Conclusion (20)

Starting a blog has always been something that I have wanted to do. This assignment was the perfect push for me to start one up. I have enjoyed having the opportunity to write about important events, people, and thoughts about this amazing gospel.

I am so glad that this assignment was something that I could thoroughly enjoy. Each post was able to be about something meaningful to me, and I really enjoyed the amount of creativity that was put into our hand when accomplishing this assignment.

I hope that in my future I can continue a blog, as it is a perfect opportunity to record the important and amazing things that are continuously happening in life. I have never been very good at keeping my thoughts recorded in a journal, and I think that this is the perfect way to keep one electronically.

I know that these posts are going to be something valuable for me to look at in the future, and I am glad that I will have them to look back on. 

Sista Sista (19)

This upcoming weekend my beautiful, wonderful, funny, smart, amazing sister Lexee is getting married in the Bountiful Temple and she will be sealed to her sweetheart for time and all eternity. I am so excited for the fun and festivities that are coming up, but most importantly I am so excited that she will have the opportunity to progress eternally in this very important time of her life.

Lexee has always been one of my best friends, but throughout this pass year we have become so close and I love that we can talk with each other about anything and everything! She has always been an amazing example to me, and I am honored to call her my sister. 

As I have recently received my mission call, she has been so supportive of me and my decision and excited for me, but she has expressed her sadness that I will be leaving her for a year and a half. The memories that I have made with Lexee will always be some that I cherish the most, and I am so excited for all of the amazing things that she has coming up in her life!

LOVE YOU LEX! Thanks for being such a great sister and best friend throughout my life!

I Know That My Redeemer Lives (18)

One of my favorite hymns of all time is "I Know That My Redeemer Lives." Every time that I sing or listen to that song I am immediately filled with the Spirit and I can feel the immense love that Christ has for me and everyone. 

I know that my Redeemer lives.

What comfort this sweet sentence gives!

He lives, he lives, who once was dead.

He lives, my ever-living Head.

He lives to bless me with his love.

He lives to plead for me above.

He lives my hungry soul to feed.

He lives to bless in time of need.

He lives to grant me rich supply.

He lives to guide me with his eye.

He lives to comfort me when faint.

He lives to hear my soul's complaint.

He lives to silence all my fears.

He lives to wipe away my tears.

He lives to calm my troubled heart.

He lives all blessings to impart.

He lives, my kind, wise heav'nly Friend.

He lives and loves me to the end.

He lives, and while he lives, I'll sing.

He lives, my Prophet, Priest, and King.

He lives and grants me daily breath.

He lives, and I shall conquer death.

He lives my mansion to prepare.

He lives to bring me safely there.

He lives! All glory to his name!

He lives, my Savior, still the same.

Oh, sweet the joy this sentence gives:

"I know that my Redeemer lives!"

He lives! All glory to his name!

He lives, my Savior, still the same.

Oh, sweet the joy this sentence gives:

"I know that my Redeemer lives!"

I KNOW that my Redeemer lives! And I am so grateful that I have that knowledge. I cannot imagine life without this knowledge and the comfort that comes from the Savior. I know that he atoned for all of the sins of the world, and I know that he died for you and me. 

To Sweep the Earth as With a Flood/Things as They Really Are (17)

Way back at he beginning of the semester we were asked to read David A Bednar's talks "Things as They Really Are" and "To Sweep the Earth as With a Flood." I really enjoyed both of these addresses that he gave and the different counsel that was given in both. 

In things as they really are he really focused on the warnings of the use of media, and how it can be misused. He talks about the fact that many are distracted from doing the things that matter most because of the presence of technology and media. Below I have listed some of the main teaching from Elder Bednar's talk.

"Sadly, some young men and young women in the Church today ignore “things as they really are” and neglect eternal relationships for digital distractions, diversions, and detours that have no lasting value."

"We live at a time when technology can be used to replicate reality, to augment reality, and to create virtual reality."

"I raise an apostolic voice of warning about the potentially stifling, suffocating, suppressing, and constraining impact of some kinds of cyberspace interactions and experiences upon our souls."

"If the adversary cannot entice us to misuse our physical bodies, then one of his most potent tactics is to beguile you and me as embodied spirits to disconnect gradually and physically from things as they really are. In essence, he encourages us to think and act as if we were in our premortal, unembodied state. And, if we let him, he can cunningly employ some aspects of modern technology to accomplish his purposes."

