Let's Build A Fort

  Yes I am in college, yes I am 22, and yes my roommates & I built a fort in our living room this past weekend. It is not your typical fort either. We call it a big kid fort because the blankets are tacked up to our walls and ceiling and covers our entire living (that is not that difficult). It was so much fun! It was like going back in time and being a kid again. Now your question is probably why? Well let me tell you...
  So this all started a week ago at church. So I belong to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints and we have three hours of meeting, every Sunday (honestly, its not that bad). One of our meetings is called Sacrament Meeting. This is where we all get together and have about 3-4 speakers talk about a certain topic and we take the sacrament. Well last week one of the speakers talked about a story in the Book of Mormon (Haven't heard of it? Read it. You can't judge a book or a group by the cover. I highly recommend reading it. Its the best book.). The story is about King Benjamin. Now to give a little back story, the Book of Mormon gives accounts of the people in the Americas in the time before and when Christ was on the Earth and this is one of the King's who was also a Prophet. Anyways, he was giving a sermon to his people and in the scriptures it talked about how you need to build a tent in order to listen to the prophet. After the speaker told the story, he mentions on how he knows a family that builds a little tent in front of the television for general conference. (General Conference happens twice a year and it is when the leaders of the church speak to all the members. You can watch it on tv, internet, listen on the radio, or go to it.) So my roommates and I decided we wanted to build a fort and follow the message of King Benjamin.
 Well this past weekend was conference. It was seriously the best idea ever! I have never focused as much or gotten so much out of conference. I was able to "leave" the world and focus on what the leaders had to say. I loved it. Conference is six sessions long and each session is about 2 hours long. Four of the sessions are general session, then there is one for the men and one for the women. So in a course of one weekend there is about 10 hours (not in a row) of church. Now that sounds like a lot but seriously it goes by so fast and you are sad when it is over.
  So many of the talks hit home for me. It was like the speakers were talking to just me. It amazes me every time because if you ask anyone who watches conference, they would say the same thing. A lot talked about trials and how they are suppose to be a part of our lives and how we best can get through them. One talk really hit me was Dieter F. Uchtdorf's talk. He is an apostle for the church and the second counselor in the first presidency. He talked about how we need to be grateful for our trials and that having gratitude is a way to get through a trial. It made me realize that he was right. It is so much easier if we are just grateful. When we become bitter and alone we do not see the joy of life, we think the world is coming to an end, and that our Heavenly Father doesn't care. Well that is when we are wrong. The world is not coming to an end because of our situations and He does care. He cares so much that He gives us only things we can handle and He gives us people and ways of being able to get through that trial. Be grateful He loves you enough to push you and test you. Be grateful for the experiences you have and the time you have on this Earth. I believe and know we lived with Heavenly Father before Earth and once we die that we can go back to Him. Heavenly Father has a plan for us and in that plan there is no endings, only ever lasting beginnings. People move on from our lives and situations move on also, some people die, some move away but one thing is that none of it ends, it is only a new beginning. This time on Earth is not our only time to be alive, we will one day die and live with our Heavenly Father and see everyone that came before us again. The time on this Earth is short compared to Eternity.
  I can talk forever on what I learned in just this one weekend. My prayers and questions were answered by men and women who do not know me, but know my Heavenly Father. This weekend was amazing. Conference made it more amazing but even the moments in between and after were icing on the cake. The fort my roommates and I made is now one memory we will all cherish. Inviting others for breakfast before conference, being together, learning together and so much more. If you ever have questions or want to know more go to www.lds.org or www.mormon.org there you can find the talks of general conference and any answer to any question about the LDS church. I love my religion and wouldn't change it. It has helped me be able to deal with any trial and any struggle I have ever had. And I know it can do the same for you too. :)

Here are some pictures of our fort :) Its going to stay up for awhile!

