The Story of My.....Shoes

These are my favorite pair of shoes. 

Just in case you haven't noticed, I wear them a lot.

They are the only pair of shoes I've ever bought from Dillard's (because I needed (ok, wanted) black flats and these were perfect).  I don't remember how much they cost, but my initial thought after buying them was, "Yikes. I had better get my money's worth out of these."

And boy, have I ever.

These shoes have been through the rain, many a concert in highschool, sidewalks that would burn my feet, snow (only once.  I learned from that experience.), a mini hike through the desert behind my house, my dog's mouth (the little rascal), camping (please don't ask why I took flats), two years of college, three years of my life, and so much wear and tear that I can even stick my finger through a hole in the right shoe. 

Yep, I love 'em that much.

And I think I got my money's worth out of them.

Breakfast?

Some people do the funniest things.

I was walking on campus today and saw this.  Yum. 

Snow, Anyone?

It snowed a little bit in Provo today.  Here is the view from my bedroom window (actually from a couple of months ago).

Winter is wonderful when it's like this, isn't it?

This Christmas Season

I heard one of my favorite Christmas songs this past Sunday and had my heart opened to the meaning of some of the lyrics. They're really beautiful and I hope you can feel the Spirit and power in them that I felt.

What Child is this who, laid to rest

On Mary's lap is sleeping?

Whom angels greet with anthems sweet,

While shepherds watch are keeping?

This, this is Christ the King;

Whom shepherds guard and angels sing

Haste, haste to bring Him laud,

The babe, the Son of Mary.

Why lies He in such mean estate

Where ox and ass are feeding?

Good Christian, fear; For sinners here,

The silent Word is pleading.

Nails, spear shall pierce Him through,

The cross be borne for me, for you.

Hail, hail the Word made flesh,

The babe, the Son of Mary.

So bring Him incense, gold and myrrh,

Come peasant, king to own Him.

The King of kings salvation brings,

Let loving hearts enthrone Him.

Raise, raise the song on high,

The virgin sings her lullaby

Joy, joy for Christ is born,

The babe, the Son of Mary.

What's Been Happenin'

This past semester has been really busy, which is always good, but it means I have a lot of catching up to do on my blog. So here it goes. After surprising my family, the next big event was a camping trip with my four roommates from last year: Erin, Ali, Tegan, and Kelli. We went to a spot called Silver Lake which is fairly close to the Pleasant Grove area. We took a bea-u-tiful scenic drive up to the trail and then went on a bea-u-tiful hike up to the lake.

Us. :]The Trail

The ValleySilver Lake (and Mountains) The Fire and Our Tent (which all five of us fit in, no problem)

So, there's a funny story about the fire and our tent. As you can see, they are pretty close to each other. We kept the fire going until after dark and just let it go out on its own. Then we all went to bed, with our feet at the door, towards the fire pit. I was almost alseep when it suddenly got light outside. I sat up, along with everyone else, and saw the front of our tent glowing. We realized the fire had started up again and when we opened the flap, we saw that a little wind had helped it grow right along. Luckily, nothing actually caught on fire, but it gave us all a pretty good scare.

The next morning we had to go back to Provo, which was sad at the time, but I'm glad we decided to come back. Those mountains are still bea-u-tiful, but snowy now.

So back in Provo, I stayed busy with school and work and the awesome social life BYU offers. My ward this year is great, and I've had so much fun with the people here. About a month ago, I went with some friends to a tumbling gym. It was the kind of place where you have to sign an I-will-not-sue-you-if-I-get-hurt waiver before they'll let you in. So much fun.

Our ward also has great FHEs (Family Home Evenings). The first one I went to was penguin ultimate frisbee, boys vs. girls. For those who don't know, ultimate frisbee is THE sport at BYU. The penguin part meant being wrapped in plastic wrap from the hips to the knees. Only the boys had this great privilege. Sadly, they still beat us. But watching them trying to run made up for all the losses. Hilarious.

Like I said before, my ward is great and I was really blessed to have super neighbors this year. Ashley is one of those and a few weeks ago, Tegan and I went up to Heber Valley Girls camp to collect leaves and go on a mini-hike with her. She needed them to make bookmarks (that turned out so cute, by the way) and it was the perfect time to go. Not too cold, and the leaves had already changed colors. I love nature.

