Bittersweet

Coming home this time has been weird but not for the usual reasons. I'm not stressed out or grumpy or missing anyone from Utah. I miss people here. I miss my life before BYU and I wish I could somehow live a million different lives so that I could be close to everyone I want to be close to and still have time to work and go to school and all of that. I just wanted to take this blog post to say that I'm so grateful for everyone in my life and I'm sorry if we don't spend a whole lot of time together. I miss everyone so much I wish I could see everyone all the time, but I can't so just know that if I haven't seen you in a while or don't see you very often, I love you and I hope you have an absolutely WONDERFUL Christmas!! :)

Arrivederci

This is a big day for me. I took the last Italian final that I will ever take in my life and I did pretty well on it. At least the professor said that we did a good job and that he was impressed, so I'll take that as a good sign and hope that means a B in the class. Anyway, all that really matters is that I passed and I'm done with Italian and I can start focusing on becoming a better writer and reader in the English language which is what I signed up for in the first place. You have no idea what a relief this is for me! It's like a weight has been lifted off my shoulders that was put on them two and a half years ago! That's a good feeling, lemme tell ya. But the good thing is that I now can get by speaking Italian and can appreciate the beauties of Italy and dream about going there instead of just dreading my next Italian exam. And this means that I'm just that much closer to graduating. I knew once I got to be a second year senior, I would be less thrilled about being here. But the good news is that the end is in sight and I still have a little while before it just gets really sad because I have to say goodbye to everything and everyone.

Speaking of saying goodbye, me and Sue had a really sad goodbye to say today to our friend Mr. Dan Blackner. You may not know him, but that really is a shame, sort of like how it's a shame that he's moving back home and we may never see him again. He is such a great guy and Dan, if you're reading thing, we miss you already. :(

It really is way sad saying goodbye to people because they have to leave and there's nothing you can do about it. The world is too big and there are too many people in it. That's what I think. If there were less of us, we wouldn't all have to say goodbye so dang much. It's just a huge bummer. But, like everything else, goodbyes are a part of life and that's ok. Hopefully one of these days, I'll have to say goodbye to everyone so that I can go to Italy and use all that I've learned over the past two and half years. I better get something out of that painful experience.

I also just want to put a little plug in here at the end of my blog for the band Thriving Ivory. They are not amazing by any means, and the lead singer is a weirdie for sure, but the odd way in which he moves his mouth when he sings and his one of a kind crazy sounding voice have won me over. Watch the music video/listen to the song "Angels on the Moon". It's nuts. I love it.

Plug number two: Enya's new Christmas CD, "And Winter Came..." is a gem. I got it last night and I've already listened to it at least three times. Thank you, Sammy! :)

Busted Tube

I've been a little stressed for the past few days because it seems my car is out of commission. I'm so grateful for Brad though. He's so great. Every time I have car troubles, he come to my rescue, saving me from going to a shop and having them tell me a thousand things are wrong with my car and that I need to get them all fixed because I'm just a stupid girl that knows nothing about cars. Anyway, I guess the problem is that one of the power steering tubes fell down and got scrapped on the ground so I just need to replace it. So it's really not a big deal and should be fixed in no time really (and by no time I mean like a week) but that means that I'm back to having no car for a week, which really isn't a big deal, but walking to work won't be fun. That's ok though because I think it's been a bit of a blessing in disguise. I have been forcing myself to go to the gym every morning at 6 and while I love it, I've been a little stressed lately and in need of more sleep and my lack of a car lets me sleep in an extra hour, which it turns out I really needed. So, not having a car for a while has made life slightly more stressful in some ways and less stressful in other ways, which means it's kind of balanced out and it's not really that bad.

On another note, we took roommate pictures on Sunday. They're a little dark, but since it's taken four months to get these, I'm just going to take what I can get. Other than them being a little dark though, I think they're pretty cute. I've got fantastic roommates. We also had our annual Christmas dinner last night at TGIFriday's and it was delicious and the company was wonderful of course.

Also, for all those who are interested, I'm making a mental list of all the restaurants that have vanilla Coke/Pepsi because it's my absolute favorite, and they include Iggy's and TGIFriday's so far. Also, the gas station next to Teleperformance and the Home Depot in Lindon, which I can't remember the name of to save my life. But! If you are a fan of vanilla Coke like I am, those are the places to go.

