N*SYNC

My cousin has probably been my best friend.  We're always together, and for some reason our (probably mostly mine) mom's decided we need to be in matching outfits growing up.  So it shouldn't be a surprise that my first concert was with her.  She would come out to Vegas to visit (where I lived) for weeks at a time.  And on this particular visit in 2002, we went to my first concert, N*SYNC. We spent all afternoon doing my hair. It was fabulous, and we have yet to recreate it.  And then me, my cousin, and both my parents headed to the N*SYNC concert.  I remember my parents making a point how we just sat and listened to the concert. (I'm pretty sure I didn't know any of the new songs)  I don't remember much, besides through our binoculars we saw Brittany Spears in the audience.  We got blue suckers that turned our mouths blue.  And it was fun.

Concerts I've been to
N*SYNC
N*SYNC (at the Olympics ceremony)
Yellowcard
Celine Dion
Rascal Flatts x3
Brad Paisley

First Job

So my first "job" was technically working as a sales clerk at a scrapbook store. But I think that my first job was before that.

The summer before 6th grade when I started babysitting.  I was a nervous wreck at first.  I remember crying the first time I went babysitting.  But soon, it became a routine.  I babysat this same family from 6th grade all the way until the summer before my senior year when I moved away.  6 years.  CRAZY! And now the kids I babysat are dating, in high school, and growing up.  Also, I look at the 11 year olds I know, and wonder, would I leave (my hypothetical) children with them.  Some, yes I would, but others, probably not.   The family must have a had trust in me.  I am so thankful for them, the steady job they gave me growing up.  I've stayed close with this family, and they even traveled 400 miles to come to my wedding.

Oh Happy Day

Happiest Day of My Life.... Day I got engaged or the day I got married.  Both were fabulous days and were days I spent with my husband.  Sometimes I feel like I've been married for a long time.  But really it's only been a year and half.  But a fabulous year and a half.  And I'm excited to spend eternity with him.

Blogember

So I wasn't doing that bad with blogember, well too bad, until recently.  Thursday I was supposed to take a 10 pictures at 10 past the hour. Ya didn't happen. So I tried again Friday.  I got 2.  Obviously, remember to take pictures was very hard. So I'm just going to skip that one.

Friday: Favorite Halloween Costume.  1st favorite. as a little girl I was Cinderella. I got this fancy dress from Disneyland, and I remembering wearing lipstick.  I do remember it was cold so I had to wear a jacket over my dress, I wasn't so happy.  2nd favorite.  This year when the husband and I dressed up at Google Maps.  I like this one because it was creative and unique (aka thank you pinterest)

Saturday: Six Word Memoir: Crafts Disney Music Pandas Gospel School

Sunday: Favorite Year in Elementary School and Why:  1st and 2nd Grade, and probably my favorite because I had Mrs. Kilberg both years.

What A Thought

Today's post is about an epiphany I had this summer..... did I even have one? Summer seems so far away right now, and trying to remember what I learned, well that's hard. But after going back and looking what I posted, I think my epiphany had to be "Have Faith."

We have to have faith in life or else it's really hard.  Don't get me wrong, life is hard, but faith makes it easier.  An epiphany I had this semester was "If all I get our of grad school if faith than it's worth it." I really think that grad school has strengthened my faith. I've had to rely on the Lord as much as faith in myself that I can actually do this.  So life needs faith.  That's it.  Pretty simple.

My First Pets

Growing up I had lots of pets.  And I would now if my apartment let me.

One of the first that I remember that was mine was BJ. BJ was a sheep dog.  We got him as a puppy.  According to my parents, he got the name BJ because he threw up on the way home. (B=Barfus).  I don't actually remember him a lot, but from pictures it looks like he was my real life doll.  I would put him in my stroller and push him around.  Sadly, BJ outgrew our backyard and we gave him away.

At this same time we had a cat, sadly I don't remember it's name. But we moved it thousands of miles away with us.  And first thing it did when we got to the new home, hide under the front porch.  I don't have many memories with that cat.

So first pet I actually remember is Sparkle. Growing up, my dad and I would go to this Garden store, and they had cats you could adopt.  We adopted Sparkle.  His name became Sparkle because I couldn't pronounce the name I actually wanted to name him.  I remember giving him a bath.  My dad said he went from black and gray to grey and white.  Must have been a dirty cat.

Along with Sparkle, I had a orange tabby named Fluffy.  We also got him as a kitten. So cute....or maybe I should say "HE'S SO FLUFFY I'M GOING TO DIE!".  Any who.  He was a funny cat.  He would chase the laser pointers, and oh I just loved him so much.  But sometimes he wasn't the best, like when he used to undecorate the Christmas tree by climbing up it.  Crazy cat.

Sadly, Sparkle ran away one year during fireworks and we gave Fluffy away when we moved.  They were great cats.