Tracks! Nice photography Tegan.Teg and Me.Ashley and Me.Mmm. So pretty.

The latest adventure was last weekend when we (the normal five) went up to Island Park, Idaho, to Ali's cabin. We just spent the weekend there and I'd go back in a heart beat. The five of us made a music video, which is only avaiable for private viewings. It's a little too crazy/embarrassing to post, but when you see me next, I'd love to show it to you. My favorite part about the cabin was the lake behind it. We got some sweet jumping pictures and the dock is even featured in our video.

Tegan

Erin and Kelli

Ali

Me.

The View from the Cabin (I love these scenery pictures)

What a weekend. Perfect to have right before a week with three tests, stake conference, and a million other things to do. (Don't ask me why I'm blogging. :] ) So, there it is. I'm all caught up and just lovin' life.

Lagoon!

Yesterday, the family went to Lagoon with Grandma Gail and met up with my mom's sister, Doni, and her kids. What a fun day! I'd been to Lagoon once before, but the only memory I have is of the old white roller coaster. It was the first roller coaster I'd ever been on and I remember being so scared I couldn't get enough air to scream on the way down. Yesterday was a little different.
This picture was taken on a ride where you sit on swings, and go around and around in a circle. Lagoon should be famous for rides that go in a circle; there were plenty.
Later in the day, my mom's sister and her kids met us and we went on more of the "big-kid" rides. One of the best rides was Wicked, which shoots you straight, and I mean straight, up and then goes over a tiny arch before you come straight down and into the rest of the roller coaster. I thought going down would be the worst, but being shot up, not knowing if you'd fall backwards or go right off the coaster was definitely more frightening. My other favorite was called the Samuri and I don't exactly know how to describe it. It basically takes you around in circles, three different ways. It's kind of like the moon, which is spinning, orbiting the earth, which is orbiting the sun. (Sorry, that's the best example I have.) Anyway, I was having walking problems when I got off, but it was one of the best rides of the park.

Like all the adds say, Lagoon-The Fun Starts Here!

You...

Grandma Gail's Garden

Well, I moved back to Utah earlier this past Monday and started working on Tuesday. It's so good to be on campus again; it feels like I'm coming home. But I'm not quite able to move into my apartment yet, so I'm staying with my Grandma Gail for two more weeks. She has a gorgeous backyard and I love to enjoy it while I still can. Since it's so pretty, (and because I love to take flower pictures) I thought I'd share a little bit of her garden with you. Enjoy!

Nauvoo

What a wonderful experience! Since I didn't blog at all on our Nauvoo blog, I just wanted to write a couple of the things I learned and relearned while I share some pictures of this place I fell in love with.

First, be positive. Our directors taught us in a new way of the principle of bad fruit and good fruit. There was never any negativity coming from them and it was contagious. There was a positive energy all the time and that feeling is something I don't want to lose.

The directors were also great at keeping our perspective on the purpose of the pageant: to bring souls to Christ. One of them said that although Nephi was commanded to build a ship, the ship was not the thing; it was the promised land. I was reminded how important it is to keep the big picture in mind and how much easier it is to do the nitty-gritty things when I do remember the full perspective.Third, we learned about the difference between dependence, independence, and interdependence. By studying just the definitions of these words, it's easy to see the progression and then apply them to the gospel. The directors made the point that interdependence is what is found in Zion.The last teaching that touched me was the instruction to open my soul. This was reinforced at different times and by different people, but they all had the same basic message. By opening my soul, the spirit can work in me and then through me. I saw this happen in the music we sang, and in the performances we had, and in our missionary efforts. We were always blessed the most when we were the most open.It's hard to express the things I learned in a blog when I feel like I learned them in much deeper ways. But hopefully you get a glimpse of our experience here and a more day-by-day experience on the Nauvoo blog. It really was a life-changing two weeks and I hope that all of you will at sometime be able to visit that beautiful city.

Fireworks on the Fourth

Happy Independence Day everyone!