Brings Tears To My Eyes.

Book List.

PS: i love this website.

I have my secular book list created for my 24th year of life.

If you have read these, let me know what you thought. Or, if you have any to recommend, please tell me!

The Fountainhead- Ayn Rand (i tried Atlas...)

The Road- Cormac McCarthy (yes Jesse, I am going to read it!)

The Alchemist- Paulo Coelho

The Memory Keeper's Daughter - Kim Edwards (I will need tissues)

A Time To Kill- John Grisham (I love this movie!)

The Hobbit - J. R. R. Tolekin (always a classic)

Eragon- Christopher Paolini (don't judge me, I have heard that it is an amazing fantasy choice)

The Pilot's Wife- Anita Shreve (will also need tissues)

I Just Can't Get Enough.

And here is why:

· Keeps your brain healthy
· Regulates body temperature
· Flushes out toxins
· Decreases risk of heart attack
· Raises your metabolism
· Promotes fresh and healthy skin
· Helps you lose weight
· Combats common ailments (headache, fatigue, back pain, etc)
· Enhances your mood
Other facts:
· Muscle consists of 75% water
· Brain consists of 90% of water
· Bone consists of 22% of water
· Blood consists of 83% water
· Transports nutrients and oxygen into cells
· Moisturizes the air in lungs
· Protect our vital organ
· Helps our organs to absorb nutrients better
· Protect and moisturizes our joints

Wes' first love notes to me were always addressed to "H2O Girl". Not that I am always seen with a bottle of water...

It tastes better than soda, has less (NONE!) calories than juice, is free, doesn't stain when spilled, makes your pee clear...I mean really, does it get any better! Oh yes... if you add some lemons :)

Modesty Is The Best Policy.

(just thought that this was clever and cute)

First of all, I highly recommend this article:Modesty: A Timeless Principle For All
Today my co workers and I (All 7 of us are active LDS members) were having a really great discussion about the topic of women and modesty. The first portion of the discussion was just amongst us girls. Later the boys joined in and gave us their input. I was trying to explain to them why modesty is so important to me. Of all things, I think that a lot of people underestimate the consequences of obeying this standard, whether negative or positive; but modesty really is a gateway to so many other more serious decisions that we will make.

I clearly recall a discussion I had in my sophomore of college with a friend that was engaged and going to be sealed in the temple shortly. She was looking through my closet (I have always had an abnormally large amount of clothing...) and she turned and said to me "Oh my gosh! You are SO LUCKY! You have so many clothes and you won't even have to get rid of any of your them when you get married and wear garments!" And I just thought to myself...I guess that is a positive thing, but shouldn't that be how it is anyway? Another lesson always taught by my mama: if you can't wear garments with it, then it probably isn't appropriate anyway. Growing up, if I saw something that was immodest, like a mini skirt, or something revealing, it would never even occur to me to buy it. The thought of going to prom or any dances in a sleeveless dress was not even an option; not because I was not allowed, but because I had been raised and taught to be modest. And I have always been complimented on my clothes and my style. Being modest doesn't mean bust out the burka, or you have to be frumpy, or out of style-- you can still be totally fashionable and flatter your figure! (besides, girls...no one really wants to see your butt crack and your muffin tops, I mean really!)

During my freshman year of college, my friends and I had gone to AZ for Spring Break. We were staying at my grandma's and she had a pool there. In a moment of weakness and thoughtlessness, I borrowed a friend's bikini for a while and started wearing it to the pool. One day all of us girls were in our bikinis and my grandma (who is not LDS) said to me "now, I don't mind what you are wearing, you are all very cute girls, but aren't you all mormon? I did not think that you were supposed to wear such revealing swimming suits". Needless to say, I wanted to cry, die and wear a miu miu the rest of the vacation. I felt awful. Being converts and the only LDS members in their families, my parents had always tried to be very good examples of the church's teachings. And there I was, outwardly breaking one of the simplest of rules that is only there for my benefit.

As I have grown older and especially since I have dated more, I have definitely come to understand and appreciate the value of being modest. As I told my friends today, us women do not have the priesthood. But we have a HUGE responsibility to honor and respect it. Walking around half naked or in seductive outfits is not going to help that cause. It shows a disrespect towards ourselves and men. I wish that girls could understand just how big of a deal it really is. I will admit, things activities such as going to the gym, hiking, out to the beach, no I am not in sleeves and knee length shorts. Personally, I believe that there are particular clothes for such circumstances, but you should still be respectful. One of the most frustrating things is when a good guy will date a girl that always scantily clad. I know that I work hard to maintain a healthy body and sometimes I feel that I am at a disadvantage because I am not willing to reveal myself to attract men and I feel that I cannot compete with those girls. But when I asked Clarke, (the only unmarried one, yet the married men agreed wholeheartedly) what he thought when he saw a girl in a bikini or something immodest, he had the perfect response. He said "my first thought is, wow...that is a lot..of skin... but then I think, 'does this girl have no respect for herself at all?'". Of course boys are going to notice. It is a good thing that they notice a good looking body and are attracted to it. But the fact that her lack of standards outweighs the attraction to her bare physique is what matters. I was so proud of him. :)

I don't know. I am far from perfect and I would not be surprised if someone reads this and thinks that it is a bunch of bologna and me sitting on a high horse. But I just wanted to share my feelings on the subject. Thoughts??

