Four Page Papers and Righteous People

I've gotten very good at four page papers.

I'm taking two online classes right now. They started about a month ago and I've already written about twenty pages worth of material in each.

Yeah......my professor really likes four page papers and so far I've written about ten of them. Ha ha.

One of the classes I have to write (I'm half way done) a five page research paper and the other one I have to write a sixteen page research paper.

Basically by the time I'm done with these two classes (in three weeks) I'll have written close to a hundred pages of shear awesomeness, ha ha.

The five page research paper is on pornography and how it affects marriage. The assignment was to write two pages supporting the issue and then two pages against it. Writing two pages supporting pornography was probably the hardest writing I've ever done/I lied the whole time/I felt very ridiculous, ha ha. Ugh. Such an awful thing.

My sixteen page paper is on bulimia and how it affects the individual person, their microsystem, mesosystem, exosystem, and macrosystem etc.

Translation? Basically there was a psychologist named Bronfrenbrenner (seriously) who made up an ecological model on a person's life. All of those "systems" are different parts of the person's life.......their personal self, their family, work, friends, school, community, culture, society as a greater whole, and ulitmately the world. If you want to understand what I'm talking about just google it, ha ha.

Anyways, I have to write sixteen pages for that and I'm actually pretty excited about it! Go figure.

This summer has been strrrrange. It doesn't feel like summer to me really. Probably because I'm still in school, but probably also because I'm doing a different job from what I've done the past four years.

Most days I'm just really really excited for the end of August to be here. Why did school have to get really fun and interesting right when I'm supposed to be graduating? Geez.....I wish I would have loved it this much my first three years.

I think another reason I'm excited for August is because I just want to get back to working with kids. Currently I work with...........nobody..........and although I'm fairly decent at entertaining myself over nothing I just want to teach kids and play with kids.

I'm not really sure where I'm going to be working during the school year, but I have a bunch of options I'm hoping will work out.

The main thing I wanted to write about is how incredibly awesome I think the Church is. I've been thinking about it a lot lately because in my two classes I'm learning all about people, relationships, and how to live life. I'm taking a family relations class and an adolescent development class.

It just proves that the gospel is true when you're listening to completely secular lectures from a professor and he says time after time that research shows we should be living our lives this way....or avoiding things another way.....or that if we do this our marriage will be a success.....if we do that our life will reach full potential or full happiness......

Every time he talks about these things it's always 100% lined up with what the Church teaches. I watched a lecture yesterday on marriage and cohabitation and there were some pretty startling statistics on how cohabitation isn't a healthy lifestyle. I might be wrong, but I think one statistic said that 80% of people who cohabitate won't end up working/even if they get married they will get divorced later on.

Then there are just so many other things that pertain to the Word of Wisdom, dating, child rearing, and marriage that line up exactly with what the Church teaches.

I'm very grateful that God created such a beautiful lifestyle for us to follow. I know it has brought me lots of happiness and the times when I've been least happy have been when I'm not following those guidelines.

Another awesome thing I've been thinking about is how generous church members are when it comes to volunteering their time.

We are going to our family cabin this weekend and I kept not wanting to call anbody to do my calling for me this Sunday. I HATE asking for help......I just feel really bad for some reason. I've never understood the kind of people that when they are told "If you need anything let us know" and they immediately start saying "Well, we really need this done and this and this and this...."

I'll just never be one of those people.

Tangent: When Jeff was in the hospital in January EVERYONE and their dog was like "Let us know if you need anything!"..............by about the third person (out of fifty) that said that I wanted to spout back......"k, I'm really never going to tell you what I need, but thanks anyways?" Ha ha.....

Anyways, Jeff finally convinced me that people like helping and it's not a big deal at all..... so I called the stake primary president who is in our ward (intimidating? Yeah.) and....she didn't answer. But when she returned my call she was SO nice and super enthusiastic about subbing for me.

I just love faithful latter-day saints who are so willing to help, Some people just have a talent of making you feel good that you're asking for help.

So to sum this up.....the Church is true. So very true.

