Christmas greetings

I hope this Christmas season finds everyone well. This has been one crazy year full of change and adventure. I think we can all agree upon that.

Long, long ago a little boy was born. The sun still shone that day. The moon still came out. Stars sparkled above. Inside a small stable, his mother held him close to her heart. She thought of the angels, the things they had said at his birth. Small shepherd boys came to gaze in awe. The mother, Mary, thought of the prophecies from prophets of old...she knew what they said about the baby Jesus, about his life. He had come to save the people...to love the people. It's his love that saves.
I contemplate which does more of the saving, the actual act of the Atonement, or the principle of love behind the act. It is the Savior's love that changes our hearts and makes us worthy to live in his presence once more. It is the understanding and experiencing of His love that enables us to repent and be forgiven. It is what motivates us to repent and be forgiven. It is the love that He showed...that saves us. We cannot be saved without His love...we must understand the depth and far reaches of his love in order to pick ourselves up after we've fallen. But I don't have to pick myself up all alone; He is always there to help me up. I love my Savior so much.

"Girls are like apples. The best ones are at the top of the trees. The boys don't want to reach for the good ones because they are afraid of falling and getting hurt. Instead, they just get the rotten apples that are on the ground that aren't as good, but easy. So the apples at the top think there is something wrong with them, when, in reality, they are amazing. They just have to wait for the right boy to come along, the one who's brave enough to climb all the way to the top of the tree."

Dinner and a show

While we were in Utah we went to a resteraunt called The Mayan. Inside it was a giant Mayan jungle with a huge indoor pool and rock walls. The main feature at the Mayan (besides the yummy Mexican food) was the shows that went on. They had "Mayans", in costume and all, doing creative diving from these very tall rock walls. They also had fire shows, with the balls of fire that they would toss around and spin. It was pretty awesome :) I did get a video of it...but it wouldnt load onto the blog....oh well lol

Wedding flowers

Some pics I took of the flowers I got from my uncle's and (now) aunt's wedding. :) They were so pretty!!

Big accomplishment!

A couple weeks ago, one of my best friends in the whole world earned his Eagle Scout award. I'm so, so proud of him. :) Way to be awesome!
He's amazing, incredible. I wish everyone in the world was as lucky as I am and could know him. There's never a moment when I'm around him that I can't help but smile. He is one of my earthly angels.

Livin it up

Haha....I have the most awesome friends ever. Both the accomplices, AND the victim!! :) Hehe....and in the process, I must admit I've never had such a hilarious conversation with a convenient store clerk in my life....although, I can imagine when you have a couple girls and a couple young lads come in and buy such items in such quantity...giggling hysterically the whole time, and continually muttering "I can't believe we're actually gonna do this..!!"....nah, nothing fishy whatsoever... ;)

I am a Daughter of God, and that understanding alone

is more sacred and more powerful than

almost any other knowledge.

Good + good = ....hard decision!

After spending so much time at the retirement home over the summer I got hired on as a personal nurse assistant in the unit (the Altzheimer's wing). The catch, it was graveyard (10pm-6am) not just the once or twice a week I was promised, but more like four or five days a week, being on call the rest of the seven. Also, it is a common misconception that if it were graveyard shift the residents would all be asleep and nothing would need to be done. It is, in fact, the complete opposite. I LOVE the residents, I always have. The same day I got hired on, I got offered a position as the piano accompianist for the Caldwell High School choirs. The catch with this position: It was currently another "unpaid" job, but was working on becoming either a paid position in a year, or a scholarship to a school with a large music program. For anyone who knows me, music is my life. Literally. It's my boyfriend, it's my happy place, it's my world. It was very clear to me that realistically I couldn't do both jobs, and teach piano, AND go to school. It just wouldn't work. I had to drop something...and that made me sad. I had grown to love the residents so much, and each of them held a special place in my heart. I was never happier than when I was at the retirement home. But on top of that, music was my all time favorite. Music made me even happier than the retirement home (if that was possible)! After working three days at the retirement home, caring for the residents, waking them up every hour to take them to the bathroom, transporting them from wheelchair to toilet, and doing the laundry when we didn't make it, getting them ready for the day at 4am, cleaning the bathrooms and the kitchen, folding the linens for the entire facility...tiring though it may be, I loved it. They became MY residents. But the time came to choose, retirement home or piano...and I knew where my heart laid. If I didn't take the piano job I would always regret it. Yes, I would miss my residents terribly, but I would miss the piano opportunity even more. So, very sadly, I quit my retirement home job after only three days.... I still miss my residents horribly, and wish that there were some way I could be super woman and do everything. Although I don't miss the excitement/horror of graveyard shift (you'll have to ask if you want more details...) I do miss running them to the bathroom, and their hugs and kisses, and personalities and small simple "thank you's".
Me getting ready for a night at the retirement home:


But alas!! I've been doing the piano thing over at the High School and am so glad I took it!! I LOVE it more than everything else. It's helped me realize how much I depend on music, and how extremely happy it makes me.