Elder Bednar later went on to give an address at Education week at BYU in 2014 of the ways that technology can be used for good. This address focuses on the fact that even though technology can be distracting, it is also a great tool that the Lord has blessed us with to share the gospel.

"An important aspect of the fulness that is available to us in this special season is a miraculous progression of innovations and inventions that have enabled and accelerated the work of salvation... All of these advancements are part of the Lord hastening His work in the latter days."

"A technology known as social media is evolving in our day and playing an increasingly important role in hastening the work of salvation."

"The Lord is hastening His work, and it is no coincidence that these powerful communication innovations and inventions are occurring in the dispensation of the fulness of times. Social media channels are global tools that can personally and positively impact large numbers of individuals and families."

Both of these talks given by Elder Bednar has very important principles included in them, and it is important to look at both sides of the use of technology.

General Conference April 2015 (16)

April and October are definitely some of my favorite months of the year. To have the opportunity to hear from the Prophet and Apostles is such an amazing blessing that we all have, and it is so apparent that the words they speak are coming directly from the Lord.

This specific conference was also extra special because it landed on Easter which gave the amazing opportunity to reflect on the Atonement and Resurrection of our Savior, Jesus Christ. 

All of the talks in conference were phenomenal, but I am going to highlight some of my favorite quotes from conference. 

"I am convinced that a husband is never more attractive to his wife than when he is serving in his God-given roles as a worthy priesthood holder." -Sister Linda K. Burton. I loved Sister Burton's talk. This specific quote really resonated with me, because finding a worth priesthood holder has always been the number one priority on my list when I think of attributes that I want in my future eternal companion.

“We surrender to the ‘pleasures of this life’ when we are addicted, which impairs God’s precious gift of agency; when we are beguiled by trivial distractions, which draws away from things of eternal importance; and when we have an entitlement mentality, which impairs the personal growth necessary to qualify us for our eternal destiny,” -Dallin H. Oaks. In the world today it is hard to focus on those things that matter most, as we are all easily distracted by the material things of this world. It is important to be rooted in the gospel and put things of importance above material things.

"We should look to and have our focus firmly fixed upon the Savior at all times and in all places." -David A. Bednar. It is important that the Savior is the center of our lives and that we focus on becoming more like him each and every day. 

"God cares a lot more about who we are and about who we are becoming, than about who we once were." -Elder Dale G. Renlund. This quote highlights the amazing gift of the Atonement, and our ability to repent of the mistakes that we make. God will not look in the past, and he will only look at what we are doing now to better ourselves.

"As we enter through the doors of the temple, we leave behind us the distractions and confusion of the world." -President Thomas S. Monson. I love these words that the Prophet said. i am preparing to enter the temple later this week, and I am so excited for the experiences that I will have there.

Called to Serve In... (15)

The moment that I have so anxiously awaited and anticipated finally arrived, and I was able to open my mission call in the presence of my family and friends last night. I have been called to serve in the...

*drum roll*

ENGLAND LONDON MISSION!

When I opened my call and read those words I was flooded with the Spirit, and I knew that is where I am supposed to go to serve the Lord. It is truly amazing to know that I was called by the Lord to serve the people in London and I cannot wait to see what the future has in store for me!

When I was younger if anyone ever asked me what I thought the perfect mission would be, England was always at the very top of my list and I am so grateful for the opportunity I will have to serve there!

Narrative Assignment Reflection (14)

Recently for my Writing 150 class we were asked to write a narrative that highlighted an important event in our lives. I chose to write about swimming because it is something that I am very passionate about. Being able to choose any event that has happened in my life was really nice because it was very easy to think of what to write and it seemed like the words just flowed. For some of the past papers I have had some trouble coming up with things to write because none of them were really personal to me. 

I really enjoyed this assignment because it was different from the average paper you are usually asked to write. This is my favorite assignment we have had thus far.

The Decision to Serve (13)

I came to BYU with the expectation that I would immediately get an idea of what I wanted to do, what major I wanted to pursue and just have my life more together. Once I got here I realized that figuring out what to do would not be quite that easy. I have never thought that I would serve a mission. It just never really felt like something that was in the cards for me. I expected to be engulfed with school or a relationship by the time I turned 21. When the age change announcement was made years back I still didn't really feel like it was what I was going to do. It wasn't until recently that my viewpoint changed.