Once Bitten and Twice Shy

I'm getting in the Christmas spirit, listening to my favorite Christmas song, and wondering what the line, "Once bitten and twice shy" means. Is he talking about a hickey? And being shy? Please share with me your thoughts because I can't figure it out. I have a few theories though...

I was thinking it might be that he was bitten by his lover's viciousness. That happens all the time. In fact, I know exactly how the sting of that poisonous bite feels. Or is he talking about something entirely different? Did his lover actually used to bite him? Is that like an inside thing? Twice shy I think is a little bit easier because it probably just means something about how he's shy and couldn't talk to her or he's trying to be shy now, or maybe she was too shy to give him any and it was really frustrating for him. Anyway, these things cause him to keep his distance, but she still catches his eye. I wonder if she recognizes him. I mean, it's been a year, so it wouldn't surprise me if she didn't, but still, I mean, he gave her his heart. If George Michael (no not the one from Arrested Development) gave me his heart, I'd take it and guard it with my life! I only wish I were the someone special he gave it to this year because I would definitely save him from tears, unless we're talkin tears of joy. Those I could not stop from flowing.

For Mal Bop

It's that time again.. I've not posted anything for quite a while and my vast audience is getting anxious for some new material. So, here it is...

It's Christmas time, which I both love and hate.. but more love, because whilst there's Christmas cheer everywhere and the decorations are pretty and you get to go home for the holidays and such, it's also finals time and a great opportunity to become so stinkin broke it's not even funny. Soooo.. I'm droppin Benjamins everywhere and wondering how long it's going to take me to get back to my comfy spot where I can buy clothes and go out to eat without feeling too terribly guilty, but that's ok, because there are lights and trees and starting today, a little bit of snow.

Bad deal though. I had some car trouble this lovely morning, so I missed my first class, which is fine I suppose but means that I'll have to steal notes from someone because the final is very important to my grade, but that's ok too. No biggie. Just a little bit of a pain. The day has only gotten better though. I went to Italian and found out I didn't do so hot on the midterm, but that the final is going to be an oral exam, which is good news for those of us who suck at grammar on paper, but can stutter for twenty minutes and get a decent grade. So that's a good thing. Also, my other final is not comprehensive, thank goodness! So finals are not fun, but they're looking doable this semester so life isn't so bad after all. And if all goes well, not next Christmas, but the Christmas after, I will be graduated and finals free and have enough money to buy Christmas presents for all without feeling it too bad. We shall see though. As we all know, plans change.

On another note, I think all the adorable couples that just love each other and go walking around in all the Christmassy places and being all Christmassy are just great. I love love, even when it's not me that's doing the loving or being loved. I think it's fantastic. And while some might see it as a bad thing that there's so much marriage here in Provo, I think it's good. Sometimes depressing, but overall good. Love is a good thing and families are a good thing too, so I've decided to just embrace it this holiday season and be happy for everyone that's happy and nice to everyone that's not.

It's Such a Perfect Day

Since it's Thanksgiving time, I thought I would take a few minutes and express gratitute for everything that I have. Well.. not everything, but some things anyway.

I am grateful for my family, including extended family, even if I don't see any of them very often. It's nice to know there are people that love and care about me.

I am grateful for the gospel. I know that it's true and without it, I have no idea who I would be. My whole life has been built on the gospel and I wouldn't have it any other way.

I am grateful to be here at BYU where there is such a great atmosphere and thousands of people with the same beliefs and goals that I have. I have met some of the best people in the world here in Utah and am glad that I've ended up staying so long.

I am grateful for my friends. My roommates have always been wonderful and I really have lucked out in that aspect. College life would have been much much harder without them. I also have made some absolutely amazing friends throughout my life and don't know what I would have done without them.

I am grateful for an education. I have been able to do alot of things in life that wouldn't have been possible without the amazing opportunities for education that I have had and I can't wait to graduate and become a teacher so that I can hopefully have the same impact on other people's lives.

I am grateful for delicious food. There is something really great about eating a good meal that you really can't get from anything else, especially when it's home cooked deliciousness, which I have learned to appreciate even more being on my own and not being much of a cook.

I am grateful for my new car. I feel like it just sort of fell into my lap and everything worked out so that I could own it without being too much of a financial burden or slowing me down in school at all.

I am grateful for work. I have been employed somewhere for the past six years of my life and I wouldn't have it any other way. I learned the value of work and the importance of earning what you have, and I have a wonderful sense of accomplishment because of it.

