When Life Changes

Well. I won't belabor the point with the big long story, so I'll just cut right to the chase:

I'm moving to Vernal on Sunday.

And remaining there until a time to be determined.... Or July 30, whichever comes first.

I know, I know. I'm freaking out too.

But believe me when I say that Best Friend and I decided this is the best choice.

It SUCKS more than anything, but it's what we've gotta do.

We are already making plans to see each other every single weekend, and don't forget our AWESOME two-and-a-half-week trip to Texas for me to "meet the fam". (For which I am undeniably excited. Like, beyond excited.) So.... It should work out mostly ok.

It is going to be SO stressful planning wedding-ness. Yes. I know. Thankfully, we have loving family who have already offered to help us out whenever and however. And so it is all going to work out. I just know it.

This summer is going to be ridiculously rough. Hopefully we will be able to talk more often than not, unfortunately, our schedules will be tough to coordinate. But YAY for weekends! **you know how people say they "live for the weekend" cuz they have a stressful job or something? yeah. i'll be living for the weekend, though not because my job is stressful.**

A HUGE thank you has to go to Best Friend for this. He is standing by me (even though he admitted he doesn't want me to go) and is willing to work with me to make this an awesome summer of weekend-adventures. And even maybe weekday adventures and story-telling about those adventures on the weekend. Hmmm. I could be ok with that. 

BESIDES! We have eternity together. And THAT is the most exciting thing EVER. My Grandmother said these weeks will be a "blip on the radar" in 50 years. Well, Grandma, I'm holding you to that! 

So... When life changes.... Even though it's sucky and hard.... And your fiance will be living three hours away from you (better than three days, but still).... And you're scared to death for what will happen....

JUST REMEMBER! (wow I'm full of morals lately. At least I'm learning, right? Sorry. Not trying to be preachy.)

When you have a Best Friend to rely on - or even better two! (Best Friend and Jesus Christ) - You know life will work out. And everything will somehow eventually be ok. And you'll be all the stronger for it.

We will be stronger. And at the end of the summer.... Eternity will begin. BAM! :) :) :)

Signing out.

Me.

Expectations

We all have expectations in life:

How we will turn out as a grown up...

Who are friends will be...

What our job will be...

Where we will live...

How many kids we will have...

What school we will go to (or not, as the case may be)...

etc. etc. etc.

I think it is funny to notice (as a girl especially - as Best Friend would pointedly add) how much my expectations change depending on the situation.

FOR EXAMPLE:

Growing up - I loved Loved LOVED bossing my siblings around. I made not only my own choices, but THEIR choices. It was the best. I was in power. I was in control. I made the choices. I was the Boss. Woot!

Now - I love being the Boss... sometimes. :) The rest of the time I am perfectly content to let someone else make my choices for me. I want someone to say "Alright, be here at this time and there at that time" - with SOME liberties of course (i.e. I reserve the right to change my mind or choose my classes, etc.). But when it comes time to make one of those Really Big Decisions... ... ... I want to run and hide. So I do. I analyze the situation from every possible angle and quadrangle. I make sure that no stone is left unturned and no possibility uncovered. I know exactly what my options are from start to finish before I make a choice.

Unfortunately, and as I'm sure many of you well know, life is not always so clear-cut.

Lame.

Care for another example? Oh good.

I had a choice. Both were excellent choices. Both were very difficult choices and would provide challenges over the coming months. Both demanded my interest and attention. 

However, I falsely expected that God would step in and solve my problem. He does that all the time. He helps me to make the right choice and guide on my way of life. It is happy and I move on and all is well. Go figure, He didn't step in this time. At least not immediately. 

The problem is that I have such high expectations for myself. I expect myself to do well at what I do, which probably comes from always getting what I wanted (though I did work my tushie off to make sure I was worthy of what I wanted). I expect myself to attain this high standard of achievement and self-mastery and all around awesomeness, but when I fall short, I condemn myself and belittle myself and beat myself up about it. (Hopefully this doesn't sound too familiar, though I understand it's a common trait.) 