I started to feel uneasy about my decision to stay back. I started questioning my decision to not serve. And then one night as I was still seeking an answer, I got a distinct feeling that I needed to serve a mission. And that I needed to go this Summer. I was surprised with that answer and I was kind of battling with the idea of it in my mind for awhile. I was trying to make sense of everything because I was so set on staying home originally. I decided to go to the Temple to hopefully get more direction and when I was there I began to feel an immense amount of peace. From that moment forward I have felt nothing but excitement about serving a mission! I have completed my mission papers and I cannot wait to see where the Lord will call me to go.

Personal Narrative - The Unfinished Race (12)

It was a cold snowy winter day. The team was all gathered around in a small room where we would warm up and prepare for practice. It was the first week of practice and it was the time I had been waiting for the two previous seasons. It was the first time I could run for team captain. I prepared a small speech and with the paper clenched tightly in my hands, I shook as I tried to explain to the girls why I would make a good team captain. We proceeded to our practice as our coach counted up the votes. At the end of practice, he was ready to announce who would be the captains for the following season. My heart began to pound as I awaited the announcement. He began reading the name of the four captains selected as I waited in anticipation.

“The four captains will be Allison, Jaime, Peyton, and Shilo.”

The nerves that had built up inside of me immediately subsided as I was ready to tackle this season and see what we could accomplish. As the season progressed some of my teammates and I began to drop time, and a few of us got the state cut. We prepared all season as the swim meet rapidly approached.

The butterflies that were building up in my stomach were indescribable. It was the day before the preliminary round of the 5A Colorado State Swim Meet and the adrenaline was building up in my veins as I was getting prepared to give it my all. Something about this year was different because since the last year when I barely made the cut, this year I had made it with a larger boundary. I was excited to see what my team and I could accomplish. I had worked hard throughout the year to improve and I could see the time shedding off at each swim meet. It was my first year being nominated as the team captain, and I wanted to show my high school what the swim team was made of, as we were a sport that was constantly looked over, but just as we were about to accomplish something great, all of it was put to a halt because of one simple earring.

            The day before the preliminary round of the swim meet I was filled with excitement, nerves, anxiety, and butterflies. Throughout the school day my stomach was tied up in a knot, but I was ready to go race my heart out. The following day I made my way up to the swim meet along with the rest of my team, and we were all excited to compete and see what we could do. We walked into the muggy and loud pool area, towels, bags and swimmers spread all throughout the pool deck. We made our way to our tight little corner that should have only been fitting two girls and instead had to make it work to fit a team of ten. We were packed together like a can of sardines, but we didn’t mind the uncomfortable situation, we were all just ready to compete. It was out teams allotted time to warm-up, so we all got prepared in our cap and goggles and slid into the icy water to loosen up our tense muscles.

It was finally time to start begin the meet. As we stood for the National Anthem my hand could feel the fast beat of my heart.  I started the day off by competing in the 200 Medley Relay with my teammates Allison, Becca, and Lauren, the same relay team that would compete with me in the final race. I then moved on to my individual event, the 100 Backstroke. I had dropped a significant amount of time since the previous year and I was happy with what I had accomplished. As I sat and waited through the rest of the meet, we finally arrived at my last event. It was the 400 Freestyle Relay, which happened to be the very last event of the meet. This race was less than desirable because it was notorious for taking so long to accomplish. The average swim meet would take about two and a half hours, but the prelims of the State Swim Meet took an entire day. Allison, Becca, Lauren and I were ready to get out of the pool, so we all swam our hearts out getting our best time ever. And to our surprise, we had made the Finals of the State Swim Meet, which was stepping leaps and bounds for our swimming program. We knew that since we had made the Finals, it would be an opportunity for us to be noticed.

            The next day came and I along with the rest of my relay teammates were ready to get out there and make a splash. Allison, Becca, Lauren and I were the only member on our swim team that were competing in Finals. Both Allison and Lauren had multiple individual events before the final relay. We had to arrive before the start of the meet, warm-up with the team, but then we just sat there and supported any other teammates in their events. Allison was very good, and she was competing to rank very highly in her individual events at the meet. The previous year, she got 2^nd place in the 500 freestyle which was an amazing accomplishment. She was pushing to do even better this year, and wanted to go for the gold. Unfortunately her crowning event this particular year she had to compete against Missy Franklin (before she won numerous Olympic Gold Medals). Mt teammate performed well, but she did not do nearly as well as her previous year and was not in a very great mindset for our final race.