I am grateful for missionary work. I wanted to serve a mission and I'm sad that I won't be able to right now, but I'm grateful to all the incredible missionaries that teach me in the TRC. They are doing the Lord's work and I love knowing that they working as the Lord's instruments all over the world. I wish I could get all their names and addresses and write them throughout their missions to let them know that, but I'll just keep them in my prayers instead because that would be a bit much I think.

I am grateful for the mountains that I have the opportunity to live next to. They are absolutely gorgeous and I love that I can just look out my window and see them and that they are so close by so I can just go for a hike whenever I want.

I am grateful for my trials. I really am. They make me more sympathetic and understanding as well as teach me how to better live my life and again, I wouldn't be who I am today without them. I would probably still be incredibly immature (not to say I'm mature now, but I'm getting there slowly) and thoughtless had I not had trials in my life at all.

I am grateful for my hometeachers and visiting teachers. They are such wonderful examples to me of people trying to live the gospel and they do a great job of making me feel like they actually care about me and like they will be there for me if I need anything.

I am grateful for my piano. I love music and the fact that I just had a piano given to me by my amazing boss makes me so happy! I can just play that thing whenever I want to, and I get to listen to my talented roommates play as well and I love that too.

I am grateful for music in general. Man that stuff makes me happy and it's so theraputic. Who doesn't love music? I mean really.

I could probably go on for a few days about the things I'm grateful for, but I think I'll just stop there for now. Maybe I'll write more later since it is Thanksgiving time and expressing thanks is the thing to do.

Sad Article on Prop 8

http://www.ldsmag.com/ideas/081110hate.html

Do you know what it FEELS like?

My current obsessions include:

working out at Gold's Gym
my NEW CAR!!! (yes, that was what I was freaking out about in my last blog - stay tuned for details)
anything related to my new car (a.k.a. air fresheners, cds, and oil changes)
"Do you know?" (The Ping Pong Song) by Enrique Iglesias
the TRC
figuring out how to get home for the holidays
graduating as quickly as possible (which seems to be April 2010)

Wish me luck on the test I'm about to take and am procrastinating studying for.. should be a toughie. British Literary History may be interesting but when you haven't done the reading, the tests are still no bueno. Good news though.. Madagascar 2 is out and I saw Mamma Mia for the second time this past weekend so as far as movies are concerned, life is good. Also, unfortunately for all of his fans, Brian was kicked off of the Pick Up Artist last night. Now he's out in the real world asking women just like me and you if they will pull his finger. It was close though, and luckily, the now even more adorable because he's been on a mission, Greg will be staying around for a while longer and we'll get to see him progress in his pick up artist ways. Good luck to all the gentlemen in their efforts.

h a double l o w double e n

I'm here at work. I've been working dilligently coding a document with student responses to a survey.. one of my absolute favorite things to do, but I'm starting to get a little anxious because I'm waiting on a fateful phone call. I'm hitting another life milestone and I'm excited about it, but I'm not gonna tell you what it is.. I'll just leave that up to your imagination. Nothing dirty, kids. I know you've got some crazy minds. Anyway, I'm anxious and bored. Not a good combination. So anyway, just wish me luck and know something awesome is happening.. for me at least.
Other than that, HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!!! I love Halloween and I wish I wasn't working tonight so I could do something creepy, but if you love me enough, come to Los Hermanos and visit! Unfortunetly, I wouldn't be able to serve you tonight though because I'm working in the kitchen, but I would still love to see a friendly face... In fact.. I always love to see friendly faces at Los Hermanos. It totally makes my day or night so stop by anytime and I would be happy to bring you your chimichanga! That's about all I've got to say for now. Just wanted to pass some time and blogging seems about right for doing things like that.

Star Struck

Ooooh boy. I saw Donnie Osmond at Zupa's today! I'm not kidding. I'm not kidding at all. It was the best moment of my life. I'm serious. Reminds me of the time I saw Gary Coleman at Denny's. The stars eat out just like everybody else. Who knew?

Sicko

I've been sick for the past few days... no good at all. It just makes me SO tired. Like everything I do is just too much. So I'm just really hoping for my sake and for the sake of those who have shared drinks with me that I don't have the mono. But I doubt that's what it is because I haven't been kissing anyone lately and I haven't been terribly stressed either (which can also cause mono.. it is not JUST the kissing disease). Probably just getting worn out from the sickness but it's making homework hard to do without falling asleep and everything else hard to do without yawning my head off. But this too shall pass.

