I'm Engaged!

It's been ages & ages since I've had internet, so I haven't blogged in that long & longer, though I do have a draft or two that got started sometime during bouts of internet connectivity, but I do have a connection now, & I have some news!......

I'm getting married!

Here's some of our story...

Jonathan is in the Marine Corps, & has been stationed in Yuma for a couple years.  

Earlier this year, I knew I was moving to Yuma, not really having an answer to the question I heard over & over "WHY Yuma??"

Jonathan & I met at a YSA activity, where we quickly became acquainted, thanks to Quelf, the game that is King of Random.  I don't have a picture of us, but it went pretty much like this.....

 Everyone had to take turns sitting on Jonathan's lap & telling "Santa" what they wanted for Christmas.

"I want a super deluxe tool kit."  hahaha!

Good to meet you!

Jonathan asked me out, but we actually kind of had our first date a night or two before that day came.  One night he brought over a couple pints of ice cream & we sat up all night eating ice cream & talking & watching TV.  When our date night came, we went out to a movie & then sat and talked over more ice cream at my house afterward.

Fast forward.   Jonathan & I are dating, though one of us is a little slow, & so we're not calling it that.  Jonathan had to go to Corporal's Course in Miramar for a few weeks, & I went for part of the weekend to visit.  We had a fun time playing at the beach.

Also on a weekend while he was at Corporal's Course we went to Mesa to go to the Temple & visit my sister & her family.  That weekend brought changes for us, & the next few weeks were a lot different.  We weren't dating anymore, but we were talking everyday, & getting to know each other more & more.  (FUNNY how that worked out....)

Just before Labor Day, Jonathan started talking about taking a trip to the Snowflake Temple.

I love northern Arizona, & I love visiting Temples, so when Jonathan invited me to go,  I decided it was a great excuse to visit with my family & with my dear friends, & so I went with him.  The brother of the friends that we stayed with thought that we were dating, & I just laughed.  But being in a car with someone for 12+ hours...  can get you talking, can open you up even more to each other, & for us it did.  Again our weekend getaway brought changes to our relationship, & within a day of getting home from that trip we were dating again.

We went to the Marine Corps Ball together, & by now Jonathan knew he wanted to marry me!

3 days later we went to the Mesa Temple, where we spent a little time with his parents & some friends, & where I was able to give him the answer he'd been hoping for .....

YES!

We're getting married!  We're getting maried! 

March 29th is the special day!

St. George, Utah is the special place!

We'll have a reception in Washington (where Jonatha is from), on April 2.

The next weekend will be our Northern Arizona reception, in the Prescott Area, on April 9th... (right, the 9th, or is it the 8th?) ;o)

We'll also have an open house in Yuma later in April, or maybe even in May, but we want to let our friends & ward families here celebrate with us! :)

That's the big news for now!

101 Things I Can Count On...

I've been working on this post for a long while, & it's been fun to think of new things to add!

101. Life is BeAutiful. (Even if it may not always seem that way-It is a Beautiful Disaster!)

100. The love of family.
99. I can do & be better. 98. I've been blessed with wonderful friends.

97. My puppy wanting to give (me) kisses.

96. You can't live life afraid.

95. Change is CONSTANT.

94. Reading old journals can bring back all the same emotions.

93. My friends being simply AMAZING!

92. People come for food.

91. Wanting to learn MORE.

90. Taking kids to a park is fun!

89. Falling in love is always a little bit scary.

88. Wanting to be a Mama.

87. Studying God's word brings answers & peace.

86. Kids saying the most wonderful things!

85. Learning more about myself.

84. When I pray, He hears me.

83. Always already Knowing at least part of the why when life feels CRazY.

82. Sunsets make me happy.

81. Seth & Croix make me SMILE.

80. Being "bold" can be uber scary.

79. Finding a new song that I LOVE.

78. Listening to old favorite songs brings those memories back.

77. Being an Auntie is one of life's great treasures.

76. Tomorrow will come.

75. I am awkward.

74. A good book reels me in.

73. Having "Besties" who I can talk to about anything.

72. The Gospel of Jesus Christ.

71. The Temple bringing joy.

70. Wanting to eat that piece of Chocolate.

69. Loving some hot chocolate in a mug.

68. Enjoying cuddling.

67. Things will be funnier when I'm tired.

66. There will be more laundry to wash, fold, & put away.

65. Music speaks to my soul.

64. Loving to sing.

63. My hammock making me happy.

62. Catching a gorgeous sunrise is worth getting up that much earlier.

61. Occasionally finding that competitive streak in me.

60. Cheese is yummy.

59. Hours can be wasted online, if I'm not careful.

58. Addictinggames.com can actually be addicting, given the opportunity.

57. Reading other people's blogs helps me keep up with their lives.

56. If something's scary, it might not be if I try again.

55. Sometimes what I want & what I need are not the same thing.

54. Lindt Milk Chocolate with White Cream is the best chocolate I've ever had.

53. Prescott holds amazing Christmas traditions.

52. Christmas will feel more like Christmas if I go to the Courthouse Lighting & the Walk Through Bethlehem.

51. Family brings happiness.

50. Family relationships can be tricky.

49. Tastes change.

48. A picture can be worth a thousand words.

47. Painted toe nails make me feel girly.

46. A hug can make it all better, at least for a moment.

45. Sometimes I just need to cry.

44. Some things, & some people, may never change.

43. Feeling inadequate.

42. Needing to change for the better.

41. "I can do hard things." (Even if I don't always believe it in the moment...)

