Back to blogging!

Hello again world! ( or the few who may read this blog because I stopped updating it forever ago!) I have had the desire to get back into blogging the past few weeks and so I decided to give this another go! There have been so many experiences, lessons learned, and funny moments recently that I keep thinking to myself, “That would make a fun blog post!” So I’ve decided to get my creative juices flowing again and continue blogging!
It is kind of overwhelming though to recap everything that has happened over the past several months. Pretty much since the mission I guess! I’ll just sum it all up that it has been a big growing and learning experience since I got home from the mission almost a year ago! Where has the time gone!?!?!?! I’ll try to answer some questions some of you may have!
Where do I live? Pocatello, ID
Why do I live there? Kind of a long story… I feel like I was led to come here, so here I am!
Who do you live with? A sister from my mission!! So fun to be able to tell mission stories and to know the people the other person is talking about! It has been such a blessing living with her! I just love her!
Are you working? Why yes I am! I was blessed with a job at a school here in Pocatello! Lincoln Early Childhood Center is where I spend my working days! It has been a wonderful experience so far! I work with 3 year old children who have special needs. I have learned SOOOO much it is incredible! I also have learned that I have a strong desire to continue my education so that someday I can have a classroom of my own and be a teacher! I have fallen in love with teaching! I guess the mission helped me realize just how much I love it! So that is my future plan, to pursue a teaching certificate! I am so excited!
I also have a very small part time job cleaning the Pocatello High School Seminary Building. I do have to say that one of my favorite things about this job is that I bring my IPOD with all the conference talks on it and I get to re-listen to conference over and over again! I have loved it!
What are you currently reading? THE HUNGER GAMES SERIES!!! Oh my goodness! I have been a tad bit obsessed recently with that series! I read the second one in a matter of few days and have been lacking on the sleep department because of that!
Do you still exercise? Why yes I do! I do have to say that exercising is for sure one of my passions in life! I love learning how to be healthy and trying new things! I am a big fan of healthy living! My most recent fitness goal is to run a half marathon in Blackfoot with my sisters!!
I’m not really sure what else people might be wondering about me actaully, so if you do have any questions let me know! But I am happy and healthy and learning much! I hope for the same for you!

For your listening pleasure… Taylor Swift’s “Safe and Sound” from the Hunger Games!

Home for the Holidays!!!!

Not much time to write a long post to make up for my lack of blogging efforts the last several months…
But this is a big deal to me, for the last two Christmas I have been in Florida serving as a missionary, but now I’m home with my family 🙂 This brings me happiness

Insipring Sunday

Today was a much needed spiritual recharger for me. I loved testimony meeting and all the testimonies that were shared, Sunday school was all about marriage and dating (which has seemed to be the main theme this summer it feels like at church) and Relief Society was great as well! The lesson today was about the Temple in Relief Society and I loved it! I was reminded of a time on my mission when I attended the Temple and had a special experience there. At the time I was struggling because I just felt inadequate that I had a strong enough testimony to do all that I was called to do. I just needed to know that Heavenly Father really was aware of my concerns and struggles. That day in the Temple I got that experience! I remember that there was a prayer that was given and in the prayer the man said “Please bless the testimonies of the missionaries that they will be strong enough to teach their investigators.” That’s what I needed to hear!! It was such a wonderful experience and I was so grateful that I was able to be reminded of that today.
Another wonderful experience that I was able to have today was after church in a Temple Recommend interview with my Stake President. We were talking about scripture study and the importance of it and how much it helps us. He said something that I keep thinking about since then that I feel like I really needed to hear. He said “When I read the scriptures they are true, but when I don’t read them or when I am laxed in my scripture study that is when I begin to doubt.” I loved that! I think that can apply to any aspect of the Gospel and to any commandment that we have been asked to live. When we live it we know that it is true, but when we are relaxed in our efforts that is when the doubts begin to occur. I loved it so much that I just wanted to share it all with you!
I hope that you all had a wonderful Sabbath Day!