Whilst I've been sick, my dear roommates have been angels to me instead of avoiding me like the plague and I'm grateful for them. Especially Sammy, who is always there for me when I need a little support. Love that girl. Anyway, just thought I'd give a little shout out to my ladies.

Life is good.. Men are that they might have joy. :)

Mysterious

I've reached the point of no motivation. How depressing. The semester's not even half over yet. I think it's a result of only taking two classes and one being Italian which really just kicks my butt. But, thankfully it's my last semester... of Italian that is. Let's not get ahead of ourselves. This is how over it I am. I'm deliberately missing my classes to blog and eat Lucky Charms... or shall I say Marshmallow Mateys? The good news is that this is the first time I've missed class all semester which may be a record for me. So there's that.

And then there's this man:

I have recently come to discover that while I thought I was a Master Pick-Up Artist, I was sadly mistaken. I've never been able to work a room quite like Mystery and Matador. Yeah, maybe I'll open up a set or two, but what does that matter when I can't manage to bounce with the guys I meet? Huh?

Basically, what I'm trying to say here is that I need to pick up my game. It's pretty rare that I'm actually feeling a guy and when I am, I just don't know what to do with myself. Really, it's just embarrassing. But anyway, I just wanted to give props to this love genius for doing what he does. He's my idol at the moment and I'm going to propose a female season for the Pick-Up Artist to VH1 because I think I could learn a lot from working with Mystery one on one.

90's New Wave Classy

Change of plans.

Man I love life. And I love the Gospel even more. As I've come to find out, life is not always what you think it will be. And here is yet another example of that. I've been preparing for a mission for the last four months and I finished my papers and sent them into my bishop and was SOOOOO excited to go serve the Lord because wow! What an amazing opportunity! And then my bishop was out of town when I was supposed to get my interview.. and didn't return my calls for a week and a half. And I'm incredibly grateful for the time that the situation gave me to think. Right before when my bishop's interview was supposed to happen, I started feeling really anxious about leaving. Normal, right? Right. So I tried to brush it off and continue preparing and being excited. But as it turns out, the Lord knows better than I do and after quite the intense "finding out" process, I realized that I need to stay here and that serving a full-time mission is just not what I'm supposed to be doing right now. So I'm sorry for the lack of excitment this brings and the lost anticipation of where I'm gonna go, but I feel better about this decision than I ever did about going and so there ya go.

I've been thrown yet another curve ball. Thank goodness. Because without all the curveballs, life would not only be much less exciting, but much less fulfilling as well.

I'm sure that the Lord has more than one reason for me staying here, but I have yet to find out what they are, and in the meantime, enjoying life has been a bit of a challenge, but it's getting easier quickly.

I am grateful that I don't have to say goodbye to all of my fantastic friends and my family for a year and a half though and I do have a pretty stellar life. So I think the way I feel can best be summarized in the words of the ever popular and ever wonderful U2: "One love. One blood. One life you got to do what you should. One life with eachother sisters and brothers. One life but we're not the same. We get to carry eachother, carry eachother."

Made to Bounce Like This

I love peanut butter and celery. Just had a feast of that. Absolutely delicious. I just purchased way too much food and am excited to eat it all as fast as possible. Also, here's my missionary picture. I know you've all been waiting for it:

Not the best in the world, but thanks to Erin and some photoshop skills, it's slightly better than it was. I guess the idea that you can't polish a turd is applicable here, but I like to think it's not quite that bad. Anyway, I submitted my papers to the bishop, so another week and they'll actually be sent in.. hopefully. I'm getting excited and I'm getting nervous.. but mostly excited. So I take that as a good sign. I'm also going into the TRC tomorrow morning for the first time, so I'm sure that will be good for me as well as interesting.

Other than that, life is really busy. I have pretty much no time this week that isn't already scheduled, which makes time go by quickly, but also doesn't make for much time to relax, which would be nice right about now. But that's ok. That's what school is I guess.

Something I was contemplating today on my way home from work.. this deep thought caused me to miss two calls and a voicemail when I could have easily heard them by the way.. is that I love some people a lot and I wish that I could somehow make their lives better. I know that there isn't anything I can say or do for some people, but I really wish I could without it being weird or whatever. Maybe I worry too much, but we all need help sometimes and I wish I was better at providing that help. I wish I could just make some people see how wonderful they are and what potential they have and how they deserve the best, but that can sometimes be impossible, and you really can't make anyone do anything if they don't want to. Anyway, I guess it's better that I have a desire to help people even when I can't than to be indifferent... or is it? I don't even know.