            My relay teammates and I had formed a pretty strong bond throughout the season, and we were excited to put all of our heart into one last and final race together. Allison had competed in two individual events and everything went smooth and fine. As we were anxiously waiting to approach the block we were laughing and making jokes and we were all so ready to put everything we had into this last race.

            We were moments away from being called up to the blocks, and then suddenly an official seemed to approach out of nowhere and spoke to Allison with a stern voice.

 “You need to remove that earring from your ear. Now”

 Our teammate tried to fight it explaining that she could pull her cap over her ear to cover the jewelry, but it is a strict Colorado High School Athletic Association rule that no jewelry can be shown at a swim meet. Becca Lauren and I did not think it would be a big deal and that she would just quickly remove the earring, but the only problem was that it was not just a regular piecing. It was located in a thick piece of cartilage in her ear and it was screwed onto her ear rather than just held on by an earring back. As we were scrambling to try to remove this earring, the official once again approached us.

 “We will give you two minutes to remove that, then we will begin the race.”

The panic started to set in. We ran over to our heavily pierced and tattooed swim coach and asked him if he would be able to assist he immediately ran across the pool deck to make it to Allison and began tugging and pulling on that earring. Blood started dripping from her ear as tears were welling up in her eyes.

            The close of the two minutes was rapidly approaching, and those in attendance to the swim meet were all confused of the delay. Eventually the officials notified us that we would just need to begin the event. The problem was that Allison was our lead swimmer. We quickly switched around our order and made our way to the blocks to begin the race.

“Swimmers, take your mark… beep!”

 And just like that we began our race. I was the second swimmer and as Lauren began her departure I kept my eye closely on if there was any luck with the earring. As it was my time to enter the water they were still working on it. The adrenaline from the situation put a fire in me and I put my all into the race. I approached the last flip turn of my 100 yard leg of the race and I was hoping to see Allison ready to compete at the end of the block. I pounded my hand into the wall and watched my teammate Becca’s body fly over me as she dove into the water. There still had not been luck with the earring. I watched as my coach told my teammate to just pull the cap over her ears and pretend she had removed it, but the officials saw right pass that. As Becca approached the wall and touched, she immediately looked up hoping to see a body flying over her and diving into the water, but to our disappointment there was not. We could feel the eyes of the whole area focused on us, the team whose relay stopped after only three swimmers. Tears started streaming down the face of Allison, and she grew angry and began to yell at the official who had noticed the earring. As she began to raise her voice more and more, the official sternly glared at her.

“You need to leave the pool proximity immediately.”

The other two of my relay teammates and I were heartbroken. It was interesting to see how different all of our reactions were with the situation. Lauren was trying to laugh it off. Becca began to cry uncontrollably. But for me? I was just frustrated. I didn’t see the fairness in it all. Allison had already competed in two other events that day with the earring in her ear. Why did they have to see it right before that last race that we were so excited for?  I was frustrated because Becca, Lauren and I, who had swam the unfinished race, had all performed the best we ever had. I was frustrated that my coach lied to the official to try to get her to swim, creating a bigger problem than there already was. I was frustrated that Allison disrespected the swimming official and put a negative light on our entire team. I was frustrated that Allison, who had been swimming for countless years thought she could risk wearing the jewelry when she knew it was against the rules. I was frustrated that so much negative attention was put on our team by everyone in attendance. After allowing myself some pouting time, I realized that I needed to forgive and forget. It wasn’t an easy thing to do because this was the race that was supposed to change how Legend High School was looked at in the swimming community, and how our school perceived the swim team, but I knew that it is what I needed to do.

A few weeks passed and we were all sitting together at the team banquet. The room was threaded in lights and all of the team was dressed up, a very different appearance from the usual wet mop hair and no makeup look. As we listened to our coach and reflected on the good and bad of the season, my eyes made their way around the room looking at all of my teammates. At that moment I realized that even with the good and the bad of the season this was my team. This was a group of girls that would always be there for me, no matter the circumstances. I began to smile as I thought of what each and every girl brought and contributed to the team, and any hard feelings still lingering diminished because this was my team. 

Look Sister Steadman, No Hands (Research Paper) (11)

When I started to write my research paper I had some trouble deciding what I was going to write about. I went through some different possibilities but then one day when I was hanging out with my grandpa, I decided why not focus the research on diabetes because it is something that he has had to cope with for much of his life. I still need to look a little more into the his side of the story, but I have already began some research and found a lot of interesting stuff. I decided it would be smart to broaden my knowledge of all types of diabetes so in my paper I focus on all of the different types of diabetes. My next step is going to be doing some research on heredity and diabetes and how they correlate.