Spring Break 2014

Sun. Pool. Friends. No school. Sounds like summer right? Close.. Spring Break. The taste of summer to get you through the rest of the semester. So this spring break I went with two of my friends and had a girls week in St. George Utah. Yeah not the beach like usual but its okay.
  We are definitely not your usual spring breakers. We did not go to raging parties, get beyond wasted, didn't meet guys, and any other crazy thing you can think of. We mostly just relaxed by the pool and slept a lot. Yeah we did more than that but for the most part it was a much need relaxing week. We all got a nice tan (well it started as a burn), all caught up on some sleep, and got to catch up. Now some people might say that is boring but those people are wrong. It was fun.
   Okay we did do more. We went to Zions National Park and went on the Emerald Pools hike and enjoyed the beauty of this national park. It was great! I am not going to lie, I have never liked hiking. I trip over a crack on the floor, you really want me climbing a mountain? But I decided to give it a try once again. And I will have to admit I really enjoyed it! I definitely liked hiking to some sort of water. I am more of a water girl than a mountain girl. So hike to water and I will go!
   We also went to Las Vegas for a day. Once again we did not do what most people do in Vegas. None of us drink, gamble or go clubbing but there is still some fun there. We went to the Aquarium and saw some legit sharks and fish. We got to touch Sting Rays. Ahh it was so cool! Then like typical tourists we walked the strip. Looking in some stores, taking pictures, and looking at all the different people dressed up. We also went to dinner with some relatives of one of the girls. It was fun and a super long wait for the food!
   All in all it was a great week! We heard some amazing stories from people we met on our adventures. We learned more about each other. We got some sun and some sleep. We listened to the Frozen soundtrack more than anything (which rocked). It was definitely a different spring break than usual but it was a good one! :)

 Meet Lauren and Caitlin! :)

 At the third emerald pool!

Man we look good!

Some Memories Just Stick..

 I remember it like it was yesterday. Falling asleep for the first time not worrying of getting woken up with the news. I slept on couch cushions on the floor because we had no power and I was too scared to go down stairs. It was the one night I really thought you would still be there when I woke up. And that was the night Heavenly Father took you in his arms and said its time for you to go home. My fear became a reality, as I got woken up to auntie April and mom saying you are gone. Both checking to make sure the other wasn't crazy. I was praying you out of pain for weeks before this day, but nothing prepared me for it. That day was the longest day. People came, people wept, people cleaned, people fed us, and yet it was like it wasn't real.
  That day was six months ago today. Six months have passed without my dad. As some days are easier than others, it is still hard to fully wrap my head around. Its weird too because it has felt longer than just six months.
  In these past six months the song Drink a Beer by Luke Bryan gets me really thinking about my dad. The first verse says, "When I got the news today, I didn't know what to say, so I just hung up the phone, I took a walk to clear my head, and this is where the walking led, can't believe you are really gone, dont feel like going home." I feel this way, even when I just get reminded or bring it up. No one ever knows what to say, neither do I. I try to tell stories to keep him with me but than I feel that no one knows what to say to even a funny story because he is gone. And than I re-realize that he is gone.
  Another part of the song goes, "Funny how the good ones go, too soon but the good Lord knows, the reasons why I guess.Sometimes the greater plan is kinda hard to understand, right now it don't makes sense, I can't make it all make sense." This is something that really has helped these past months. That I do believe that there is a plan for each and every one of us and for some reason that I do not get and probably wont get for a long time, is that The Lord knows the reasons why. He had and still has a plan for my dad. That I am grateful for.
  My dad would probably smack me since I am comparing my feelings about his death to a country song.But he can't so I will just smile in knowing I know he would do that. No one can ever explain how it is when a parent dies. Everyone acts differently. So its one of those things that you cannot really learn from a classroom or a book, even if the world tries to teach us how to grieve, those people know nothing. I know that its a process that I will probably never get out of. Sometimes life is good and other times I am wishing he is here to answer my problems or to just talk to. Its hard to lose a parent. But I am grateful for the time I had with him, and I know that the time on Earth was not the end, that when I die I will be embraced by him and I will get to have those conversations once again.
  I started out in the world as daddy's little girl.