But I would like to take a moment to make a tribute to our young friend, Mr. Chris Brown. Sexy from the age of 14, he's just a charmer and you gotta give him props for that. I'll let him call me shorty and grab my hand any day. I maintain that he's a little bit of a punk, but boy can that kid dance. So in the legendary words of this prodigy (yep, I said it), "I think I'll say, 'Yo! I don't know your name, but excuse me miss. I saw you from across the room. And I gotta admit that you got my attention. You're making me wanna say, "Yo!"'"

My Rainy Parade

This past week has brought a few big changes into my life. I started school again (only two classes, but the homework still hasn't ceased to amaze me), moved into my new apartment, met my new roommate (her name is Cheryl.. very nice girl), changed wards, and actually started my mission papers which I'm putting in in three and a half short weeks. And with all this excitment also came a soar throat and sore muscles. I'm assuming this has happened because I'm a little more stressed than usual, especially since I'm adjusting and have run out of money completely due to tuition sneaking up on me. But I must say that it really has come at the most inconvient time possible. I have my doctor's appointments this week for my physical and I'm a little scared that they'll say I have to reschedule or something due to my not being at the top of my game. But rather than giving up hope, I just popped some pain killers and am going to try to fight through it today. Maybe they won't notice my swollen glands. Here's hoping.

Some other important events...

I climbed my first fence on Thursday night. It was incredible. I was terrified because I can really be a big baby sometimes, but Mallory, being the angel that she is, was patient with me and held my hand the whole way through. It really was a perfect ending to that day though. I had been pretty stressed out that day, feeling overwhelmed and tired about school and money.. the usual. So when me and Mallory went for a jog, I thought I would just do two miles (which is sadly more than I usually do since I never go running anymore) and call it a night. But when I started running on the track, all I could do was look up at the sky and the beautiful mountains and think about how life really isn't so bad. It felt so good to run so I just kept going and ran for four miles instead. That is some theraputic shiz.

Non sono molto bene con italiano. I also started my feared Italian 202 class last week. Scary stuff. It's gonna be a toughie for me. Good news though! The professor is really good and the people seem to be pretty nice so far, so life isn't so bad after all. And I must say I love the language. It's just learning it that kicks my butt.

I also got to go to my cousin's baby's blessing last Sunday and it was so good to see the family. I hadn't seen my cousins in years and it was great to spend some time with them. It was also amazing as usual to see my grandparents. After the blessing, we went to the park and had a bbq, after which I went home with about 17 pounds of beef, some jell-o salad-like dishes, cookies, and tomatos. Sometimes being the student in the family has it's advantages apparently.

Off to school I go.

Abs as Hard as the Mountain

This summer I've had a lot of chances to go hiking, just chill up on top of a mountain, or go out to a park or something and spend time with friends and it's reminded me of how much I love being outdoors and how beautiful the nature is here in Utah. It just makes me really happy.

One of these times was yesterday morning when Mallory and I hiked the Y. It was harder than expected for me. I'm not in the best of shape, but that's another story. Anyway, it was just way fun and we met some rockin people that were getting their morning exercise on as well. One man was just studly. I would estimate about 0.0004% body fat on that man. He was also sporting quite the natural tan. I don't think that man put a shirt on once all summer, and as I mentioned to Mallory, it's probably because that would have been a sin. This guy, we'll call him Rocky, was running up Y mountain with enough breath to holla at us as he sped past us and me and Mallory panted a "sup". We also met someone who told us were we're going to get the "Donner Party syndrome" if we didn't get up that mountain a little faster. He was a curious sweaty little man. We also checked out the view which was rad. It was a good time. Then we came back home and watched Kingpin. If you haven't seen it, you haven't lived. Then I went and worked 8 hours and felt accomplished for that. It was a good day. A little bit of nature, a little bit of trashy movies, and a little bit of responsibility for good measure.

Let's get contemplative...

My life as of late reminds me a bit of nature and I know that might sound weird.. but just go with it. There have been some bad times and some annoying times, but overall, it's just been great. It's a new kind of great to me too. It's not great because fantastic things keep happening all around me or because I started dating a new guy or am going on a mission or anything exciting like that. It's just been really good. I've been really content with my life, but at the same time excited for change and new things and for the rest of my life.