Due to the recent realizations and events, and after spending so much time with the choirs and playing the piano, I've decided I want to major in Musical Therapy. Maybe Political Science will still stick around to become my minor...?? :)

It is now official!!

It is now official!! Not all tootsie pops are created equal. While some lollipops require 345 licks to get to the center, others take closer to 479!! :)

A weekend in the presence of history

Last weekend my family and I went to the history production that was going on at the park outside the history museum.
If you've ever been to Disneyland and experienced the whole "chase the Disney characters around and get their autographs" game, you'll know just how I chased Benjamin Franklin and David Boone around to get my picture with them! But they were oh, so kind once I got them cornered. ;)

Abraham Lincoln and the Confederate were a little easier to track down....

This is a picture of a bunch of old faucets hooked to a bathtub. They dated back to WWI and WWII. A few of them even dated back to the mid 1800's!!! I took this pic more as an inside joke with a friend, but also because they looked so fun.

Then at the Medieval section of the park we got our lancing and sword fighting entertainment in. :)

Boise Fair & Blake Shelton

Only in Idaho can you buy a baked potato made out of ice cream, topped with the works (all ice cream toppings, of course, though they look like your typical baked potato toppings...)! Mmm, it brings back memories of when I was eight and my grandma bought me an Idaho Ice Cream Potato at the Boise River Festival. Of course, the festival no longer exists, and ice cream potatoes are difficult to locate, but when you go to the Boise Fair you can always count of there being an ice cream potato somewhere around! :)



My favorite part of the fair, and main reason for going was the Blake Shelton concert!! It was so awesome, and despite the beer drinking hicks in the crowd, it was a fantastic concert. He even sang his first single, which is one of my all-time favorite country songs ever!! :D
Below I attached a video (attempted to!!).

A TRUE joy

One of my best friends just left on his mission to the Dominican Republic. I already miss him and it's harldy been 24 hours, but I'm so excited for him to be able to go teach the gospel and share the love of God with the people he will meet. In a way, I wish it was me going and doing that; I love the feeling you get when you see the look on those people's faces. But he will be an amazing missionary, I know he will! And more importantly, I know why he is going.
Lately I've tried a little bit harder to come a little bit closer to the Lord. It's been my strongest desire, and while up at girl's camp I started my long journey. I know that no matter what, the Lord loves me. He didn't die for us, he died for me; he died for you. Even after all the pain He suffered in Gethsemane, He would do it again for me. I wish every one in the world could feel the power of that truth. I know that he hears prayers, he hears thoughts and feelings...he hears my heart...because he is always right there, listening. He is so in tune to me. And not only does he hear, he responds!! He answers, he blesses, he leads, he guides, he prods, he motivates, he loves. No matter what, he loves. He has given us every thing needed to find happiness, not only in the large picture, but day by day, moment by moment.
I can't wait for my dear friend to bless the dear, beloved children of the Dominican Republic. I feel a love for those people....even though I don't know them...at all. I love my friend that's so excited to go share the joy with them. I love my Savior for all he does, for the directions he has led my life, and the opportunities and love he has filled it with. Life is a miracle.

Subtle reminders

The other day I decided to watch Pearl Harbor again. It's been so long...

I can't recall a time in a very long while that I've cried so hard during a movie. It reminded me of everything good I have, everyone I love in my life, and how simple life can be, yet we choose to make it so busy and hectic and place the least important things highest up on our list of concerns. I think I will always love that movie.

Laurels Camp to kick it off...Girls Camp to bring it home

Girls camp, girls camp, girls camp! And Laurels camp! Laurels camp was something new for me. Until I moved to Idaho I had never heard of such a thing. Basically, it's a special girls camp directed and held simply for the laurels. Monday was spent setting up camp and cleaning out cabins for when the younger girls would get there on Wednesday, but Tuesday was amazing. We had firesides back to back from 10 am that morning till 10pm that night. Though it was very, very difficult to sit still for that long, the spirit was so strong, and the messages so sweet and pure, and uplifting and inspiring, it was SOOOO worth it! We were all on such a spiritual high, and it lasted all through the rest of camp. :)

Me and my friend Katie :) Love the girl to death!

