Overwhelming Gratitude

I'm so sorry I've neglected you, blog.

My apologies can't be more sincere! I really have had writing on my mind so much the past couple of weeks, but I haven't been able to because I've been so busy!

My friends at work always talk about the books they are reading and it kind of boggles my mind because I always want to ask..."How do you EVER have time to read a book?"

I work 8 hours a day and then my nights are either the temple or institute, which you WOULDN'T think would take that much time....but....

Ha ha!

It does! It seriously takes up all my time! But, I love it a lot. I wouldn't rather live any other way right now.

Life is going to get a lot less busy at least for a month, because we had our Arise performances this weekend. As part of the institute choir we had been practicing all summer to be in the Arise Youth Spectacular, which might I say....really was spectacular!

It was 30 stakes in Ogden/Weber County that had all of their youth perform musical numbers and such. The institute choir sang in between the different programs so they could have time to set up on the field. It was really fun! It actually made me cry quite a bit. It really showed me how important the youth of the church is. All of my emotions went back to Sister Dalton as she's been so diligent in telling the young women the past couple of years to "return to virtue" and to smile and better their lives.

There is so much hope for the future of the church when you go to programs like that. Yeah, there are tons of kids that will sit there and goof off and not listen, but it's comforting to know that they are at least in the right place, which will eventually get them in other right places like on missions and such.

I thought a lot about my relationship with God during those performances. At the beginning the kids did this representation on the field of us when we were in the premortal existence and how we were on Christ's side and we knew we had to come down here to be tested. All of the kids were dressed in white robes and then they had a bunch of banners that they ran through to symbolize the veil and the kids came out on the other side in colorful shirts and came to earth.

It made me so emotional just to know that I did that. I left my Heavenly Father because I knew I needed to come here and be tested. I knew that I needed to come learn and grow and find people to take back to Him with me when our journey is over.

It made me think a TON about my future family. Which always makes me emotional....

I can't wait to be a wife and a mother and to have an eternal family! I was talking about families the other day with my good friend and for some reason I was telling him about how my parents are divorced and how growing up we never did family home evening or read scriptures together. It was neat talking to him about how important those things are! Seriously, they are important! I'm grateful for friends like him that want those same things for their future families like me.

There is so much hope for the future, that's one thing I keep learning!

So the Arise thing has been fun, and now that it's over we kind of have a break from choir for a month so...maybe I can read books like the rest of the world now! Ha ha ha!

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A couple of weeks ago I went to Colorado with my family!

I love spending time with them! We seriously had a list of about 50 quotes of funny stuff that we said on that trip. And....no we aren't prideful for writing down why we're so hilarious. Pride is the least of our worries. :) Ha ha.

We went to Mesa Verde National Park which is one of my favorites. It's a bunch of ancient Native American dwellings in the side of cliffs! Ha ha! It's so so neat! I love old stuff. Just thinking about the people that lived there and what their lives were like and such. Love.

Native Americans had to be THE buffest people in the entire history of the world. No joke. Those dang cliffs they lived in! Goodness!

We then went to Ouray, Colorado which was way fun! It's the little Switzerland of America and is positively gorgeous! I really want to go there in the middle of the winter....even though I think it would be really dangerous and slippery on the drive....the mountains are riveting! Riveting, I say!

It's just a fun little town that's actually like...even smaller than Jackson or other little tourist-y towns like that. They only have one school that all of the grades go to, and it's a really small building! Ha ha.

We hiked up to a little waterfall and sat by it for awhile. It wasn't huge by any means, but it was beautiful! Just the mountains that were surrounding it made it breathtaking to me. Stuff that like is reaffirming proof to me that God lives. I love nature!

Finally for that trip we were able to go to the Monticello Temple!!

There are 15 temples in Utah. 13 that are actually dedicated and running and out of those 13 I've now been to 11 of them! Ha ha. Monticello is the farthest from where I live so I'm really grateful that I got to go.