Our Refined Heavenly Home

Remember my post about BYU speeches online? Remember how much I love it?  Well I have been listening to a talk the past few mornings and I couldn’t help but share it with you all! I know you will love it! This blog is all about change and improvement, and this talk fits exactly into that theme! I don’t want to spoil too much of it, but I just have to tell you some highlights from this talk!
“The nearer we get to God, the more easily our spirits are touched by refined and beautiful things.”
” I don’t know whether our heavenly home has a television set or a DVD machine, but in my mind’s imagery it surely has a grand piano and a magnificent library.”
“Dear daughters of God, you are the crown jewels of all His creations. There has never been a sunset, symphony, or work of art as lovely as you. May you catch the vision that you are destines to be a refined and regal queen, honored by an uncountable posterity, worlds without end.”
“…you Father in Heaven, has sent you away from His presence to have experiences you would not have had in your Heavenly Home- all in preparation for the conferral of a kingdom. He doesn’t want you to loose your vision. You are children of an exalted being. You are foreordained to preside as kings and queens. You will live in a home and environment of infinite refinement and beauty, as reflected in the language, literature, art, music and order of heaven.”
Sounds amazing huh!? Well I know you must all be dieing to read it so I have attached the link at the bottom of this post for you all to read, love, learn and apply!

Your Refined Heavenly Home

Hello world!!

Welcome to my new blog!! It is still a major work in progress!! So please have patience with me as I get this things off the ground and running!!

Goal setting!

Do you ever feel this way about goal setting? I know that I do at times! There are so many different systems in setting goals and I am not endorsing a certain way here because I am still trying to figure out a way that works best for me!

Last night my mom and I were talking about goal setting and she gave me a new way to set goals! She suggested that I write down all the roles that I have in life right now. For example:
*I am a daughter of God
*I am a daughter
*I am a sister
*I am a girlfriend
*I am a friend
*I am a Mormon

Get the picture so far?

So she suggested setting a goal that will help me fulfill the different roles that I currently have right now. For example I’ll share some goals that I set last night with some of the different roles I have right now.
*I am a friend: Facebook message someone from each place that I have lived
*I am a Mormon: Create a Mormon.org profile
*I am a Future Student (Hopefully!!): Start studying for the GRE

Does that make sense so far?

It was really interesting to think about all of the different roles that I have in life and think of ways that I can fulfill those roles! So far this has been a very effective way for me to set goals and I would encourage anyone else who might want to try this out as well!!

Happy goal setting!!!

Finding my niche in the blogging world…

I want to be a famous blogger someday…. there I admitted it! I do, that is a goal of mine! I am inspired by so many wonderful and uplifting blogs I read! I hope to some day be able to do the same thing for other people!

Michelle and I love to have blog talk when we visit on the phone! I think that the past several times that we have talked we discuss our blogs and what we can do to make them cooler or more inspiring! She is a huge source of inspiration to me! Something in particular that we have talked about is finding a theme for your blog. If you have read Michelle’s blog (if not you should!) you can see that her theme is all about being a mom and health and fitness! It is very inspiring! So I have been thinking, “what is my niche going to be?” I don’t really feel like I have that cool of a life right now, I’m not married, I don’t have children so I can’t really offer any one advice on those topics! I don’t have a special skill or talent or a cool story to tell the world. BUT I do believe in change and improvement! So i’ve decided that is my niche!! All about improving ourselves through change!

I think that it can be a nasty tendency of women to compare themselves to other women. There is always some one we think is better than us in one way or another and it makes us feel bad doesn’t it? At least I know I am guilty of that! How sad is that! I know that we are all special in different ways and that we all have something special we have been sent here on Earth to accomplish! When we have these comparing thoughts it makes us less effective to accomplish what we have been sent to do here because we feel like we are nothing! I know I feel that way often!

Even though we should all feel comfortable with who we are, I do believe that we can all change and improve ourselves into a better version of who we are! And that is what I want this blog to be all about now! I am always looking for ways to improve different aspects of life and I want to share them with you on this blog! I would also love if you would share things that you do to improve our life or make changes, ex: do you set goals?

I hope that you will find inspiration from the things that are here on this blog! I love you all!

I want to be more brave, but really!?

Okay so I do have a picture that goes along with this post but I’m not sure if you want me to include it. You will understand as you keep reading!!

So this weekend I am home completely by myself, this is the first time in about 2 years, so I am truthfully a tad bit scared! But I am sure all will be well! 🙂 So since I am home by myself I am responsible for our dogs and cats for the weekend! I am grateful to have them here when I am by myself actaully! I feel more protected that way!