I ALSO have high expectations for those around me. I expect my family to always love and support me. :) Ha. They seem to have gotten off fairly easy - but it's all a facade. They have it pretty tough. I expect Best Friend to hold me - which he seems to enjoy anyway, so we're both winning. I expect God to step in and help me solve my problems. Hmm.... That one sounds a little iffy, don'cha think?

Long story short (yeah, right), this is what I have learned:

I have high expectations for myself. This is good. HOWEVER! I cannot let my occasional "failure" to fulfill my outrageously high expectations to ruin my attitude and my feelings about life in general. It's not fair to myself or to those around me who have to put up with me. So what am I going to do about it? Well... For starters, I'm going to try to improve. I'm going to try to recognize when my expectations are unrealistic and see what I can do to improve myself without feeling like a failure. I'm also going to try to remember to take charge of my life - that it is ok to make mistakes, as long as I turn to God and keep Him close through everything.

ALSO! I'm going to love my Best Friend more and more every day cuz he loves me back. And that makes any day the best. (is that cute? or too much? I wasn't sure, but really really wanted to say it cuz it made me happy. :) I think it's cute. So there)

Signing out.

Me.

Easter Sunday

Happy Easter Everyone!!!

Hooray for bunnies and eggs and chocolate and Christ.

This year, Best Friend participated in my family's annual Easter-Egg Hunt. We basically took the cake. We did awesome (especially since we combined all our winnings). It was very happy. He had a great time. Honestly, I did too. Even though I wanted to pass on rummaging through the mud for easter eggs, but oh well.

Then we had a delicious dinner w/ the fam. It was a great catch-up time. Loved it.

OK. Now I can go on to what I really wanted to blog about. Don't get me wrong - I wanted to share how much fun I had yesterday w/ Best Friend (and my mom and sisters - we went dress shopping. EEEEE!), but the main reason for writing this post is because I feel that it is important to remember the Savior on Easter. After all, He did live for us. He died for us. And He was resurrected for us, too. He loves each person on the planet equally, individually, and specifically. He knows us. It is phenomenal.

So... A few months ago, I found this video. This is an excerpt from a talk given by Elder Wirthlin of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. I have to admit, he is one of my favorites.

Just watch it. Even if you don't think you'll like it or if you don't think you'll agree with what he says. It is pure hope. It is beautiful.

If you have any questions, feel free to visit: mormon.org or lds.org.

Sunday will come. Happy Easter.

Signing out.
Me.

Double-Date Night: Five Alls

Tonight, my parents took us (Best Friend & me) to Five Alls.

It was magical. It was delicious. It was really dark and lit by candles and lanterns and wall-hanging lights (sconces? Maybe?)

We had a marvelous time. And our awesome picture proves it:

Tee hee!

Really. It was incredible. Despite our frenzied faces.

I tried to get some sa-weet pictures of the delicious food, but unfortunately, it was too dark. (I know that in the pictures the windows are open so you're asking - why was it too dark? Well, they didn't open the windows until we got our dessert, and then I wasn't thinking about it any more. So there.)

Nevertheless, dinner was the best and we were VERY grateful to Mom & Dad for paying to take us to dinner there. (It was their "Congrats on being engaged" dinner.)


--just so you know, the final bill (including tip) was $199. Yeah. It was epic. For real.


It was SO SO SO worth it and I would recommend it to anyone.

5 course meal - drink AND dessert included in the price. Yummy.

Mom had King Crab legs and they were some serious KING CRAB LEGS. Woah.
Dad had New York Steak. HUGE!
Best Friend had Steak & Crab.
I had Steak & Shrimp.

Beautiful. Delicious. 5 courses. Incredible. Tasty. Lovely. Pewter goblets & plates. AMAZING food. Great service. Right out of a Medieval storybook. Mmmm.

All around: Five Stars. Definitely.

too bad there was light behind us.... but oh well. 

LOVE MY PARENTS!!! :)

Out in front. It's a hidden little spot. Search for it. Go there. Eat. Love.

It's worth it. And more.

Signing out.

Me.

Indexing

I. Love. Indexing.

Am I weird?

Too bad.

I love it! I think it is incredible.

It is a really good time. It is productive AND fun. Can life get any better? Haha!

...yup... That's about it, actually.