What is the difference between the different types of Diabetes?

There are 3 different types of diabetes that I am going to focus on in this paper: Type 1, Type 2, and Gestational Diabetes.

What type of diabetes is your grandfather affected by?

My grandfather has Type 1 Diabetes

What made you want to write about this?

I was interested in learning more about what my grandfather has had to deal with throughout his life.

So what?

I think that diabetes is a disease that as time goes on is affecting more and more people, so it is important that people take the time learning about it so that they can better understand it.

Well it seems to me that I still have some work to do with my paper. I need to look more into the family aspect of Diabetes rather than just the research part.

Pinterest Addict (10)

I made a Pinterest account quite a few years ago and I just loved it. I would check it every day and pin new things but eventually it kind of made its way to the back of my mind.

But people. My love for that dang website has come back. And it's bad. Now I just constantly want to be finding new pictures to pin, clothes I wish I had, hairstyles I wish I could pull off, food I wish I had the skill to make, my future wedding dreams, and dream children.

But then a couple of days ago I took a step back and thought. Wait... none of these pictures are real life. Well sure, they were real for those who originally "pinned" them but they were not at all a representation of my life. Sometimes I find myself looking at the beautiful people strewn throughout the popular feed on Pinterest and I start judging myself. I start thinking things like "why can't my hair be that thick?" or "why can't my nose be that small?" But then you know what I realize? I am incredibly blessed. There will always be people out there that I think have it better than me, but then I remember that everyone has their own set of trials in life and we should not be basing the quality of what we have been blessed with based on what they have.

This is not me saying that I am going to boycott Pinterest, cuz come on you just can't deny that it has some great ideas on there. But I am going to start looking at it with a new perspective. 

Colorado Lovin (9)

When I was only five years old, my family made the move from Utah to Colorado. It didn't really affect me because after all, I was only a first grader and it was a cool experience to meet knew friends and live somewhere new. As I grew up, my love for that state just increased more and more.

The people and environment that I was surrounded with was unbelievable. Any time I was outside, I was always amazed by how beautiful everything around me was. The ward that I was a member of was filed with so many leaders and people that made positive influences in my life and taught me such valuable lessons.

I am so grateful for where I grew up, and I hope that someday I might be able to return to live in that state that I love.

People Let Me Tell You Bout My Best Friends (8)

I am so grateful for friendship. I do not know where I would be today without the support of my friends and they are all amazing. I was always surrounded by an awesome group of people and I know that I developed friends that will last a lifetime. There is one group of friends in particular that are definitely my closest friends that I have had for the longest time.

Lucky for me, this entire group of friends are also members of the Church so it was great to always be surrounded by people who I knew had the same standards as me. I'm just gonna go ahead and give a quick little description of all of these amazing girls.

Michaela: She was the very first friend that I made when I moved to Colorado when I was only five years old. She lived across the street from me and we loved to make up super weird games where we pretended to be horses and yeah... we were a little weird. She was there with me when I snapped my arm in half and she tried to calm me down by saying that "maybe your arm isn't broken" as it was dangling mid forearm. It's fitting that we used to pretend to be horses because she went on to be an awesome horseback rider. She just began her first semester at BYU this January. 

Cheyenne: Cheyenne and I have known each other since first grade. She was king of infamous for having hair that went to her hips and being friends with the class mean bully. Cheyenne herself was not as mean natured but it took us until about 3rd grade to really become best friends. We have are practically connected at the hip and she is currently my roommate here at school. She is a convert to the church and just so cool. She loves to dance and is super good at it, and she also loves to sing... not as good at that one. She is practically a member of my family and we all love her so much!

Anna: So pretty much Anna is amazing at any and ALL sports. Seriously I have never seen her try out a sport that she just didn't already have amazing talent at. She has signed with BYU to be on the women's golf team and she is just gonna rock it. Anna is probably the nicest person you will ever meet in your life. I don't think that I have ever heard her speak poorly of anyone else and she is just so friendly to everyone he comes into contact with. And not to mention her entire family is also so much fun. Almost every night you could find our group of friends over at her house just chatting with the whole family.

Haven: Haven is crazy hilarious. She is a very loyal customer to Sonic (and actually we all are... that was out night everyday over the past summer). She is currently the student body president at my the high school we all attended. She is very hardworking and dedicated and just such a great girl. 