Susan W. Tanner
Everything about your appearance, your speech, and your demeanor should bespeak that you are a literal spirit son or daughter of Heavenly Father. If we truly understand the significance of our bodies in our Father's plan, we will show great honor for our bodies. When you dress and act modestly, others will treat you with respect.

Dallin H. Oaks:
"Young women, please understand that if you dress immodestly, you are magnifying this problem by becoming pornography to some of the men who see you." (speaking on the topic of pornography)

One of the best compliments I have received in years:

"I went to a pool party this weekend, I was going to wear my bikini, but I thought of you and decided to wear my one piece and be modest like you!"

Crafts avec ma souer.

As stated in Hillary's most recent blog post, she and I are doing our best to keep up with our homemaker sister, Emily. She is the guru of all things relating to crafts, sewing, talent, creativity, and girly stuff. Hillary and I are on the other hand... well let's just say our inspiration in the homemade crafts department is sparse and we just have yet to tap into that area of womanliness. But as we should always strive to be better and more well rounded, (besides the Wendy's we chowed down on earlier...) we did decide to try something new... so some cheapo wood stuff, pictures, paints of all sorts, and ribbon later... these were my results.
Framing post cards is one of the best cheapy, cutesy, deco tricks ever!

Alone no more.

Meet Midna and Michael*. Actually... we have yet to meet too. But November 5th, we will be a happy, little, eco friendly family.

*Midna is the little girl on Zelda- I am a dork, sorry- and I just liked the name Michael... but then it got me thinking of George Michael from Arrested Development of course... so Hill and I were thinking of naming them Lucille 1 and Lucille 2...hmm)

(I don't care what anyone says, I will take good care of them, they will be very happy with me and PETA can suck it this time...)

They can be bought here: http://www.brookstone.com/Frog-O-Sphere-frogs.html

please?

I blame my parents.

Those two love birds are my parents.

Now let me just tell you what it is that I blame them for (please realize that I don't really blame them...). They have the perfect marriage. And when I say that it is perfect, I mean it. It is perfectly perfect. It is ridiculous.

One of my best friends is engaged; she and I were having a chat the other night and she was telling me how she is sometimes fearful of marriage because of what she has seen in her parents relationship. Fighting, settling, unhappiness, selfishness, etc. She even said "there were times when it would have been better for them to just be divorced..."

This of course caused me to reflect on my views on marriage (not that living in Provo and being quarter life would ever do that...) and my parents' relationship with each other. I told her quite the opposite. Basically that my parents marriage is so perfect that I am afraid to be married because the standard has been set so high, I can't imagine attaining something so flawless.

Just to give you an idea: I was about 15 years old. We were having family scripture study. Something was said by my dad (bless his heart) and for some reason my mom shut her scriptures got up and walked out of the room. That is THE SINGLE most upset moment that I had EVER seen them share. I went to bed that night convinced that they were going to get divorced. I told my mama about this later and she just laughed at me. But how lucky am I?? That is the absolute worst that I have ever had to see! I cannot recall them ever raising their voices at each other, my dad never slept on the couch, in fact most of the time they always WANTED to be together and to be kissing and all sorts of mushy stuff that was gross to us kids. Haha, whenever they would "make out" to provoke us, we would give the typical "ewww! stop!" and my mom would always say "would you rather your dad beat me?? I prefer this!"

My mom is a lucky lady. She married my dad when he was already a lawyer, settled and pretty much a total dish. He treats her so well. On almost a weekly basis, I could walk into their bathroom and see a note, card, flower or little treat that he had left for my mom, just to tell her that he loved her. If my dad and I ever got in an argument, he was always sensible and forgiving (very forgiving... I was a wretch. Hard to believe, I know). If I got in an argument with my mom- it never failed that the next morning, taped to my door would be a handwritten letter from my dad. It would be firm, in telling me to love and respect my mom, and that I had said things that were wrong. But it was always very loving and had some sort of advice for my own and our family's spiritual welfare.