Uhm... In other news... My computer contracted a virus that isn't really a virus.

And trust me, it is as annoying as it sounds.

Dad tried to fix it... Best Friend tried to fix it... Best Friend's brother tried to fix it...

Actually, they got it fixed enough that I could get on the internet again. Yay!

But.... now I can't get in any of my other programs. Crap.

So, I've stoled Best Friend's laptop until he can figure out what to do.

:) Thanks, Best Friend!!!

Signing out.
Me.

P.S. This may to you seem like a pointless post - for which I apologize.
But I feel better now. So there. :)

PhotosPhotosPhotos!

Oh man. OH man!

I love taking pictures. Hopefully someday soon I'll get better at it.

It's just so much fun! and the beauty of the world is incredible.

As a side note... Elder Pearson (my brother) flew out to Japan yesterday.

I'm extremely nervous about it, but my dad says everything is fine.

Well, said Elder wrote me a letter. I saw the envelope and was thrilled!

But when I opened it up...

THE LETTER WAS BLANK!

There was merely the date written in the upper right corner. Gah.

What a bum. Don't worry. I'll get him back. He'll be sorry.

He thinks he is funny and just cuz he is in Japan he can hide. But he can't.

You better watch yourself, Elder Pearson.

I'm STILL your older sister.

Signing out.

Me.

A Tale of Two Movies

So... I need to confess... There are two movies that I've seen in the last week that I have LOVED!

Seriously. Loved. Ask Best Friend. He will tell you. It's great.

Anyways...

One movie is older-ish (I think) while one is new (very). They are both awesome!

Movie number one: The Tale of Despereaux

Oh my goodness. This mouse is the most darling thing EVER.

The voices of this animated picture are incredible. They include:

Matthew Broderick (Simba in the Lion King)

Dustin Hoffman (Hook in Hook)
Emma Watson (Hermione Granger in Harry Potter)
Sigourney Weaver (Avatar, Holes, etc)
Robbie Coltrane (Hagrid in Harry Potter)
Kevin Kline (frogs, cowboys, oh the characters are endless!)
Christopher Lloyd (Magician in the Pagemaster)
and many many others - these are just my favorites.

The mouse is the best. But the rat is second best. ;) But that's my opinion. And whenever the mouse is asked if he is a mouse or a man he says, "I am a gentleman." OH! It's darling.

The movie is rated G, 90 minutes long, and is definitely child-friendly. But despite its "in-your-face-let-me-tell-you-the-moral" conclusion, it is simply darling. It's a happy-feel-good movie and I was so glad to finally have watched it. *sigh* So happy!

Movie number two: Tangled

*sigh* No one is really surprised, right? Oh good. Just checking.

Man. I don't even know where to START with this one. It was just perfect. So simply and awesomely perfect. Wow. I loved the story, the bad guy, the good guy, the appearing-to-be-bad-but-really-good-guy-who-got-the-girl (aka Chuck! woah...), the horse! Oh man.

Best Friend and I watched this movie for the first time together in theatres and together again just a few days ago. It was brilliant. Just brilliant. Everything that I remember in a good Disney movie. LOVED IT! :)

Well... That's about it I guess. I was just SO excited after watching 'Despereaux' today and then I thought of 'Tangled' and then... Oh gracious. I love a good movie, don't you? I knew it.

Well. Watch a good movie. Unless you're studying for finals... then finish your finals and THEN watch a good movie. ...yeah...

Signing out!

Me.

P.S. This made me laugh out loud. And I love laughing. And I love laughing out loud. Hee hee.

P.P.S. Something else to confess... I waited til 12:01 am to post this so I wouldn't post twice in the same day. I know. I'm awesome. So it goes.

Finals Week

So... This week is Finals Week. The dreaded week among college students.

Thankfully, it means that classes are over. YAY! But it's scary, cuz it means that classes are over. Already? What?! Yeah...

I recently noticed something about myself and I wanted to put it into words, so I figured I'd do it here. May as well, right?

I've been kinda...down... the last couple weeks.

Inexplicably.
(10 awesome word points for ME!)