Addy: Addy is Anna's little sister and although I wasn't around her quite as much, she still became one of my closest friends. She is a fashionista and seriously just the cutest little thing around. Her smile and laugh is so contagious.

Left to right: Addy, Haven, Michaela, Anna, Me, Cheyenne

I am so blessed with these friends and I LOVE them.

"True friendship is like the asphalt of life. It fills in the potholes and makes the journey smooth." -Richard G. Scott

Just Keep Swimming (7)

As I grew up, I quickly found out that I was not the most coordinated of children. I played a little soccer, tried out a little volleyball, dilly-dallied in basketball but seriously I could not catch on to any of it. I wasn't the worst one on the team but I just was not improving and my lack of coordination came as a struggle. I realized that I didn't really have a passion for those sports, so I did not really find reason in trying to perfect them. When I was about 8 years old my best friend (who also happens to be my roommate now) was an awesome swimmer, and her mom suggested that my mom put me on the summer swim team. There was only one little problem. I didn't even know how to swim. I entered the swim team and when the coaches saw the lack of ability I had they decided to place me with the 6 and under age group. Ouch. But throughout the season those coaches pushed me and by the end of my first summer, I was able to make it all the way down the pool and I even got the award for the most improved swimmer (wasn't very hard considering I didn't know how to swim in the first place haha).

A few more Summers passed and I continued to participate on the community swim team. I really enjoyed it, but I was by no means the fastest one. As I was entering 8th grade a family friend suggested that I try out a club swim team. I really enjoyed my summers on the swim team so I decided why not? I ended up joining the Aces Swim Club of Colorado and let's just say, all of those kids on my team had practically been swimming since they had been out of the womb. I had to try out to find out where I should be placed at the beginning of the season, and they considered putting me on the team with kids who were generally around the ages of 8-10 years old. Talk about a blow to the confidence. They decided that solely because of my age they would place me in a higher group, but I was still definitely one of the older ones in the group. When I began that season I started as one of the last swimmers in the lane, and just trailed behind others but as time passed by, I miraculously caught on to the whole swimming thing. And I caught onto it quickly. 

It seemed that every few months I was being moved up in my level on my club team and as I continued to push myself hard, I became one of the top swimmers on the entire swim team. It was fascinating to me that I was now swimming with those kids who were multiple levels above me when I joined the team. When i returned to my summer swim team that next summer, they were all amazed at how much I had improved.

When I entered my Freshman year of high school I decided I wanted to be on the team there so I joined and surprisingly just after that one year on the club team, I was one of the top swimmers at my school. By my sophomore year of high school I was able to qualify for the 5A State Championship Swim Meet in Colorado. As I put hard work into my club swim team and my high school and summer league swim teams, I was able to really improve and I saw that improvement with every time I was able to drop. As my times got faster, I was able to move up in my ranking in the state both my Junior and Senior year of high school. I even got the opportunity to race against Olympic Gold Medalist Missy Franklin (no... I did not win...)! It definitely was a test for me because it was hard starting out at the very bottom of the group, but it showed me that with hard work and dedication, anything can be accomplished. Swimming was such a great blessing in my life because i made so many friends and learned so much about dedication and hard work.

As I was striving to get better and improve, I just always kept the good ol' Dory quote in my head "Just keep swimming".

Senior recognition night 

My relay team for my last State Competition 

P.S. I apologize for how scary looking some of these pictures are... swimming is not the prettiest sport haha.

I'm Going There Someday (6)

Okay seriously, the peacefulness and tranquility of the temples amaze me. This past Sunday my roommate Savannah and I decided to take a little walk on over to the Provo Temple and it was an amazing experience. The spirit was practically tangible as we sat outside and just were in awe about how amazing it is that we have the blessing of this Gospel in our life. 

It is such a blessing to have a house of the Lord so close to us here in Provo, and I think that it is important that everyone takes advantage of that. Even if you feel that you are too busy to go perform Baptisms for the Dead, just go and sit outside and you will be able to have a great experience. If you are looking for answers to questions or even just want to feel peace, just go to the temple. I promise you that it will brighten any gloomy day and will be a great experience. I know that I am going to make it my weekly goal to visit the temple so that I can feel of that amazing comfort every week.