 And as life continued I just became a bigger daddy's girl

And it does not matter how long you are gone... I will always be your little girl. I miss you daddy! I hope you are proud and are watching over me and the family. Also, I hope you are playing darts like crazy with Kent. Love you Daddy Dork forever and always.

When you think you know everything...

  Last weekend I had to go home to go to the dentist and my lovely car had to go in and get its own maintenance done. Both my brother and I had to go home, and decided why not surprise our mom and come home Thursday night?! Well, since I was in no rush to get home, I took my sweet time to pack and finally get my butt out on the road. I saw that it was starting to snow but I did not think much of it. I have a four wheel drive vehicle, and I didn't think the storm was going to be as bad... I was wrong.
  Right before Beaver, Utah is when it started to get really bad. I started to get really scared. I would just follow behind people but sometimes they were just going too slow and I did not want to be behind them anymore. So I would pass them. Well there was one point in time, where I was alone on the road and I did not know where the road was going. The road was covered in snow, I could not see in front of me, the snow was coming like crazy and I had no clue where I was.
   As I was driving and kind of freaking out, I started thinking on how this experience is like life. There are times in our lives when we know where we are going, we see the road, or we have someone guiding us to the right direction. Than there are times where it gets rough and the road starts going away, and you decide you can do it on your own, so you do.
   Back to my story, after about 3 minutes of driving and leading the way, I realized that I was dumb to go in front of someone, cause I have no clue where I am going. I was worried that I would drive right off the road and not even know it. Than a truck came up and passed me, now I had someone to follow. Yeah they could have ran off the road and I would have followed them, but I just had faith that they knew where they were going. Same things happen in life, you realize that you have no idea how in the world you are going to continue on the road and wishing someone would come up in front of you to guide you. The guide we have is Jesus Christ. He is there to guide us back to the road. He is there to be the one to light the way for us. However, we have to ask for help. Once you realize that you cannot go about this on your own, He is right there behind us willing to come in front to guide.
  It took four and half hours to get home and surprise my mom. I now know that I should not think I know everything. That even though I have driven in a snow storm before, I shouldn't think its going to be the same. Also, that following a guide is not a bad thing. And that honestly, we can't do anything alone. When we are in that dark stormy road all alone, you feel that there will be no end to it, and you realize that you need someone to help you get out of it. Don't be too proud to ask for help. Don't think you know everything...cause guess what... you don't. But our guide, Christ, He does. Follow Him.

He will always help us up and guide us through the struggles of life. :) (one of my favorite pictures)

EFY Withdrawls...

  This weekend was filled with EFY and its only January! Say what? I guess I should explain myself. First, for people who do not know what in the world I am talking about, EFY stands for Especially For Youth. It is a camp organization that is ran by BYU. It a a youth camp for kids 14-18 years old to meet new youth, gain a strong testimony of the Gospel, and to come closer to Christ. Yes it is a camp that is focused on the LDS faith but that does not mean it is only for LDS teens. The kids come for a week, they have classes, activities, a variety show, spiritual moments, meet new friends, and dance! Thats right we have two dances each week! Crazy!! Anyways, that is a little about the program.
  So on Friday I got the opportunity to do an interview to be a counselor for this upcoming summer again. And I got asked the question, why do you want to do this again? You know you get lack of sleep, that some kids are harder than others, and you could get another job, why continue? I sat there for a moment realizing I never asked myself that question before. Than it hit me, because I love seeing the difference the kids make from the beginning to the end of the week. Seeing the shy girls I have ask a boy on a girl choice slow song on friday, or seeing a girl who was confused about the church bare her testimony on that thursday. Seeing those changes made and learning about the Gospel every day for weeks on end. Also, the friends I personally made these past two summers. Seeing how I talk to them and keep in touch with more than some friends I have known for longer. Being able to meet people from all different walks of life, and going to these amazing places. Those are the reasons why I want to do this again. I know that the kids that I have had in the past have made me a better person and I have learned so much from them, and I can see what they learned from each other. It just amazes me.
  Saturday was EFY Express St. George. Wow just getting a taste for what the summer brings, just gets me all excited. The craziness of check in and registration, the classes, the crazy and random talents kids have, and the dances! All of this in one day! Crazy! Even though I did not get my own kids on saturday I still learned from them. I saw the same things I saw last summer. Small changes. It just reassured me that I want to work this summer for EFY. I hope I get to, that Heavenly Father has it in his plan for me to go at least one more summer. I know that this program is amazing. And I love the sleep deprived weeks, the traveling, the new sets of kids every week, and the experiences. It is all worth it. :)