Well, not totally. In fact, Best Friend and I have spent lots of time (more than I wish we needed to) trying to figure out what it is that has me down. Yesterday we figured out part of it.

But as I was thinking on finals week last year, I realized a pattern.

Last spring, about the beginning of April, I got depressed.

I explained it away by saying it was cuz I was leaving Snow College - never to return - and therefore saying goodbye to lots and lots and lots of people that I love.

Now, maybe that's true. Or maybe it was the weather change. Or something completely different. I don't really know.

All I DO know, is that the same thing is happening this year.

I don't like it.

But then, if I've figured out what it is, and now that I see a pattern (depressing of a pattern though it may be) it gives me LOTS of joy and confidence that it was pass... in about a week and a half. Hopefully less. YAY!

I feel like that is very good news. Very hopeful. I will be (semi)normal again soon! And I cannot wait to truly celebrate summer as my normal happy self. It will be the greatest!

(Assuming I've found a job and I'm not bored out of my mind. Ugh.)

Signing out.
Me.

Three Posts?!

Wow... so I didn't realize that yesterday I posted THREE TIMES.

Hee hee. My bad.

That's kind of embarrassing.

I didn't realize I was having that much fun. Huh. Oh well.

At least it was fun I was having, yeah? Oh yeah.

P.S. Why am I blogging again today? Oh yeah... Best Friend is at Tucanos.

And where am I?

At home. Eating ramen. And blogging.

Jealous.

Siblings (Part 2)

Remember that one time I did a post about my siblings? Well, I left off two of them, so I thought I would finish. I felt kind of bad. Plus I don't want to do anything else and I'm feeling sentimental. Yay! Here we go:

Sister #2: Sister #2 is actually really cool. She was kind of the odd-man-out for awhile, but turns out, we all love her. A LOT. She is definitely a daddy's-girl and has been since she was really little. She is probably the most like me out of all of my siblings. In other words, she is very particular about her bedroom, usually tidy, very smart, extremely attractive (tee hee... had to throw that in. sorry.), loves reading, etc.

One of my favorite things about Sister #2 is her confidence. She is very bold and out-going and I love that about her. Another favorite thing is that she knows she can talk to me. In fact, very recently, she is sure to email me when she has questions about life. Not that I'm great at answering, but I love that she trusts me.

Sister #3: The baby of the family. She is the biggest goof-ball that you will ever meet. Anywhere. Seriously. She is great. She is extremely smart - she knows how to figure out computer stuff better than any of us and plays the piano amazingly. She is funny and very out-going. You never really know what you're going to get from her. It's always an adventure taking her places and hearing what she has to say.

One of my favorite memories of Sister #3 was her birthday a couple years ago. I had made a goal to take each of my siblings to lunch over the summer. Since her birthday is in June, I figured I'd take her for her birthday and kill two birds with one stone. Well, she wanted to go to McDonald's. So we did. While at dinner later that night - at McDonald's - I found out she had ALSO gone to McDonald's for breakfast. Phew. Three meals at McDonald's. Wow. What a birthday wish. Crazy.

Well. Those are the rest of my siblings. Man oh man oh man do I love them alot. These two little girls are the absolute best and really run the house. It's crazy. But I love it. And I love them. SO much.

Signing out.

Me.

Daily Miracle - 4/13

Actually... I've noticed lots of miracles lately. Mind if I share? I didn't think so.

1. Yesterday I had a job interview. It went great. So great in fact, that I have a second interview tomorrow!

2. Yesterday was the last day of preschool. Heart breaking. But awesome. I loved it and I am so so grateful I got to be there for the entire semester. It was fantastic. I learned so much.

3. My Best Friend. He has been there through it all to support me and cheer me on. What a great guy. Last night after I was finished reading the email announcing my interview call-back, he got up, ran over, and gave me a great big hug. The kind where your feet leave the ground and you spin in the air. It was AWESOME. He kept telling me how proud he was and how he hoped everything goes well and I just felt great. So great. And so grateful.

4. The Gospel. For some reason I've been really struggling to remain positive. I have a funny pit in my stomach that won't go away. It's crazy. BUT I've been blessed to have a huge force for good in my life and that is the Gospel of Jesus Christ. It's not a quick-fix by any stretch of the imagination - the pit is still there. But it gives me hope and comfort that someday it will go away if I keep doing what I've been doing. And that hope is what is getting me through.