And now I explain my analogy. I have always thought of nature as a majestic and terrifying phenomenom. But when I get a chance to go out to where there are no sounds of traffic or people, all I hear is silence and it's one of the most peaceful things in the whole world. My life is similar to this right now and I absolutely love it. I don't know if this is just the calm before the storm, if something terrible or wonderful is about to happen that will completely alter my outlook on life, but I feel somewhat invincible emotionally and I've never felt like this before.

Even though my life feels peaceful and I'm content, I know that it's incredibly rich. There is so much more than I can accomplish in life and the fact that I have been given endless opportunities to make of life what I want to make of it amazes me. Just like when I am surrounded by nature and am amazed by it's power and beauty.

The past couple weeks are a great example of this. I have been staying with Mallory and waiting to move into my apartment. At first I thought it would be kind of a waiting period when I just really wanted to get to my new place and get settled, but I've found that it's been incredibly fun and fulfilling somehow. And I'm in no hurry to move even though I know that when I do, I'll be happy about that too. That's what I mean. I just have found that life is incredible, even when it may seem mundane, rocky, or just down right hard. And happiness is not hard to find if you're sincerely looking for it.

Memory Lane

This is the end of an era. I'm moving out of the Riviera in less than a week. After two years of both laughter and tears it's finally time to move on. Let's take a walk down memory lane...

There I was, walking off the plane in the good old SLC airport feeling wicked confident. Soon I found that the Long Beach airport had lost my luggage. Optimism won, thank goodness, and I was excited to have my luggage dropped off at my new apartment. Onward we went to Provo. I arrived at my apartment alone with one bag full of hangers and jewelry and had to stay up until 3a.m. for the luggage guy to deliver my bag. I was feeling pretty lonely and sad.

But things got better. I lost two amazing roommates to marriage, housed a bunny, had plenty of unwelcome as well as welcome drama, met some fantastically amazing people, did the Christmas program, became the everlasting RS Secretary, and then last summer happened.

Ahhh.. last summer. A time of friendship, dating, pool basketball, drama and amazingly good times. I look back on that time with fondness. I think we all do.

Then Fall and Winter came around. I lost two wonderful roommates, Megan and Briahnna to Vienna and Davin and got three more amazing ones, Sammy, Susan, and Emily. Then things got a little sticky. I lost my honor, my money, and my schooling, and spent a lot of time working and trying to survive. But it wasn't all bad. I had a wonderful bishop, friends, and a boyfriend that helped me more than I deserved and there was a light at the end of the tunnel...

I got some sweet jobs and started saving some sweet money and had an incredible summer living the single life, getting back on my feet, and feeling pretty dang good about the way my life was turning out. I didn't mean to stay at the Riviera for so long, but I can't imagine the last two years without it. The people I've met and the things that have happened here have changed my life for the better and I wouldn't trade it for anything.

Here's to the nights we felt alive. Here's to the tears we knew we'd cry. Here's to goodbye. Next Friday's gonna come too soon.

Homelessness

I'm staying with my dear friend Mallory for the next two weeks until I can move into my new apartment next Friday and while Mallory is a peach, I feel rather odd. It's interesting how much of my day was affected by my roommates and their personalities. But now, it's just me and Mallory and whoever else cares to stop by, which is just fine and dandy. Just different. I'm excited for our new place though. Change is good and I am more than ready for it. Also, I'm ready to have a place to call mine again.

My First Blog

So... this is my first ever blog on blogspot. We'll see if this becomes as much of an addiction to me as xanga and myspace were and now facebook is. I can always use another website to visit in my downtime I guess. So this is the one for now. Well.. in addition to facebook of course.

I am at this very moment watching our friend Shawn Johnson win a gold medal and I'm so glad she finally got one. She's adorable and her mom can't stop crying. It's really just great. Good old Olympics. I'm even getting a little teary eyed.

Anyway, I don't really have any really awesome stories to write about. No wedding plans or mission calls or anything to tell about. But on the other side of that, I also have no deaths or divorces or horrible news to tell about either, so I should count my blessings for that. And I am. I am so incredibly blessed in my life and I think life is a wonderful gift. I am reminded every day how great life is. Yes it's hard, but things get better and people everywhere are happy with what they've been given, no matter how difficult. I am happy with my life. Even though it's hard sometimes. I'm grateful that it's hard sometimes because without the hard times, I wouldn't even begin to know how to appreciate the good ones.

I think that's probably the most fitting way to start my blogging life. By letting you know that life is good and I love it. :)