EFY Express St. George 2014

I love to see the temple :)

  I am LDS. I love my religion with all my heart and soul. I believe it is true and I believe the values and lessons I have learned from my church has made me the woman I am today. As some may know, in the LDS church has temples all around the world. These temples are sacred and beautiful places that we as members cherish. You have to admit, if you have ever seen a LDS temple (even if you are not Mormon) that they are beautiful buildings. Well I have said that my goal is to visit all the LDS temples in the world. Now realistically that will be very challenging, due to the fact that more get called each year, and there is already over like 140 (I am not totally sure). That would be super hard. But I am not calling defeat quite yet. I will try my best as I live my life on this earth to go to every temple. And for me I just want to take a picture in front of it. If I get a chance while I am there to go inside, great, if not at least I got to see the outside beauty and take a picture.
   I have actually visited a lot lately, with all of our adventuous traveling, we decided we would stop at any temple on our way... if we remembered. haha It has been fun seeing the different temples. Some are bigger than others, but they are all unique and so special! So I wanted to show you the ones that I have been to and a fun fact about them.

The Temples I Have Visited:

1. Los Angeles California: This was the first temple I ever went to. Now this was before my plan so I do not have a picture of me but I feel like you should still get to see it...So here is one I just found on Google.
   
2. Salt Lake City, Utah: This temple took the Saints 40 years to make. It made with granite, and reminds everyone of a castle. What  do you think? Also, every year around Christmas they have lights everywhere and millions of people visit every year to see. It is so pretty at Christmas time.
   
   
3. Jordan River, Utah: The day this picture was taken, we went together as cousins and when we got out there was a thunder and lightning storm and it looked legit when lightning stuck behind the temple.
   
4. Oquirrh Mountain, Utah: This is the first "smaller" temple I went to. Yeah it still looks huge. haha And actually one night days after the angel Moroni (some of the temples have a golden person with a horn on top, if you want to know more about him and his story check out lds.org or mormon.org I promise you can find out there) was put on the temple, there was a thunder and lightning storm and it got struck by lightning and it had to be replaced.
   
   
5. Draper, Utah: Fun story, came here with a group of friends when it was first open (well it had only been open for a couple of months) and it was already closed for cleaning.. opps. haha
   
6. Brigham City, Utah: This is the newest dedicated temple for Utah. My roommate Kelsey and I got to go just months after it opened. We went early, lack of sleep, so we forgot a picture. Again you still need to see the beauty. Google is seriously AMAZING!
   
7. St. George, Utah: People think that Salt Lake was the first temple in Utah. Well you are mistaken, this temple was actually the first temple in the state and still sits on its original foundation.
   
8. Manti, Utah: I got to see this temple everyday while I was going to school at Snow College. Fun Fact, the roof is designed like a bottom of a boat. I guess that is what you get when you have Scandinavians build a temple.
   
9. Newport Beach, California: This is the temple I want to one day marry in. When I was younger and it was being built, they had all the kids write on a rock their name and favorite scripture, and the put it in the temple. So apart of me is in there and I want my special day to be there. Its my favorite one.
   