Note: I did have birds some time between all these cats, but they flew away one day when my dad was cleaning their cages.  Here's all the pets I can remember

Cat #1
BJ - Dot
2 Birds
Sparkle - Cat
Fluffy - Cat
Einstein - Beta Fish
Albert - Beta Fish
Domino, Cesar - Fish
Sir Isaac - Snail
Throw in some other fish

Now I have a pet rock. :)

Lonely Music

Picture this..... you are stranded on a desert island, but lucky you, you remembered your iPod with only 3 albums on it. What would you have on your iPod?

Here's mine....

#1 "Grateful Praise" by Eclipse, my Aunt and Uncle gave this to me for high school graduation and I LOVE IT! It's an A Capella group that sings hymns and it is wonderful.  It brings such a peace with it and it's amazing music.  It's what I listen to when I start to feel anxious.

#2 Best of Celine Dion, my cousin made me this CD. And it's what stays in my car.  Bad day, Celine has a song for that, nothing on the radio, Celine can cure that, favorite movie song, oh ya Celine sang that. It's just awesome! She is awesome.

#3 Husband's Birthday Mix, because all these songs have meaning to memories with my husband.  And if I'm stranded I might as well relive all our memories.  Plus they are pretty great songs, seeing I put the mix together.

Unstoppable

Some days, I'm not a good blogember blogger and forget/don't blog.

So yesterday I was supposed to blog about a time I felt unstoppable.  Well I'm hoping it's this headcold, but it's hard to think of a good example.  So here's one for now.

Thursday mornings I spend at home before teaching piano and going to school.  It's nice not to have to spend ALL day on campus.  And sometimes I am super productive.  One in particular, I cleaned the house chores and I believe did my hw, started dinner all before piano.  I felt unstoppable (haha).  I think that's when I feel unstoppable, when I just start doing chores and just keep going and soon the house is all picked up, laundry is done, and I feel great.  I wish I was like that every day. So productive, but it doesn't happen.  Like this week.

A week ago the Husband was sick with stomach flu, then since Wednesday I've been fighting off a cold.  Definitely doesn't help us be productive. Along with all the other things that come before laundry and dishes.   Luckily, I have an amazing husband who still did chores while he was home sick, ya he's great.

Well hopefully this headcold isn't unstoppable and life can become more productive.  Happy Monday!

Online Shopping

So today I'm supposed to write about my 5 Favorite places to shop online.  Well that would have to mean that I shop online.  I actually only have two, and almost everything can be found at these two.

#1 Amazon
#2 Groupon

I love Amazon.  It's my go to place for piano books, textbooks, I even looked up school supplies there. I usually always check Amazon.

Groupon.  You can get some steller deals on Groupon.  Husband and I went to Florida for our anniversay with a trip from Groupon.  Definitely worth it.  We've bought a few other things on there, camcorder, video grames, cute yogurt tupperware, and so much more.  Some of our great dates nights are deals on there too. Defintiely check it out.

#3 DoTerra

This one makes this list just because I put an order in every month, so technically speaking I buy more often from them.  But I love my oils and it's the way I get them.

Happy Shopping!

Time

Time.  Doesn't it seem like we never have enough time. Or we wish we had more time in the day?  Time is a funny subject for this post because it's a timed post.  I have 5 minutes to write about time. Then hit publish.  Sometimes I like to believe that I'm good with my time. I get all my studying done at school for the most part so that I can enjoy my time at home with my husband.  But then other times, I am a huge time waster.  Like last night for example, what did I do productive with my time. Eat. That's it and sleep.  Granted, I've had a head cold this week, but still.  But on the other hand.  Enjoying being lazy, or lounging around is sometimes what we need to refuel ourselves.

Now besides wanting more time, aren't we always "waiting" for that "special time".  I'll wear this dress in a time that's a special occasion.  I'll be happy when this happens at this time.  And on and on.  I know I've done it, save my favorite outfits for occasions I deem worthy of their stylishness.  Be happy once all my exams are over (aka next Friday).  But that's not how it should be.  There's a conference talk from a few years back where this was the topic.  I don't remember who gave it, but he talked about a lady having a fancy dress and saving it for a "special occasion" and I think she never wore it.  That's sad.  So we should wait until the time is right to wear our favorite shoes, or the time is right to be happy.  We should be happy now in our favorite outfit.  We need to enjoy the journey.

Your time is now.  Enjoy it! Use it well! And look fabulous too!

A Day in My Life

Average day in my = Busy

Wake up around 6:15 (give or take), get ready for the day and have breakfast with the husband and pack lunches. Then its off to school for about 8-10 hours. Between taking 15 credits and teaching 2 classes, there seems to always be something due, a test to take or grade. Then depending on the day, its either piano, mutual, or missionary splits after school. Sometime between all that theres dinner with the husband and a show or two on Netflix to end the night. My life  is busy but its good. I still have time to enjoy doing things with friends and the husband. I rarely do hw once I get home which is nice. And not every weekend is filled with hw.  I guess I've had practice prioritizing and can still have fun. I'm not always thankful for busy days, I enjoy being lazy.  But I know that it will all pay off in the end. (Though I don't enjoy leaving in the dark and coming home in the dark.)