So to explain more about my post title, “I want to be more brave.” It’s a goal of mine! If you know e at all you could attest that I am kind of a wuss! I don’t really live on the edge and I am not always looking for the next big thing or jumping out of planes. I like the ground and I like being safe 🙂 BUT I do feel that I need to overcome some of my fears! So recently I have been trying to do that! For example: Last night I went and learned how to shoot a pistol with a cute boy 🙂 The whole time honestly I was way scared! Guns are dangerous and they scare me! BUT I did it! So many Bella sensed that I had accomplished something hard and decided to test just how brave I was this morning! Let me explain…

Yesterday when I left Powell to go do some work I put the dog’s food dishes outside so the dogs would have something to eat since I was going to be gone for hours! So this morning I had to go out side to get their food dishes and let the dogs inside after their morning potty break! When I went outside I noticed that there was this this little mouse head on the deck…. gross right!!?? I didn’t think anything of it and was just grateful that it was outside and I was going to be inside! 🙂 UNTIL I turn around and look at Bella who is INSIDE with a part of that mouse in her mouth!!!!! So instead of running outside with it she DROPPED THE MOUSE ON THE CARPET!!!!! So there I was with this half eaten mouse on the carpet trying to some how communicate to a dog that I want her to pick it up and take it back outside! Bella of course didn’t understand what I was saying and was more focused on the fact that I had her food dish in my hand and was going to be feeding her soon! So I know this will sound girly but I honestly didn’t know what to do to get it outside!!! I couldn’t even imagine picking it up or going that close to it! But I guess Heavenly Father knew that it would not be okay for me to leave it on the carpet until some one brave came over to visit me and gave me the courage and idea to pick it up with a spatula! 🙂 Amazing idea right!? 🙂 So I did just that!! An bravely picked up the mouse and threw it outside! Sadly it landed in this little pool that we have for the dogs to cool off in during the summer, and I felt bad just leaving it there in the water! So I thought the nice thing to do would be to take it out! So I did that! (with the spatula!) and then Bella decided it would be a good idea to pick it up! (great timing Bella!) and so I had to race back inside before Bella did with it in her mouth! Luckily that all went well and she just left it outside when she saw me book it to the door!

So I guess you could say it has been an eventful morning already and it is only 9:08 am!!

Hard Core Workout!!

So this morning I had one of most intense work outs that I have had in a long time and I love it! I feel like my work outs have been so blah the past little bit, so I am excited to have a change of pace! On Monday my mom started working out with a personal trainer and she asked if I wanted to come along and I said of course! So this was day 2 for my mom and day 1 for me! I am excited to become stronger and more athletic and in shape from this experience!! I wanted to share this workout with you in case any of you are looking for one intense workout! This is meant as a partner workout, so me and my mom did it together. I also feel that I should leave a disclaimer here like all workout videos or programs give. It is important to get a clearance from your doctor before starting any new program and if you feel faint dizzy or short of breath stop! (or something along those lines!) So be careful alright! 🙂

So this was today’s work out!

Together we had to accomplish these workouts.

600 squats

500 sit ups

400 push ups

300 jumping pull ups

Sounds fun huh!? Its only 12:12 in the afternoon and we worked out this morning at 7 and I am ALREADY feeling it! I think I am going to be way sore tomorrow! But I just love it! I am excited to reach new fitness goals!

Grad School!?!?!?!?!

So if we are Facebook friends you probably saw my status update that I might be going to grad school this Fall!!!! Can I tell you how excited I am about this!? Well I am excited! I have had a strong desire to go back to school for a long time now, and I just wasn’t finding a program that I liked at schools that I wanted to go to. UNTIL I happened to stumble across Idaho State University’s graduate page and found that they offer an Organizational Communications Graduate Degree!!! Ya!!!!! I graduated with just a general Communication degree but this is the emphasis that I REALLY wanted to do in School! So when I saw that I felt like it was meant to be! Now you might be wondering, what can you do with that, well click on this website to find out more!
So I have been in close contact with the school and have been e-mailing them back and forth. I found out yesterday that the deadline was July 1st for an application to the school, BUT they had talked to the department chair and were willing to make an exception for me!! So I quickly applied to school yesterday online and had my transcripts overnighted to the school so they could hurry and get my application through! I am still not 100% sure that I will be going since I still have not been accepted, BUT it does seem VERY promising and I am so excited! I just keep praying that if it is suppose to be that It will all work out and that I will financially be able to afford it and find a place to live quickly and a job over there in Pocatello! So if it is meant to be it will be! But if you could just keep me in your prayers that would be MUCH appreciated!!!