YAY! ;)
Today I made three double batches of chocolate chip cookies for the wedding luncheon dessert. Holy heck that was a lot of baking for me! (Roommates: I thought we baked a lot...this topped it all (at least for in one day) and I still have more to do. HELP!!! :/)
I have also been able to spend time with my Grandparents (they are here for a month and for my brother's wedding)
With having my grandparents here I get to here my Grandma play the piano and it is absolutely beautiful. I tried to upload a video but I couldn't figure it out. So I'll try again later.
Anyway, I have thoroughly enjoyed being home although I'm sure in about a month I'll be ready to head back up to Flagstaff with my wonderful roommates :]
To end here are some WONDERFUL pictures!
Here are the Olmstead girls (plus Jasmine and minus the sister-in-laws) Here is one of Rachel and I at the temple lights. I was also able to see Katie Wilson, my friend Chris Brown, and I got to meet Katie and Rachel's friend Ryan, but I forgot to take more pictures. :( But here is one of Rachel making me look RIDICULOUSLY short! And here is one of me trying to make Rachel look RIDICULOUSLY short. Haha. Did it work?? Well, that's all for now. There will be more very soon though because we have a WEDDING coming up! :]
The first pair belonged to my beautiful roommate Aubree Stradling.
This pair of footies became an inspiration in Apt. #96
(That's where I live by the way...I haven't updated in forever so no one knows that).
Because of this pair of footies my best friend Jasmine Storm Kvavle and I bought footies later followed by Aubree buying a new pair and gifting hers to Katie.
And FINALLY Rachel and Kylie bought their footies after some ultimate convincing
and secret telling. We are all officially converted to the comfort and warmth
ofFOOTIES (AKA BLANKET SLEEPERS OR ONESIES)! This is me, Katie, Aubree, and Jasmine in our FOOOOTIES! We don't have a picture
of all six of us just yet but we will soon enough! So once you own a pair of footies you have every right to act like a five year old...
Only when you are wearing them of course. ;)
One of the things that I did when I was little was building forts with my brothers.
So, a few weekends ago when Knowlton and Helena came up to Flagstaff with Jasmine and I we decided to build a fort in my apartment.
This was after playing very many rounds of hide-and-go-seek in the dark!
This game is basically a way to scare your friends over and over again.
Jasmine is super fun to scare so Helena and I thoroughly enjoyed scaring her and hearing her scare herself as she searched for us with Knowlton.
And Knowlton did a good job scaring her. The best thing about this was when we turned the lights on she would be curled up into a ball on the floor.
If only I had a picture of that. But! I do have pictures of our beautiful fort! After making it we watched a movie in it. Gooood times!
Here are Jasmine and Knowlton (and Helena sleeping) after a lot of hard fort building work!
Here's Knowlton, Jazz, and I inside our fort and ready to watch a movie!!
Another thing that Knowlton, Helena, Jasmine and I did was put up and decorate a Christmas tree in our apartment. Jasmine and I saw a Christmas tree on sale for $25 dollars on Black Friday and we could not pass up the wonderful deal. And we wanted our apartment to feel a little more like home. So we bought a 6 foot tall Christmas Tree with lights included!! It looks amazing and we bought some ornaments to decorate it with. We each picked one ornament out and then made a show of putting them up while listening to Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree! FINALS week was amazing! How often can you say that?!
Well, I can say that this week. It wasn't ALL good but well it was pretty amazing because...
We had one and a half SNOW DAYS! :] The snow days came in perfect timing for me because they cancelled ALL of my finals.
I had a Monday final at 12:30 and they closed the school at NOON!
Then they closed the school for all of my Tuesday finals!
HOLY HECK how amazing is that?!
So here's some pictures of the snow and some of the fun that we had in it!
This is what I woke up to around 9:00 am on Monday morning. And it then continued to snow all day long.
This is what we woke up to on Tuesday morning. Beautiful white sparkling snow. :]
Rachel, Katie, and I went for a drive in the crrrazy blizzard with our friend Troy and then we jumped into huge piles of snow on the side of the road. This is me jumping into a HUGE pile of snow. I disappeared into it after. It was wonderful! Cold but wonderful :] Here are Katie and I with Troy :]Here are Katie and I in the fort that we built with our neighbors and Aubree. Pretty freaking sweet, huh?
The institute had a Christmas dinner and talent show on Tuesday night and my roommates and I decided to put a little skit together.
It is based off of an SNL skit. (Hopefully those links work...)
If not check out my facebook for our video at least.
Oh, did I forget to mention that we performed in our footies?! 'Cause we definitely did!
There is so much more that I would like to blog about so hopefully it will help me blog more often so I do not have to play catch up every time that I get on here. But anyway, I would like to end with some things that I am very grateful for as I near the end of this year:
Amazing Roommates and Wonderful Friends
My Wonderful Family
The Scriptures
Institute Classes/Teachers
Wonderful Church Leadership
The General Conference Ensign
Footie Pajamas!
Snow/Snow Days
Warm Clothing
The Power of Prayer
Wool Coats
Sleepovers with my Roommates
Making Memories
Learning at School
My Patriarchal Blessing
Technology (my camera, my laptop, my phone, the heater at our apartment, our electric piano, lights, etc.)
The Sister Missionaries at our Institute (who make me want to go on a mission!)
And so so so much more
And finally I would like to say that I am so grateful to be a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
It brings joy to all aspects of my life and has helped me through good times and bad times.
I am especially grateful for the birth, atonement, death, and resurrection of
Jesus Christ. As the holiday season is here
I am reminded of this even more.
I hope that we can all take time to remember our
Savior this season and throughout the coming year and strive to become more like Him. The First Presidency of the church shared wonderful messages of our
Savior in the Christmas Devotional this season that everyone should take the time to listen to.
I am so grateful for the lessons that
I have learned this year and the many ways that my testimony has been strengthened.
P.S. Jasmine wanted me to share with the world that she bought a new pair of footie pajamas tonight. And here's a picture of her foot in them and me. :]By the way, Jazz's favorite color is green and her new footies are green with MONKEYS on them in case you can't tell. If only she had bought me an extra pair of footies as well...haha.