It's such a neat thing everytime I go to a new temple. It's a great reaffirming thing to know that all the work that goes on in every temple is the same. I know that sounds like a no brainer, but to me that's a miracle.

I think about other religions...be it Christian or Islam or whatever, around the world and how many religions call themselves the same name, but have so many different principles about them.

Whether it be because of their pastors or preachers that branch off and change things about the religion...most other religions under the same name teach different things from congregation to congregation. I'm grateful to be part of a church that is the same all over the world. I love that! :)

So going to the Monticello Temple was neat! It's a really small temple and they only have workers down in the baptistry once a day (ish) so I'm glad we got to go when they had the workers down there. It's been a goal of mine to go there for quite some time....so I'm very very glad we did!

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Last weekend I went to Rexburg with one of my dear best friends, Ashlee. I love her! She's such an amazing example to me. She always listens to me. Pretty much the whole drive up there she let me talk her ear off about this boy that I'm liking. Talk talk talk. "He's so sweet...talk talk talk....blah blah blah..." That's exactly what I sounded like too. Ha ha ha!

Love her.

Pretty much the whole weekend consisted of doing fun things with our friends Cristel and Kristina who go to school up there! We got a tour of BYU-I, went to the Rexburg Temple, ate at all of the "famous" food places up there, went to ward activites, went to the famous devotional thing they have every Tuesday, etc. etc. All in all it was a very spiritual weekend! I loved it! BYU-I has a great spirit about it and I would love to go to school there if I had the chance.

However, being up there just gave me the reassurance that I needed to be at Weber. Over a year ago (that's weird to think), when I was crying leaving Cedar, but knowing that there was SOME reason I was supposed to be at Weber, I told myself I needed to follow the overwhelming spirit that I felt and stick with Weber. Yeah, I live at home....but if the spirit keeps telling me over and over that that's where I need to be...why would I deny that? :)

There must be some reason, I'm here.

Also, as we were up there in Rexburg the thought came to me that really if we are dedicated to being members of the church and living the commandments to the fullest, it really doesn't matter if we go to a church school or not. I can feel the spirit at Weber just as much as BYU-I if I want to. Especially with being involved at the institute, the spirit can be felt a lot up at Weber!

Speaking of Weber......heck. I'm going to have a busy semester! I'm really only taking 13 credits, but it just seems like between that and work and all the extra stuff I'm involved in, it's going to be busy.

I decided not to major in...harping or whatever. In music. Ha ha ha.

I went and talked to the music guy personage and he said that doing a music major would require FOUR extra years of school instead of just two. You know how doing a program like the education program is just two years after you're done with an associates? The whole music thing is four years. Crazy, eh? So I just decided that I'm going to start taking harp lessons again and press on with the whole education dealio. :) Hopefully I'll become marvelous at the harp that way!

Well, pretty much to wrap up this post, I just have a couple more things to say. I'm so grateful for the Gospel in my life. It's a constant reminder to me of why I have so many blessings and why there is so much potential for me and for the world around me everyday. Jesus Christ really is my Savior and I know that He loves me.

I know that, because He's given me the priesthood to bless me and my family. He's given me temples where I can feel His presence and the presence of my Father in Heaven every time I go.

I'm grateful for the opportunity to be humble. I know that sounds a little odd, but seriously. I've been trying to be more humble lately. It's hard!

Especially with my family and friends that kind of know that I've always loved telling stories about everything that goes on in my life and how my family has always known that I love being the center of attention and the princess.

I've been TRYING to be more humble about the temple. So many people keep telling me that they read my blog, which is great, but at the same time I'm like.....ugh.

I don't want people to read this thinking that I think I'm all that all the time cause I talk about the temple and my testimony. Some of the most humble people I know don't obnoxiously post their feelings all the time, so that's why I feel very....un-humble. :)

Anyways, I really should go to bed! I feel really grateful today. I wish everyday could be this good! :)