HEAVEN ON EARTH-according to me

Would you rather be in the mountains or on the beach? My answer?

I choose Mountains!!!

Have you seen these Wasatch mountains without the horrible inversion? I love walking outside just because I stare at the beauty around me. The beach is great, but if I had the choice, there is no competition.

SMILE!!!

I'm one week into the new semester and already I think things are going to be splendid this go round. I don't know really what it is that has caused these feelings in me, but deep down in my gut, I know that life will work itself out. I have miraculously stayed on top of my french homework!!!! Shocker! No need to be frantically writing on the train. AND- I understand more in class. I didn't know that it was possible. I have much more on my plate this semester than last, but I think that is how I function. Give me more than I can handle, or don't give me anything at all. I think I'm weird that way, but I've decided who cares!
School is great! Work is great! I learn so much from this transcription from the church and it always turns into more than just work. For example, the last one that I did was a conversation with Elder and Sister Oaks and Sheri Dew. There were so many great nuggets of wisdom in the entire conversation,(and if you want to hear it, go to the Mormon Channel and look it up. Pretty sure you could find it.) but I keep thinking about something that Elder Oaks said about his wife. He said that he asked her once why she had remained single for so long. Her reply was that she was waiting for a man that would the Lord more than he loved her, and that he didn't know if he met such a high standard. How wonderful is that?!
I keep finding tender mercies throughout my day. I think that if you are having a rough time you should write down five tender mercies that have happened in your day. If that is too easy or doesn't help, make it ten. Write them down and start to look for them. Today- my morning commute to school. I have a class that starts at 9:10 in the morning. Awesome class- awesome professor. But both days of class last week I walked in late. My own fault for not getting going early enough in the morning. So, today I decided that I was going to make it. I was even going to be early. I woke up at 6:30 am, which for me is extra early these days. Got myself ready while the rest of the house was dark. As things go, it took a little longer than I planned to get everything done and out the door. I was sure I had blown the whole plan and was once again going to be late to class. My hero of a father drove me to the Jordan Commons stop through a backway that I wouldn't have even thought through just as the train pulled up to the station. I hollered goodbye and ran. It's happened before that I can run as fast as I can and the train still leaves me. Today? The nice gentleman driving the trax train saw me, smiled, and waited until I could get on!!! And guess what? I got to school with 20 minutes to spare. A whole 20 minutes! I didn't know what to do with myself during all the extra time. These are the things that make a bad day seem okay. It turned my day around. It isn't over yet, and I suppose there are a million things that can go wrong between now and when I go to bed, but that one thing is enough to remind me to smile. Ahhh, I love to smile!
Everything is coming together. Yes, there are still stresses that I wish didn't exist in my life. Money is still an issue. Family health will always be an issue. But I have wonderful friends and family and opportunities coming into my life that I can't help but be happy. It is simply fantastic!Here's hoping the same comes to you!

I like adventures...but I also like to keep my life...

Skiing---check.
Learned how to start and stop---check.
French Fries and Pizza---check.
Conquered a tow rope---check.
Went up for a run---check.
Fell and endangered my life in the process----check.
Will I ever ski again? Hmmmmm.....

I did go skiing. I accomplished a lot. Sure I had a good time. I learned a lot. According to Squirt, I was still doing pretty well for my first and second days. The day after? I'll keep the ibuprofen close at hand. My neck hurts. Yes, my body is sore, but my neck hurts the most. Why you ask? Well, I was starting to go down a Green run and forgot everything that Squirt had taught me. Meaning, I couldn't get my heels to spread out so that I could slow myself down. I was trying to turn and instead straightened out my skis and picked up a lot of speed. The next thing I knew I was in the air, and came down on my head. I could have broken or twisted my ankle, but I figured out how to move the ski the right way before I came down. After my crash and I could open my eyes, my poles were 5 feet away, my goggles and hat had flown off my head, and I was staring up at Squirt's scared face. Awesome.
Told my mom the whole story and she kept saying, "You're lucky you didn't break your neck." I will forever be grateful that that didn't happen.
I haven't exactly given up on skiing. Just give me some time before I go up there again. Thanks to friends and watching little kids learn how to ski, it was a fun time. Thanks a lot to Squirt for trying to teach me. Wednesday was a blast!!!!

Little nervous- party of one. I have lived in Utah my entire life but I have never been skiing. Ever. Pretty much because my family isn't one that is really big on doing things outside. I love nature and being an outdoors-woman, but it isn't something that the rest of the family is really into.

Snow usually doesn't get along with me. I call it a miracle if I can handle a whole day on campus without slipping on ice. So---the next two days are definitely going to be an adventure. Skiing- here I come. Hopefully it works out better than that guy in the cartoon over there.

The Start of 2010

I don't like hospitals. Knock on wood- I've never been the patient lying in the hospital bed but I still don't like hospitals. I never thought it was possible to love and hate the same thing at the same time, until I met Primary Children's Medical Center. Now I know that anything is possible.
One place has such wonderful memories. I remember the thousands of rolls of pennies that we would throw into the old fountain. I remember trying to time the water wheel just right so that you could watch a penny ride around in a circle and then fall to make all your wishes come true. I remember walking around the displays of dolls and stuffed animals around the elevators because we needed something to keep our minds off things. I remember hopping on the different colored squares in the carpet, making games with my sisters. Eating in the cafeteria. Ordering more mozzarella sticks than the family could eat. The more I try and remember the good times, the more times come to mind.
But.....it also has memories that rip my insides out. I hate the waiting. I hate the smell. I hate how clean everything is. I hate the white and green on the parking lot signs. I hate the colors of the doctors' scrubs, covered in little flowers or polka dots or dinosaurs. I hate the little ferris wheel village by cardiology. I hate understanding that that look in everyone's eyes is fear. I hate knowing how a heart can work if only half of it exists. I hate the pit in my stomach that grows every time I hear my parents say that Carrie has a doctor's appointment. I hate the emotions that travel through me because I have seen all sides of that hospital. I hate that they took out my fountain.
January 5, 2010. My year is starting with Primary Childrens. And it could possibly be filled with only good memories. It could be filled with bright squares on the carpet and a stomach full of mozzarella sticks. It could be. I don't mean to be a downer. I don't like downers. So here is me trying not to be a downer. This could be the answer that we have waited for. And it isn't like I am going to be on the hospital bed this time either. I won't be. I'll be the one walking around, trying to find something to do to help my parents and my baby sister. Carrie is one tough cookie. She is a fighter. I wish I was as hardcore as she is. I want to be, for her. Nobody knows what tomorrow will bring. Here's hoping this one ends in a happy ending.......