Well, that and Best Friend and my Family.

Wow. See?! So many miracles. :)

Expect a Miracle Every Day... and sure enough, you'll find them.

Signing out.
Me.

Another School Year

Wow. I can't believe it.

I've been attending college for THREE years. That is a really long time.

Today is the last day of classes. I have a few finals to do and then I'm finished. Gone. Done for the summer. Until the end of August rolls around.

But woah! I have been attending BYU for a whole year!

I can't believe it's been that long since Snow College. That's crazy.

I can't believe I've made it through so many changes.

You know, my favorite part of school ending is the realization that I love school.

I do.

I really do LOVE going to school.

Crazy, right? Especially since I hated high school. Loathed it, actually. (minus Junior year)

But college is SO much better. You get to pick your own classes and your own times for going to said classes. You are doing what you want when you want and no one can tell you to do otherwise. Living the dream. Oh yeah.

But seriously. Life has so much more to offer than just high school and getting stuck in ruts.

I am SO GRATEFUL that I have attended college. I am SO GRATEFUL for the knowledge that I have gained. I am SO GRATEFUL for the friends I have made. I am SO GRATEFUL for the life that I have experienced.

Basically... I am grateful.

Yeah. College is the best. Do it. ...but take healthy breaks over the summer. ;)

Signing out.
Me.

Firebolt

So I knew I wanted to blog today.

Unfortunately, I couldn't think of anything to blog about.

I could blog about how I've been feeling like crap for the last week and I hate it.

Or about how today was the last day of preschool (again).

Or how tomorrow is the last day of classes and finals are just around the corner (next week).

Or how stressed I am.

But I don't want to.

Instead. I'm posting a link to an awesome video.

It reminds me of my sister. :)

Oh man. I wish I still did things like this...

Happy viewing.

Signing out.
Me.

Passover

Last night, my Best Friend and I went to a Passover Seder.

It was AWESOME.

Talk about a little bit of food-shock, though. Oh man! It was rough. But incredible.

There is an instructor at BYU who does dozens of Passover Seders all over the place. He said he was recently in Arizona and is headed to Texas later. Super cool, right? It was legit. I know, because there was a man sitting at our table (Elliot, by name) who grew up Jewish and told us all about his grandma and the dishes she would make and how excited he was. He said it was legit (though not exactly in that phrasing) and so it must have been. Woot!

The night started at 6:30. We arrived, had a little intro from the guy in charge, and then got down to business.

We said prayers and sang a song, drank fruit of the vine (grape juice, obviously), ate bitter herbs (NASTY - very very very strong horse radish) aka Maror, Haroset (apples, nuts, cinnamon, and wine), had the greens (parsley), the meal (chicken & latkes), the unleavened bread aka Matzah, Shepherd's bread (delicious), the Afikomen, etc. etc. etc.

It was incredible. And took four hours.

Yup. What a date night.

Here was our program for the Seder Service:

1. The Kiddush - prayer and drink first cup of wine
2. The Hands Washed
3. The Greens Eaten - parsley dipped in salt water
4. The Afikomen (broken and hidden by the children)
5. The Passover Story Recited
    The Story of the Oppression
    Dayenu - a thanksgiving song: "Dayenu" means "it would have satisfied us"
    The Passover Symbols (Shankbone, Matzah, Bitter Herb)
    More Prayers and drink second cup of wine
6. The Hands Washed
7. The Blessings over the Matzah (then eaten)
8. The Bitter Herb (eaten alone, then with haroset)
9. The Hillel Sandwich (bitter herb, haroset, matzah)
10. The Passover Meal (we had chicken, latkes, and veggies - but it is different everywhere)
11. The Afikomen (super fun - whoever has the broken piece of Afikomen gets to negotiate with the leader aka patriarch for a gift. Usually something awesome. Ie: one girl wanted her grandpa to take her to McDonalds - just the two of them - in Honolulu. So of course he did. Woah!)
12. Grace after the meal and third cup of wine
The Cup of Elijah
13. Psalms of Praise and fourth cup of wine
14. Closing Prayer - "Next year in Jerusalem!"