While we were cleaning out the cabins, we found a huge rat nest in the corner (old dead rat included) and the priesthood were called upon to come take it away. See the joy on their faces!! Lol, lets just say they were NOT thrilled about that one. ;)

While my friend, Ashley, and I were getting ready to certify for CPR down at the pool, we found an awesome mask that we were CONVINCED was just crawling with bird flu ;) Do you like our mask?

That night our ward got all painted up and we did Indian dances around the campfire. We

roasted marshmallows and starbursts (yum yum!!) and pretty much partied.

This is my Texas buddy, Steph

All us girls being crazy!

Stacie and I demonstrating what NOT to do with knives....

...and how to build a very sufficient bed roll. :)

And last but not least, here is my tiny little friend that I found hiding in our cabin, and I immediately loved him. We named him Plimpton!

**DISCLAIMER: Much to some disbelief, Plimpton is not my prince, and I did not/would not kiss him. Cute as he may be...I'm not ready for my prince just yet. ;)

Pioneer Day celebrations in a little place called Oakley, Idaho :)

So, for Pioneer day, we decided to take a trip to go visit my dad't friend and his family in their little farm town, Oakley, Idaho. Every year the town holds a huge Pioneer day celebration, so we decided to join the festivities.





















That night my dad's friend and his family took us to a little musical called 'Paint Your Wagon' put on by the people of the town. That was fun!
Then the adults went to a dance in the park. Us kids went back to the house and watched a movie. We stayed up late, laughing and talking.
Early the next morning we joined the town in the park for a delicious breakfast. Mmm, yum!

After breakfast the adults decided to go listen to a speaker. Instead of ALL of us going along, the boys took Skyler and I four-wheeling! :) That was SOOO much fun!

Me on my four-wheeler. :D (Hailey was showing me the little tiny kitten....)















Sky and my mom with one of the younger boys...
















We made a small stop at the barn before we started on our awesome voyage.
The reason for our stop?? To take a spin on this bad boy. ;)

See the look of mild panick on my face??




















But, I did actually drive it. And it was awesome! Not too hard, either (contrary to my original beliefs lol). This is my dad's friend giving me some "How to Drive a John Deere 101" ;)
















That afternoon we went rock climbing/viewing at the City of Rocks. This particular rock is called "The Bread Loaf".



















































This is just a pic of some of the surroundings. These rocks don't have a particular name that I can remember...they look cool anyways!















Afterwards, we stopped by the freshwater creek, and got a drink. It was so cold and it tasted, SOOOO good!!

It was a fantastic weekend.

Recap of the summer...thus far...

I've been so bad at blogging this summer!!! One thing about the summer is it comes quickly, and leaves even faster. Here are some of the very many pics I've taken with my little sister this summer. :) Now for a recap...

Towards the beginning of the summer, my cousin Brooke came and visited for the weekend!! :) Good times, good times.

I've done quite a bit of shopping over the course of the summer...or window shopping, at least....

Porter was baptized....

I've looked for a job...

I've not found a job, and am VERY happily volunteering at a near-by retirement home a few times a week. I'm getting to know the residents there and LOVE the opportunity as a whole. I get to do everything from visit with the residents, play ball with them, paint fingernails, play bingo, go on walks, read poetry with them on the back patio and contemplate life, you name it! Thats one of my favorite things of the entire summer, for sure! :) I always come away with so much more than I have contributed.

I've gone to movies with friends...Transformers and Harry Potter 6 MIDNIGHT SHOWINGS!!! :D That was a blast. Other movies I've seen and enjoyed over the summer were: Monsters vs. Aliens, Knowing, Race to Witch Mountain, WOLVERINE, Fast and Furious, Star Trek :), Angels and Demons...I think that may cover most of them....

I've babysat...

I've contemplated and thought...

I've drawn...

I've swung on the swings...

I've dug up lots and LOTS of weeds...ENDLESS WEEDS!!!

I've gone to the library...

I've spent hours at the piano...

I've checked my facebook...

I've laughed and I've cried...

...possibly more than anything else, I've thanked the Lord for the amazing, wonderful, always caring friends that, yet again, I know he has given me.