My mom is a stalwart. Something I love about my mom is that she can make me laugh. Sometimes she is like a little kid when she gets excited. But she tries so hard to be the good, responsible mother, and so when that side of her comes out, it is SO MUCH FUN. I will always be grateful for her for this: whenever I had drama with friends or my sisters I would go to her and complain...she would ALWAYS say "well what could you have done better?". Now, at the time I wanted nothing more than to yell at her and tell her she was awful for not siding with me (ok family, we can admit it... I often did..sorry mama). But she taught my a very valuable lesson of taking responsibility and being mature in difficult circumstances. And I am very grateful for that.

These past few months since my parents have been home, I have grown much closer to them. I love them so much. They are amazing examples to me. While I may never have the marriage that they do, they sure have given me something to strive for. Their love for each other and our family are so deeply rooted in their love of the Lord. I can feel and see this. While perfect may sound impossible, and of course they have gone through huge trials (many presented by yours truly) I think that they are pretty close. Divorce and infidelity are so prevalent but my parents remain my beacon of hope.

Sunday Post IV of Grattitude.

Sunday: General Conference was such a wonderful experience. Already posted about it, but modern day prophets are something that I am definitely grateful for. And a nice GPS in case you manage to get lost going to Temple Square...??!?!?

Monday: Playlist.com. This allows me to have an online playlist that I can use for the first 4 hours of work! Often times I prefer silence, but sometimes it's nice to have the option.

Tuesday: Having your own washer and dryer- amongst the finest amenities student housing can offer. I will never go back to a laundry mat. I refuse!

Wednesday: I love Pamprin. A lot. I feel bad for women in the olden days.

Thursday: Free NIGHTS! I never talk on the phone unless it is to my family, and they can attest that even that is not usually for very prolonged periods of time. But I ended up talking to a friend for over an hour and half and it was really nice to communicate with someone without texting, facebooking, pigeons, emailing, smoke signals... etc.

Friday: My Autobot pumpkin!! Dallan came down from Bountiful and we had an amazing night and let me tell ya... put a ring in pumpkin like that, and I'm yours. Oh and Bonus: I discovered that we have a COAT CLOSET!! Not that I am OBSESSED with jackets or anything...

Saturday: Mama and dadda. Mom's saving furniture for my future married life, dad talks random environmental things with me and supports me with honesty and love. Pretty much, my parents are incredible...

Ohhh!! ... wait, what?

I saw this

and thought, "what a cute lamp"

(it is a skirt).

Then I saw this,

and thought "what a cute skirt"

(it is a lamp).

Oh well... we can't all be fashionistas...

This morning I was eating this

and I thought "hmm I think that this might be expired... it does not taste like strawberry yogurt... I can't tell what that weird taste is."

(ten minutes later, after eating all of it anyway, I realized that it was Strawberry Cheesecake...)

General Conference.

As many of you know, this has been the weekend of LDS General Conference. I remember when I was younger how much I looked forward to all of the yummy snacks, but how much I dreaded having to watch 8 hours of old men speak, especially while my friends were out playing. Today, I still look forward to the food, but I love listening to those old men. The love and spirit that they convey simply through their presence, is unbelievable.

As I was listening to them speak and internalizing their tokens of wisdom and direction, I realized, "how could anyone think that this is a bad religion?!" I completely recognize where there are aspects of what we believe and the acts that we perform that may appear to be peculiar; even being raised in the gospel there are still things that I don't understand. But when you listen to what they are really instructing us to do it all comes down to being a better person, helping others, loving your family, being prepared for life's experiences, being healthy, responsibility, kindness, gratitude... really all very basic and GOOD things! And if any of those concepts are too difficult to grasp, it is simply because we have allowed ourselves to be too weathered and worn down by the world. But that is the point of these men in their position and these conferences. To bring us back to the basics. To help us remember whose we really are and what it is that we truly need and how to obtain it.

I just wanted to say that I am grateful to be a part of this restored church and that I am especially grateful to my parents for their love, sacrifice and most importantly, their never ending example to me. I also want to thank them for getting the tickets for us so that Hillary and I could enjoy the experience. It was crowded, I was sleepy, hungry and cranky (it was the adversary, I know it!) but I know what I felt when I was there and what I feel now when I think about it. It feels… good :)

Sunday Post III of Grattitude.

Sunday: We had Ward Conference and there were such great lessons! I like my ward a lot and I am so glad that the average age is above 21!! Sometimes it blows my mind how much someone my own age can teach me.

***JOSH CAME HOME*** He totally suprised me!!

Monday: I went to FHE with my group for the first time and it was really nice. Everyone in my ward is just so friendly!

Tuesday: Josh helped me move some more things at my old apartment, we were very fast and found some silly things.

Wednesday: I started my new job! I have a big, shiny, pretty desk all to myself, no headset and my own extension... I feel so important and responsible!

Thursday: Maverick had mini 100 Calorie Crasinet packs for $.50. SO HAPPY.

Friday: First hot cocoa of the season!

Saturday: General Conference and sleep. Good day.