10. Reno, Nevada: Seriously the smallest temple I have ever seen. It is on a hill and it makes you wonder if it is a temple or a large house. But again super pretty.
    
11. Oakland, California: It is such a cool and pretty temple. You can see the whole valley from the temple and the whole valley can see the temple. 
    
12. Sacramento, California: There is a park on the temple grounds. Like with picnic tables, park bathrooms (probably the cleanest park bathrooms ever) and everything! I aboslutely loved it there.
    
13. Boise, Idaho: This is a very different temple. The spire or thing, is not connected to the building which weirded me out not going to lie, but I love how different it is. And side note, I was in sweats that day and there was a wedding (not of anyone I knew) and I felt so weird and under dressed. haha Traveling all day what can you expect?

 Some of the pictures are not of the whole temple, I guess if you really want to see, google! haha Seriously though I love how all of them are super different and yet are all for the same purpose. I feel like that is like people. There is seriously no two people that are the exact same. There is something different about each and every one of us, yet we are the same and have the same purpose, to live to the best of our abilities, to do what we strive for, make goals, fall in love, have a family, make a happy life and one day pass on into the next life. :) See what I did there? haha but seriously, I have all these random things to say about each temple, but they all have the same purpose. Same with people. We are all different. Some are different religions, some see things differently, but we all have a lot of the same purposes.
  I really do love visiting new temples. Seeing the different beauty it brings to the surrounding area. From a far I have seen a lot, but I do not count them because I want to step foot on the property. So until than 13 down, somewhere around 120 to go. Maybe more or maybe less. But hey it gives me an excuse to travel right?! :)

Wow... 2013... You Were One for the Books...

  So in the month of January 2013, I decided that I would make resolutions for the year and put them on a poster so that I could see it everyday. This way I could actually work on getting these goals done throughout the year. Also, I put on there what I did know what was going to happen so that it was also like a timeline for the year. So these were some of my goals for 2013:

• Get back into Shape [I would give that a check...in better shape than I was last january]
• Get a passport [Didn't happen... lets make that a 2014 goal]
• Write in my journal everyday [Missed a couple days...]
• EFY Counselor [Best 6 weeks of my summer]
• Learn a new skill [Tiling from daddy]
• Learn how to do the cartwheel into the splits [Didn't happen... new year to try]

  With these goals, I learned so much. To get back into shape, I took a weight training class and that helped me try to get into the habit of working out. Yes it was hard, but I believe that by the end I realized that it was nice to go to the gym and get away for a bit. Also, that it does not matter how heavy a workout you have, just the fact you are going means a lot. Writing in my journal helped me so much this year. Being able to get my feelings out on paper and just reviewing each day has gotten me through a lot. I was not perfect and missed a day or a week here and there but the fact that I wrote more in my journal this year than I ever have means progress. I learned how to tile from my daddy. That was such an amazing experience and now I have a skill that most girls never learn.

   [Putting in the new floor before doing the tile job]

 [My third journal of the year.. finished]

  There are some things that did not happen this year. I didn't get my passport, didn't learn how to do the cartwheel into the splits, and I didn't go to the temple every month. But here is the great thing about the new year... Its a new year... I can make those goals once again and work hard to actually do them this year.

  [Me in front of the St. George LDS temple]

  Review the year, it has been one crazy year. I have had some great times, with being an EFY counselor, making new friends, continuing my education at SUU, and so much more. I have had some hard times, getting worse and worse news about my dad, him passing away, and hearing about more bad news about other people. Now it is time for a new year and new memories.

  [Some of my crazy fun EFY kids]

 [The man that will never leave my heart and will always be my daddy]

  For you, whoever you may be, I have some advice for you. Make a list, and put it somewhere. It does not have to be all goals, it can something you know will happen that year, no matter what add it to the list. Do not get discouraged if your year is not going the way you wanted to. And remember the great thing about a new year, is that you can work on new things and old things. Good luck with this year. I hope it is a better year for everyone. :) Hello 2014