ROAD TRIP! - Southern Utah

Another Chick-fil-a opened in St. George, Utah and of course the VPLCT had to be there! We left Tuesday night at 1:45 am to get to St. George by 6:00 am. I thought I would get some sleep in the car ride there, but that definitely did not happen. I then thought I would get sleep in the tent set up in the Chick-fil-a parking lot were we were stuck for 24 hours in order to earn a year's supply of Chick-fil-a, but that didn't happen either. It was too hot in the St. George sun. I'm not complaining though. After a harsh winter the sun felt great! It was just stuffy in the tent. Anyways, so I spent the day time at Chick-fil-a in a sleepy, though content, haze. In the evening though, I got my second wind. Caffeine had a lot to do with it. Also, a DJ came and started blasting party music and soon throwing around a football turned into a dance party. That random burst of energy was a lot of fun, but it didn't last. I crashed by 9:00 pm. I definitely did not have a hard time sleeping in a parking lot that night.

 

The next day, after securing our "chicken in paper form," my car which had Lorraine, Lorraine's brother Evan, Ryan, Blake, and I went up to visit some of Utah's national parks instead of going straight back to Provo. We first drove through Zion's during sunrise and it was gorgeous. There is something magical about Southern Utah. It makes you feel so free - there are no worries in Southern Utah. Even though I had only had about 5 hours of sleep in the past two days, I still felt so happy to be there. Then we went to Bryce Canyon and there we hiked the Fairland trail. It is an 8 mile hike around some of the prettiest and most unique mountain formations you will ever find. It was like walking through a different world and I really enjoyed it! 

 

The part of our hike, though had to be when Lorraine realized she had to use the bathroom and that there were no bathrooms anywhere along the trail. It was a tough decision that required a lot of questioning from the guys and a lot of council between the girls before Lorraine finally decided to brave the wild and pee outside without toilet paper. She came out a new woman. She felt like she could do anything, and quite honestly I think she can. If you can pee outside, what else could possibly stop her? Haha! I just realized that this is kind of a weird thing to be blogging about...maybe you had to be there to honestly understand how absolutely hilarious the whole thing was. 

Point: It was a great couple of days. It was weird to come back to Provo and realize we had to go back to life as usual the next day.

Woosh Cecil!

I made it to a BYU basketball game before the end of the season. I had a sports pass and meant to go all semester long, but then it just didn't happen. Well, I got to see them beat Mercer, whoever they are. Woot! Oh, and I got to wear a Jimmer jersey too which automatically makes one feel cool.

Lorraine's Farewell

4 years to the day that I opened my mission call for the Chile, Santiago East mission, I was able to go to the farewell of my dear friend and roommate Lorraine who is going to Paris, France. It was also her brother's farewell (he is going to Argentina) so that made it extra special/extra emotional for her parents. Haha. They both did a really great job on their talks. Evan was true to himself 100% - he talked about trees and applied them to the gospel. Different trees grow at different rates - some really fast like the Redwoods, some not so fast. People likewise grow in their testimonies at different rates. What's important is that we are growing and not lying dormant. He also ended his talk by sharing his testimony in the language he's spoken for the last two years: English. Lorraine talked about the ability for people to change. What I really liked about her talk was what she said about change being necessary for us to be better. In order for us to move up to the next great stage in our lives, the last one has to come to an end. She shared the story of her friend from Paris who stayed at her house over the summer and she ended sharing her testimony in French. Man, they both are going to be great missionaries.

I was really worried that I would cry during Lorraine's talk, but I didn't. Then a beautiful special musical number "I Believe in Christ" followed her up and there I lost it. Music always gets me. Looking at Becca only made it worse. It's not that I am sad that Lorraine is going on a mission. I am so excited for her because I know first hand that missions are the best! No, what really gets me is that Lorraine leaving marks the end of an era. The best college year of my life. Once Lorraine goes, our apartment will be missing an element and nothing will be quite the same as before. I will graduate, Becca will go to Peru, and Anna to New York City. What's next? I have no idea still! And the unknown is scary. I just keep trying to remember what Lorraine said: That change is necessary for better things to come into your life.