"The Savior taught His disciples, 'For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: but whosoever will lose his life for my sake, the same shall save it', I believe the Savior is telling us that unless we lose ourselves in service to others, there is little purpose to our own lives. Those who live only for themselves eventually shrivel up and figuratively lose their lives, while those who lose themselves in service to others grow and flourish—and in effect save their lives."
-President Thomas S. Monson

Mowing Children

Oooooh my goodness I've been wanting to post so bad. AHHH! I've had so much homework it's been unreal. I just finished my last quiz for the week though so I'm allowing myself to blog.

I am seriously a very blessed individual. I don't know what I did to deserve Jeff's love, but it's pretty great! I've been having a......I wouldn't say "hard".....but lame (is lame an ok word?) couple of weeks?

One of the defining reasons being that I'm still sick. I don't think I'll ever not not be sick again! It's made me really wish I was pregnant cause then I could at least not be bitter about being sick constantly, ha ha. Oy....

At first (3 months ago) I thought it was just the fact that I work with little kids....and that MIGHT still be the reason, but I've just had a strange cold/drainage of power for quite awhile. I've gotten to the point where I'm just living with it and don't notice it as I'm runnin through life!

I came home today to the house completely clean, flowers on my bed, and a note from my husband when I got home from work. He knows I've been having a "lame" time lately and everything that he did just reduced me to tears.

I felt kinda strange crying over flowers and a clean house, but sometimes it really is the little things that put you over the edge.

My husband is the best. He always listens to me when I think somebody is ridiculous or when I'm complaining about being weak and sick. He is far too cool. I'm so happy he's in my life.

Another reason my life has been kind of....lame....is.....

I'm working two jobs right now and it's just.....blissful. *sarcasm*

I'm going to be super glad when June rolls around. C'mon June! The main reason being schoooooool will be out....for the summer! (read to the tune of the song)

Oh my goodness gracious.........I LOVE children, holy cow I love children! The past month though I've felt like.....the Hulk....or Jekyll and Hyde....because....oh my......when I'm on my mower I HATE children. (ha ha ha........I'm laughing to myself....all alone in my apartment........I must be going insane)

Why? Why do little boys have to run out ten feet in front of me and wave their arms crazy like almost in a: "Please, just kill me....I want you to ram your mower into me, yes....I'm only 7 years old, but I feel as though life isn't worth living anymore."

Why children? Why?

When I have children I am going to sit them down and lecture them on people that are ok to bug and those who aren't. My dear future children, lawn mowers are not ok to chase. They are not ok to get remotely close to. It's just not ok, guys.

Another interesting thing to note about my mower job is the way people react to me. I'm on a huge  mower....like.....tractor size.....so lots of people give me a very odd looking deer in the headlights look as I pass by.

I often wave at little children (little children playing near their homes or at a park.....the children at the schools I'm mowing only get angry waves) and they look completely shocked and start yelling for their mom in an excited fashion.  However, by the time their mom comes outside I'm long gone.

The most interesting response to my existence is old men. Ha! Without fail I'll past an old couple walking together and the woman will wave and smile almost in a "you go girl" fashion, but the man will almost always give a degrading smirk or shake of the head.

I'm taking a Family Relations class this summer and it's kind of cool looking at how the views of gender have changed over time. Back when the grandma and grandpas of today were young a woman would have never had the job I have right now.

In other news, my pre-school job ends on Tuesday. Tuesday is graduation actually.....so technically the last day I'll see the majority of the kids will be Monday. I'm honestly just blocking out the fact that I'm never going to see these kids again. Cause everytime I even think about it for a minute I start crying. ..........like now.

Sigh.

It's just hard saying goodbye to little people that you've seen grow so much over a year. The rapid development of little kids is amazing! It's just unreal to me that I'm going to have to just...say goodbye to ten little kids who don't understand that they are never going to see me again. I can't say anything to them because they just don't get it.

I need to not get so attached.

It's defintely been a very beneficial job. I've had to deal with awful behaviors, manage all kinds of bodily fluids, give nuturing and socialization to socially behind kids, help with motor skills that we take for granted, and best of all played like crazy and at times had five kids chasing me or hanging on me for attention. I'm going to miss it. It really was a great job to prepare me for motherhood, I think.

I know, I know......nothing can prepare me for motherhood other than actually experiencing it.

I feel like I see people post flowery pictures with sayings like that on Facebook multiple times a day, ha ha. :)

Weeeeell, I have two tests this weekend that I best be off to studying for.