"The temple is a point of intersection between heaven and earth. In this sacred place, holy work will be performed through selfless service and love. The temple reminds me of all that is good and beautiful in the world." —David A. Bednar

Power of Prayer (5)

Lately I have been thinking a lot about prayer and how great of a blessing it is that we have the ability to communicate with our Father in Heaven. I can't think of many gifts that are greater than that. It is amazing that He is always there to listen to any concern I may have or any question that I am looking for some guidance from. Recently I have felt that so many of my prayers have been answered and I am so grateful for that. Things have been seeming to fall into place, and I have felt so much joy in my life and I know that it is because of the comfort I have been receiving from my Heavenly Father.

Something that I have to always keep in mind is that the answers to our prayers may not always come as we expect. A quote that I love by Marvin J. Ashton is "Sometimes we fail to recognize answered prayers because we are expecting more than quiet answers." We have to remember to have faith that in due time our prayers will be answered. There is no doubt about it. If we pray with sincere intent we will always get a response, even if it is small and sometimes hard to recognize. 

I also think that it is important every once in awhile to take a step back and instead of simply asking for things, we just focus on thanking our Father in Heaven for all of the blessings he has given us. David A. Bednar said, "The most meaningful and spiritual prayers I have experienced contained many expressions of thanks and few, if any, requests."

Whenever I am having a bad day or am feeling down, I always know that I have the power to prayer wherever I may be, and that knowledge is very comforting to me.

Families are Forever (4)

I decided that I am going to make a post that talks a little bit about my family because they are all rad and amazing examples to me. I'll just go ahead and start going down the list...

My dad is one of the greatest people have ever met. Like seriously, the guy is amazing. He somehow balances starting up a new insurance company, being a bishop, and spending time with the family and still manages to stay sane. he loves my mom unconditionally, and has shown me how a husband should respect and treat his wife. I would consider myself very lucky if in the future I found an eternal companions with a personality and testimony like my dad's.

My mom is indeed another one of the greatest people I have ever met. She has always been willing to do anything for me and my siblings. She has spent hundreds upon hundreds of hours attending every single one of my swim meets, my older brother's band competitions, my older sisters cheer competitions, and my younger sister's choir concerts an plays. She has sacrificed so much in raising me and my fours siblings, but I have to say that she has done a pretty fantastic job. I hope that one day my children can look up to me with the respect that I have always looked at my mother with.

I have always looked up to my older brother Taylor because he did a pretty phenomenal job dealing with four little sisters. I can't recall a time where he treated me or any of my sisters poorly. He is quite a bit older than me, but I have still always felt like he is willing to talk to me about anything, and he gives such good advice. He always worked hard in school and he worked hard serving the Lord on his mission in Mexico City. He married and amazing girl named Lynnea, who might possibly be the sweetest person to grace this earth, and I am so proud of the hard work he puts into school and into the gospel.

When I was little I always looked up to my sister Britta as this really cool popular person and I aspired to be like her. Now that I have visited with her about high school and her experience in college, she has assured me that indeed she was not that cool, and she was pretty weird. I guess it's just something about being older that automatically makes the younger sibling feel like they are the coolest person of all time? But nonetheless, she was still always an amazing example to me. She is now married to a fantastic guy named Austin, and they have a little baby girl named Scarlett. Seeing Britta with her family has made me so excited for what the future has in store for me.

My sister Lexee and I have always been very close. She was the only sibling that I got to experience any part of high school with. We have had many long random talks, but I love every second of them. She attends BYU-Idaho but she lived in Provo this last semester, and I was SO grateful that she did. It was so fun (somewhat) getting to experience college with her. When I am with my sister Lexee the laughing never stops and the good times never end. She is engaged to an awesome guy named Jason, and I can;t wait for him to be another part of our family.

And now on to the baby of the family. My little sister Mauri has always been a spunky little gal. I remember from the time she was a baby being a little firecracker always getting into trouble: rubbing Vaseline all throughout her hair and into the carpet, sneaking out of the house in the dead of winter with no jacket and going to our neighbor's house, scratching "MOM" into our brand new leather couches, and the list could go on. She definitely kept us on our toes. But as she has grown she has become one of the most amazing young women I have ever met. While my mom had to stay persistent with me and my two older sisters to get our Personal Progress recognition, Mauri got her done just after she turned 14. She is insanely good at singing and all things musical, and she is just so passionate and happy about life! I am amazed at how much I have learned from my sister who is four years younger than me.

See what I mean with the whole mischievous thing?