Imagine Dragons

 

When we bought our tickets way back in December, March 22 felt so far away. Next thing I know I am smashed in the crowded Complex rocking out with Imagine Dragons. The concert did not disappoint. They are amazing live. I am so glad I got to go with Anna and Lorraine and I wish Becca had been there. I pretty much loved every song they played but Radioactive was especially awesome. They added a whole instrumental part in the middle that was so cool. Here's a video (I got it off YouTube since my phone camera could not handle the noise, but I was there!). Also, note that a video can not capture how truly awesome it was.   

 

 

 

 

 

Big White Envelopes

There I was sitting on my couch studying for my final, just minding my own business, when I heard the sound of keys jangling and of one of the apartment mailboxes opening. It makes a distinct clanking noise that I can hear even through closed doors. I'm use to it; I usually don't pay much attention to it, but today there was something different about the situation. When the mailbox opened, it was followed immediately by a loud squeal, a slam of the mailbox, and the sound of footsteps running back to their apartment. Then followed a lot of excited chatter between roommates. I couldn't hear exactly what they were saying except for: "...Yeah, my apartment tonight at 8:00." Oh yeah, that would be another mission call. I happened to be sitting outside last week and witnessed another girl from my relief society pull out that big white envelope from the mailbox too. I love how this is becoming the norm. Yep, it's mission call Wednesday/Thursday.

Though sisters getting their mission calls is becoming a regular thing, that doesn't make each one any less special. It was funny to me how while that girl yesterday was having the most exciting, nerve-shattering, life-changing day of her life, there I was bored out of my mind studying for a stupid test. It wasn't a very exciting day for me yesterday...

Oh well, I've already had my scream at the mailbox moment. :)
(4 years ago this week!)

Running through Fire

Yesterday I did something I never thought I would do. Blake, Lorraine, and I ran through FIRE! It was scary at first - the more you think about it the worse it gets because you start to imagine all the things that could possibly go wrong - well just one thing really: burning yourself. But, then we just sucked it up and ran through the hot coals and flames and bam! Done. It actually felt really liberating - I felt like Pam from The Office. You Office fans know what I am talking about. 

Why did we run through fire? Peer pressure, why else? We were at a St. Patrick's Day party with the biggest bonfire ever (like 15 feet across at least) and Trent dared us to do it. He filmed it too, though its pretty dark. I was the last one to go through.

It makes me wish I had a bucket list so that I could cross this off of it.

 

 

Nerf Wars

You know what's awesome? Nerf guns. Nerf guns and shooting little toy soldiers in the park. I have discovered that I am the best at shooting when I am down to the last bullet. Only then do I nail my target right in between the eyes. :) The prospect of "do or die" seems to improve my performance at least when playing pretend. I guess that's a good thing... but I would prefer to be a good shot all the time. Ha.

I love that Spring is (for the most part) here and that it is now warm enough to play outside!

God's finger

When you pray for something (righteously), you get it. I had two different experiences with this this week:

The first happened on Sunday. I was worried I wasn't doing enough with my calling during the week - serving my girls and what not, so I prayed to be better. The next day I got a phone call giving me a chance to serve. The timing was inconvenient and I am sad to say that at first I was slightly annoyed, until I realized this was exactly what I had wanted. I am grateful for service opportunities - they make me more Christ-like, and being more Christ-like makes me happy.

My second cool experience with prayer happened this morning. Lately, I have had to fight my car a little bit to shift my car out of park when I first turn on my car. Usually you have to be pushing down the break for it to allow you to change gears, right? Well, recently this has not always been enough for my car to let me back out of my parking spot. Usually after pumping my break a few times and/or doing some expert jiggling or sometimes even turning off my car and restarting it, I am able to overcome this little inconvenience. This morning though, none of these options were working, and I was going to be late for work. I was frustrated, and like usually happens in these types of situations, the hasty thought passed through my mind "God, I could use some help right now!" But nothing changed about my situation. I finally realized that a half angry thought really didn't count as a prayer. I needed to actually stop and ask Him for help. So I stopped fighting my car, took a breath, actually closed my eyes and folded my arms and really prayed that God would fix my car so that I could go to work. As soon as I said the words "Please help me put my car in reverse" I heard a click and I knew that God had loosened the gears. I immediately reached out and without any resistance, was able to put my car into reverse. I said thanks and rushed off to work, but the whole way there I thought about how awesome it is that we are sometimes able to see such obvious answers to prayers. The coolest thing of all though, is that God answers our prayers even more often than that! Its just that His answers are not always that immediate or obvious. God is waiting to bless us, we just need to ask! Anyways, I felt like an angel mechanic was actually there in my car with me this morning. Or like God's finger came down and flicked my shifter loose. Whichever one, it was awesome.   