*phew* What a night, right? It was amazing. Really spiritual in an awesome sort of way.

Conclusion: If you ever get a chance to go to one of these you should DEFINITELY go. Just don't try to be brave like Best Friend did and eat a lot of the bitter herbs. It comes back to haunt you. *shudder* Plus it's gross. And makes your eyes water and clears your sinuses. Yum.

Signing out.
Me.

Anti-Frustration

Today... I am frustrated.

And it's frustrating cuz I'm trying really really hard not to be.

I've been sick since Sunday. I'm not sure what it is, but my head hurts and my throat hurts. I've got a gunky cough and a stuffed up nose. It's simply disgusting.
I slept for 11.5 hours last night ... and it did absolutely nothing. Ugh.

Also. I still haven't found a job. I have applied for 20+ and not only have I not received an interview (well, only one, which didn't work out) but I also haven't received emails saying they aren't interested at all. Lame! I'm frustrated. I could work in Vernal for the summer... but... So much stress would result... Ugh.

SO! You may have noticed this post is titled anti-frustration. Well. That's because I'm determined to not let my bad mood, illness, and dour-looking circumstances get the best of me. (I'm not sure why, giving in is what I'd normally do. Maybe I'm just sick of giving in. Yup.) So I'm going to make a list of ten things that make me happy.

1. My Best Friend

2. My Family

3. Music - Listening, Singing, or Playing. It is love.

4. Theatre - Watching or Participating. I need more.

5. Reading!

6. Ballet. Jazz. Contemporary. Basically, Dancing.

7. Ballroom dancing. It's so awesome, it gets its own category. Yup.

8. Pretty flowers. Also photography.

9. Sleep. Who doesn't love sleeping?

10. Children. Being at preschool all semester has been a HUGE blessing.

11. Oops... Can't forget CHOCOLATE! Yummy.

(My favorite! Chocolate, chocolate, and more chocolate!)

What are ten (or eleven) things that make YOU happy?

Signing out.

Me.

Conference Weekend

This weekend was General Conference for members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.

It was absolutely fantastic.

It was definitely an inspired conference and I am so so grateful that I got to watch.

But not only did I get to watch - I got to be with my Best Friend the entire weekend. WOAH! Loved it. :)

We started Saturday morning with breakfast at his apartment. We watched the first session there. We then drove to my Brown grandparents' house, at lunch, then watched the second session. After that, we drove up to Salt Lake to his Grandma Jackson's house where we got together with all his aunts and uncles and cousins on that side and had a lovely dinner and girl-chat while the boys all went to the Priesthood session. When all the boys came back and we finished talking, we went to his aunt's house in West Valley to spend the night.

The next morning we had a delicious breakfast of aebleskivers (delicious...somethings...) and watched the morning session of Conference with them. Then we drove to Draper to see my Pearson grandparents and my uncle from Denver. It was great to see him and his kids. It's been a couple of years. We had a delicious lunch with them and then we went to my aunt's house in Sandy to wish her a happy birthday. It was great. Unfortunately, I had an allergic reaction to her dogs (I hate it hate it hate it that I'm allergic), so we went back to the house in Draper to watch the afternoon session. We had ice cream, then left to go to Lehi.

We got together w/ my Brown grandparents and aunt, uncle, and cousins for dinner in Lehi. I didn't eat cuz I wasn't feeling well, but Best Friend says it was delicious. Haha. (So much good food - my favorite part of conference!) Then we talked to them for awhile before driving back to Provo.

*phew*

It was a fantastic weekend. Lots of family. Lots of good food. Lots of fun. Lots of together-ness. Yay!

Signing out.
Me.