I am so grateful for the knowledge that families can be together forever. I am grateful for the amazing example each and every member of my family is to me. Heavenly Father's plan is so amazing, and the fact that he gave us families to make it through our life on earth is one of the greatest blessings I could imagine. 

Don't Sell Yourself Short (3)

This morning as I was scrolling through Facebook, I saw that my older sister shared a video of President Gordon B. Hinkley's address at the BYU-Idaho Hinkley Building Dedication. I thought that it would be a good message to start the Sabbath Day with and I listened to the words that he shared and was immediately filled with the spirit. 

He begins by expressing his love for the young people of the Church through teary eyes and a full heart. He explains that he believes that we are part of the best generation that the Church has ever seen. He assures us that we are enough, and we need to work towards what Heavenly father wants and yearns for us to become. This talk resonated with me, and I know that it will do the same for other young members of the Church. So many of the words that President Hinkley spoke stood out to me. Below I am going to share a few of those:

"The world is on a slippery slide, it is going downhill and it is going fast. And you are as a beacon on a hill young people of rectitude and virtue and decency and goodness. Remain that way. Do not destroy your effectiveness. Do not become involved in any kind of behavior which would destroy you, injure you, hurt you, debilitate you in any way whatever. You don't have to do those things. You can stand above them. You must stand above them!"

"Now, be faithful, be true, go forward, be ambitious. Don't short-circuit yourself. Don't stop now. Keep growing. Keep going. Educate your minds and your spirits and never lose sight of the fact that you are a child of God with a divine destiny and capability of doing great and good and wonderful things. Don't sell yourselves short. Don't cheapen yourselves. You know who you are. Each of you knows that you are a child of God and that your Heavenly Father expects something great and noble and good of you."

"You don't have to be a genius. You don't have to be a straight-A student. You just have to do your very best with all the capability you have. You have to do your very best. And somehow, if you do that, God will open the way before you and the sun will shine, and your lives will be fruitful and you will accomplish great good in the world in which you take a part."

"You are the very fiber of this Church and this Church will grow as its young people the young people of this generation magnify their callings and go forward and serve the Lord and live in loyalty toward Him. God bless you."

"You are just simple kids. You are not geniuses. I know that. But the work of the world isn't done by geniuses. It is done by ordinary people who have learned to work in an extraordinary way people of your kind who can do these things."

Just take eight minutes to listen to President Hinkley's full address, and I promise you that your day will be brightened and you will be filled with the spirit.

A Father's Example (2)

Today it is the birthday of someone who I have looked up to as my hero throughout my entire life. His sense of humor can make anyone crack a smile. You can't help but feel the spirit radiating in the room when he bears his testimony. You can easily tell when he is touched by the spirit, due to the amount of tears that well up in his eyes. He has protected me throughout my life. He has been there for me through my trials and helped me face and conquer them.

My dad has always been the perfect example of someone who is constantly striving to be like Christ. He has taught me that above all, our relationship with our Heavenly Father and Christ is the most important. He has shown me through his love for my mom how a husband should act. I have seen through the peace and love that is found in my home, the importance of having a righteous priesthood holder in the home. 

He is always putting one hundred percent effort into whatever he is doing, whether it be at work, in his church calling, or his time at home. He shows patience even when it is tested. He has cried with me, laughed with me, and celebrated with me. 

Happy birthday dad! I am so lucky to have you in my life, and I love you so much. 

This is Me (1)

If there is a moment of silence, there's is a good chance that I will fill it with words. I love being with a big group of people and feeling their energy. When you first meet me I will be quiet and reserved, but once you get to know me I am outgoing. I love connecting with people and establishing friendships that will last. Being with my family is one of my favorite places to be. I like to think that I'm funny, even though in a large group of people I am lucky if I get two of them smile. I am one of the most uncoordinated people when it comes to anything on land, but I have a passion for swimming and being in the water. I can't dance to save my life, and only people who have known me for years have seen me try. I love the sunshine and summer, but I also love the occasional gloomy and rainy day. I love anything that has to do with fashion or makeup. I have actually always wanted to start a blog, but have never really had a reason too, so I guess Writing 150 is a good reason to start. I love looking back at pictures and thinking of all the memories they hold (but I'm talking iPhone quality pictures, I am in no way photography savvy). One of the things I am looking forward to most in life is being a mom. I belong to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. I know that this gospel is true, I live it, and I love it. I hope that through this blog, I can share some small moments in my life that can make an impact on others in a positive way. I hope that I can share with others my testimony and that it can reach out to those who need to hear it.