You Scamp!

I don't know how it started, but lately (especially on Sunday nights) our apartment has become a sort of a hang out place. With the lure of cookies and good company our livingroom quickly fills up with people. This last Sunday, a lot of our conversation was just retelling funny stories from our past semesters together. A lot of them were slightly crazy or even embarrassing at the time, but now they are hilarious! Things like fake engagements, Chick-fil-a, night games, and failed dates. It made me realize once again just how much fun I am having in this ward. I am grateful for all the people I have gotten to know here and I am so grateful for our crazy adventures! 

Left-overs

I have discovered that left over cheesecake factory is the best way to get through a long study day. Also, I love that I can just sit and talk with my friends and roommates all night long and that is entertainment enough. No fake laughing here. :)

Cheesecake Factory

Free dessert at the Cheesecake Factory and all because they had to switch where they had originally seated us. It really wasn't a problem, but I wasn't about to turn down free cheesecake! I got THIS:

Oh yeah, that's peanut butter in there. It took me 3 days to finish. :)

 

 

To Do lists

I love those days where you just feel really productive. Today was my day off from subbing this week, so I was able to sleep in a little bit and then I was free to get done all the random errands I needed to accomplish. Also, I finally took one of my midterms! It wasn't fun but it wasn't horrible either. It was my first test in about a year and now I only have 3 tests left before I am done forever. Woot!

Taco Time

Today I came home from work feeling extremely hungry which just made it all the more great that when I walked into my apartment this afternoon the first thing Becca said to me was: "Want a taco?" Heck yes I want a taco, Becca. You beautiful vision of domestic diety, you! Thank you for working your magic in the kitchen and then sharing it with a starving soul. You are the best! :) 

I'm not that kind of a Cougar.

I got to sub at the school I did my student teaching at again today. I like going back to my eighth graders because they know me and get excited to see me again. High fives all around. It also helps that I know the kids' names so I can call them out when I need to and keep the class under control. It just makes subbing easier. Anyways, I went to that sub job feeling positive that it would be a good day. I wasn't expecting the extra gem that happened at the end of the day while walking to the front office to check out. While passing a group of seventh graders one of them saw me, said "whoa," and asked for my number. HA! I just blinked at him a few times and kept walking, but on the inside I was laughing. Its nice to know I've still got it in the middle school scene.

Through small things great things are brought to pass

Yesterday, church was absolutely amazing. It was fast and testimony meeting so already it was bound to be good, but that one was particularly special for me. I love being the relief society president - it's a lot of responsibility and sometimes it is a little overwhelming, but it allows me to get to know the sisters in my ward. I have the opportunity of seeing all the little things that the people in my ward are doing to improve themselves and to help each other. They may seem like small acts, but because I know their background story I know that it really means so much more. Sometimes I feel a little creepy how I keep tabs on everyone's doings, but really its just because I care and want to be able to help if I can. For the most part, though, I feel like I haven't been able to do anything. I just watch everyone else do it for me. Anyways, yesterday's fast and testimony meeting basically represented all the little things that have added up to make big differences in various individual's lives. Girl's who were struggling with various trials are now coming out on top which is awesome! I almost did a fist pump at one point during the meeting. I am just so happy for them and so grateful that God has blessed me with the chance to witness all the good works that are happening around me.

BYU Tour

This weekend, my 16 year old cousin Kaitlin came and hung out with me. I invited her to come see for herself what college life is like (BYU style that is - it's different). I hope she had fun and I hope I didn't scare her off with my messy apartment and lack of food. I didn't have time to clean or go grocery shopping before she got here, but I figured that made the experience all the more authentic. We walked around BYU and we sat outside in the sunshine. It was so nice!

I don't know how well I really was able to show Kaitlin how great BYU is. Walking around and looking at empty buildings and classrooms doesn't show what BYU is all about. Sure campus is nice, but what's great about BYU is it's atmosphere: the people and the standards and the gospel... I am so grateful I am a student at Brigham Young University and I am really going to miss it when I graduate next month. Oh my gosh. I graduate next month!