MARCH-lites

MARCH:

 1. First day of volunteering at BYU Preschool. LOVE it! Dinner & dancing with my Best Friend. 

5. Read a book. Watched my sister dance at a competition. 

10. Six Months! ;)

11. Best Friend competed in DanceSport.

13. Dinner with Pearson grandparents & O'Bryants.

15. AWESOME devotional by producer of Narnia movies. 

17. St. Patrick's day! 

18. Met my Best Friend's parents for the first time. Wow. They are awesome! It was super great.

19. Drove to Vernal with my Best Friend. Watched Sister #1 perform in 'The Scarlet Pimpernell'.

20. Drove home from Vernal with my Best Friend. Had a great talk on the way.

23. Got super super sick due to emotional stressing. Best Friend saved my life and baked 2 dozen cupcakes. Wow. What a great guy.

24. My Best Friend proposed to me and I said yes! :) If you want to check out our story, it is titled 'My Fairy Tale'. Also. Drove to Vernal to see Sister #1 be 'Grumpy' in the 'Snow White' ballet.

25. Men's Chorus Concert. Went for ice cream with Best Friend, his parents, and two good friends.

26. Saw 'A Tale of Two Cities' in West Valley with mom and Sister #1. Hung out in Springville with our good friends - playing games and talking.

29. Announced to the world (aka Facebook and this blog) my engagement to my Best Friend. YAY! Also moved into hotel for the duration of the week - my grandparents are remodeling their kitchen so we've been ousted due to no power at the house. Quite an adventure.

31. A beautiful and sunshine-y day. :) Met L.J. at the temple. What a beautiful and incredible young woman and a great experience for Best Friend and me.

Daily Miracle - 3/31

Today is April 1st. This happened yesterday March 31st. I would have written and posted last night, but it was too late and I didn't have my computer. So this is for yesterday:


My Best Friend and I went to the temple last night (the 31st). It was...an incredible experience.

We had been talking about some pretty big stuff before we went over and we were both laughing, but stressed deep down. You know how that goes? Life is great, you just need to relax for a bit. Well, that was part of what our temple trip was for. Also because the temple is awesome. And...for a third reason we didn't know.

We were sitting in the chapel and I was showing Best Friend how my ring glittered. Oh my goodness it was SO incredible. Just the absolute bestest and mostest beautifulest thing. :) The girl sitting next to me asked if she could see it. I was kind of embarrassed - I hadn't wanted anyone else to notice, but apparently she had. I showed it to her and she told me she loved how beautiful and how simple it was. It was great. She said she likes simple things, too, and that her older sister told her that her fiance would love her because of it. Best Friend shared that his mom liked it, too.

We talked (reverently, of course) the rest of the time we were sitting together. She told us her sister had just gotten her mission call and was so excited to go through the temple - just like me. We told her our story about getting engaged - she asked. She was so sweet. She asked us all the right questions and we just opened up. It was great. It was so natural to just tell her everything. She told us the reason she likes simple things is because of 2 Nephi when Nephi talks about how things were plain and simple and precious. She then compared Best Friend to Nephi. I laughed. ;)

I was simply amazed by this girl's spirit and knowledge and attitude. I was blown away. It was incredible.

We were walking out of the temple right behind her and I felt very strongly that we needed to ask her what her name is. So we did. Her name is Larisa Jones. Same name as Sister #1 (minus a couple spelling changes). We asked if she attends BYU... She is a sophomore in high school. ...WHAT?!?!... I was stunned. This young woman with such a strong spirit and personable attitude and.... wow... It was incredible. We talked for a bit, took a picture with her, and said our farewells promising to see each other again. Hopefully soon.

While we were walking away I started to sob. I had the overwhelming feeling that SHE was the reason we went to the temple last night. It was so strong and I just... I was so impressed with her. I was so grateful she was brave enough to talk to us. In fact, she said that her favorite thing about the temple is that everyone is the same once you're inside. You're not divided by what you wear or your status or your age. You're all the same in the Lord's house. I was touched. Deeply.

I have such a strong feeling that I know this incredible young daughter of God and I am so grateful for that. I can't wait to see her again and get to know her better because I'm sure we'll have that chance.

It was overwhelming to have such a strong manifestation of the Spirit. Especially because I wasn't expecting it at all. It just happened. It was the most incredible experience and I am so so so grateful for it.

You never know who is watching you or who may need you. Don't be afraid to speak up.

Thank you, Larisa, for being at the temple last night. We will never be the same.

Signing out.
Me.