Top 5 Apps

Top 5 Apps

Facebook
Instagram
Pinterest
Google Chrome
Email
Calculator (honorary)

Ya this probably means I'm on social media way too much. But it is nice to be connected everywhere.

I Love Cookies

One of my favorite recipes I s for cookies of course. Cookies are my weakness. But here's an amazing recipe from Dwanna Buxton's Worldwide Ward Cookbook Secret Recipes. (Picture also from her book)

Grandma's Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies

1 cup butter
1 cup sugar
1 cup packed brown sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
2 cups flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp baking powder
2 1/2 cups oatmeal,  blend to fine powder
4-oz chocolate candy bar, shaved
12-oz chocolate chips
1/2 cups nuts, chopped (optional)

In large bowl, cream butter and both sugars. Add eggs and vanilla; bear well. Stir in flour, baking soda, salt, baking powder, oatmeal. Add shaved chocolate, chocolate chips, and nuts. Roll into balls and place 2 inches apart on a cookie sheet. Bake at 375 for 10 minutes. Makes 36 cookies.

Mmmm so delicious. Some changes I makes. No shaved chocolate or nuts. But still so good. Especially since the oatmeal is blended. Makes it awesome. Also, 10 minutes makes perfect cookies. I actually set timer because its that perfect.

Free to Worship

Articles of Faith
11 We claim the privilege of worshiping Almighty God according to the dictates of our own conscience, and allow all men the same privilege, let them worship how, where, or what they may.

Freedom. I live in the land of the free. I have the freedom to worship God according to the dictates of my heart. Isn't that beautiful. Also, I believe is allowing others to worship God in their own way.

I've seen in the media lately about fighting for our religious freedom. My county was founded on religious freedom. The pilgrims came here to escape persecution for their religion. Time and time again, the early pioneers of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints moved from town to town to find religious freedom.

Don't we all derserve the right to serve our God according to the desires of our hearts? I am so grateful for a country where I can pray when ever I want. Where I can talk about my beliefs anywhere. And where I can serve and worship my God. I'm thankful for these freedoms and for all those who have fought and continue to fight to keep my country free.

Favorite Blogger

So I blog stalk. But there actually aren't many blogs I regularly stalk besides friends and family. But one of my favorites is Elise over at Elise's Pieces. She's a friend from college and I love blog stalking her and I think you should stalk her too. She has inspiring messages and it seems she knows how you feel too. Plus she's pretty awesome.

Someone's Thinking

"Somewhere there's someone who dreams of your smile, and finds in your presence that life if worthwhile.  So when you are lonely remember it's true. Someone somewhere is thinking of you."

Growing up as a teenager this was one of my FAVORITE quotes. (I'm not sure who said it).  I already wrote yesterday about my other.  

I think as a teenager we can get down.  Feeling lonely because the cute boy likes our best friend, the girl next door has a date to the dance while we sit home alone eating ice cream.  And growing up it doesn't always get easier.  Your roommate has a boyfriend but you don't.  And it seems everyone on Facebook is getting engaged but you. But I think if we remember this quote, we remember that someone is thinking about us we just don't realize.  Maybe that cute boy in Chemistry class is just to shy to ask us out.  And even if it's not our crush that is thinking about us, our parents ALWAYS are.  Even after we move away. (My mom and mother in law do for sure).  So even when we are feeling down, we need to remember all the people who love us and are constantly thinking about us and praying for us.  If we just stop and think about all the wonderful people we have in our life, we should be happy, not sad.

So remember, someone loves you! Never forget that!

Life's Lesson

ISo I was blog stalking and came across this blog A Happy Girl and she has this idea of Blogember. I decided I wanted to try this. I think I sometimes let life get in the way and I get lazy and don't blog. Even if I have things to blog about.

I think of the greatest lessons in life is faith and trusting in God. (As you can see from my many faith posts)  Faith isn't just hoping for something. Its acting on the faith and that's hard sometimes. Especially when that faith requires you to trust in God's timing and not your own. I remember multiple times this year I questioned myself on whether graduate school was the right decision. I couldn't see the full end result. It took faith to quit my full time job to go back to school. Faith and trust in the Lord. Thinking back on the times in my life where I've had to have faith in the Lord's timing I realized, Those situations didn't end bad. They are happy endings. The Lord provides ways to happy endings not sad ones. If we knew that we would always have a happy ever after following the Lord's plan, then why wouldn't we always follow His plan. One I think because we're human and we think we know best. (Not always true) and two, yes we will get the happy ever after, but the journey is tough.

I have a quote hanging in my house that my aunt made, which previously hung in my Grandpa's family room. It has Jesus Christ and says "I never said it would be easy, I only said it would be worth it." Life is hard, and it was meant to be. If it was easy would we learn anything? No.  But even though life is rough, it's worth it. The hard journey that's makes us strong is worth it for eternal life.

So I guess what life teaches me is to have faith and trust in God. It's not always easy. But how great is my joy when I act in faith. I hope I can continue to act in faith and trust God. Trust in His timing. Trust that He knows what is best.