40. The urge to "straighten" that desert.

39. Being stronger than I thought I was.

38. Finding joy in the journey.

37. The continual realization that I am a "work in progress".

36. RandomNesS can be so fun & exciting! & it makes me happy!

35. It can be surprising who your best friends are.

34. The people who pass through my life touch me & leave an impression, whether they're there for a reason, a season, or a lifetime.

33. God's hand is in my life.

32. Moving is a lot of work.

31. After night comes day, always a new day full of promise.

30. Flowers can brighten up a room, or a difficult day/week.

29. Someone LOVES me.

28. Life will be full of the unexpected.

27. People are beautiful, no matter their "body type" or the color of their skin.

26. Beauty lies in who a person is, & not in what they look like.

25. "I need more chocolate in my life."

24. Time is one of life's very best gifts.

23. Wanting to hike/run/etc, even though I'll probably end up wodering (again) WHY I love it!

22. Time goes so quickly.... When it's running out.

21. Sometimes when a day feels like a week, weeks race by like days.

20. Finding friends in random/unexpected places.

19. Wondering where that bruise came from.

18. Trenton helping me out without complaining.

17. Finding miracles every single time I look for them.

16. Wanting to buy new shoes, but having a heck of a time finding shoes I like.

15. My phone will eventually give up on me.

14. Laughter is the best medicine. I love to laugh!

13. Fighting the shy in myself when I'm in new situations.

12. Being able to get by just fine without TV.

11. Drinking ice water in restaurants with ceiling fans = goosbumps.

10. Recognizing all the beauty in the world if I stop to look around.

9. Going to church each Sunday helps me face the coming week.

8. Distractions. (They don't have to be evil to be effective.)

7. Never getting enough sleep.

6. Wanting to capture the moment, to keep it forever.

5.Learning, growing, slipping, repeat.

4. Being me, & knowing that I am good enough because I'm doing the best I can.

3. I am a daughter of God, & have within me all the potential which that implies.

2. Jesus Christ is my Savior, He loves me, & will always welcome me with open arms.

1. God is my Father, & Loves Me more infinitely than I can understand.

My newest "New & Exciting"!

There's been SO much fun & excitement happening since my last random post! But for now, I'm just gonna put this little update out there!

I'm moving!

I'm moving next week.

Next week I am moving to Satan's Basement*.

*Satan's Basement is also known as Yuma, Arizona. Since Yuma is Hotter than Hades, I decided that to get hotter than Hades, you must be in Satan's basement. Hahaha!

I don't know WHY I'm going to Yuma, other than a Super Excited Principal who offered me an amazing job! But I am pretty sure that I'm supposed to go to Yuma. Here's why.

One Wednesday I sent out my resume, cover letter & letters of recommendation to about 12

school districts with Rodel qualifying schools. That afternoon/evening I got calls from 3 schools in the Crane District in (You guessed it) Yuma. I missed 2 of the calls because my phone only vibrated for calls, instead of ringing. The last call that night, I answered. I talked with a Principal who wanted to interview me for a 2nd grade ELD position, with 12 students in the class! That sounded amazing! She (like the other 2 principals who'd left me voice mails) wanted to do a phone interview on Thursday or Friday. I was leaving EARLY Thursday morning to drive through a lot of unknown cell phone reception, to hike all day of Friday, so.... Yeah. Instead of trying to set something up for the following week, she called me back about 10 minutes later & did the interview. .... & she unofficially offered me the job!! The next morning she called my references & texted me- excited to tell me my references were fantastic & officially offer me the job! H.L. Suverkrup.... I knew that if I went to Yuma, it would be for this job.

Thursday morning/afternoon 2 or 3 more principals

called me, again hoping to set up phone interviews. ... ALL of them were also from Yuma. The only other responses I got from those 11 or so other districts were a couple e-mails telling me the positions that had been open had been filled, & a couple districts telling me to fill out an application before they would even consider me. (Not that there's anything wrong with that! I just felt Yuma calling me... LoL... LITERALLY!)

This was about when I started asking myself... Yuma? Yuma...?? YUMA????

My phone died on that trip, & so bought me most of a week of more time to decide. I kept in touch with the Principal through e-mail, but by the time my new phone came on the Following Wednesday (A WEEK after our phone interview & job offer), she thought I was calling to turn down the position. (NOT because of anything I'd said, or lack of contact, she said, but because I'm "SUCH a good teacher, why would I want to go

to Yuma??" lol) She had asked "on a scale of 1-10", where was I? ... 1 being I'm unable to relocate, 10 being I'm absolutely coming. She was SO excited when I said that I wanted to say 10, except that I hadn't yet found a place to live. I went to Yuma the next day, got my contract & keys to my classroom, & started networking! Before I left Yuma on Friday afternoon, I'd found a place to live, with roommates, a different place for my sweet Bear to live for a year (*SAD thought, but....), & I'd already found some friends!

To be perfectly honest, changes can still be hard for me. I'm SAD to leave some amazing friends & roommates in a place that I love & that has really become home again. I'm scared, but excited! Yuma may or may not melt my brains out, that is yet to be determined. BUT, I know that Yuma will hold many adventures & hopefully a lot of growing experiences!

Wishing...

Disclaimer... This post is different that what usually gets put on here, but more like what I think I'd LIKE it to be. ...
Remember when you were a kid, & finding a big, puffy, white dandelion was so exciting?? You could pick it & blow the seeds, & make the biggest, bestest wish from your heart!
...Somehow, somewhere along the line, it seems that we tend to lose that childlike hope & excitement. ... Unless we chose to keep it. ...& sometimes we have to fight to keep it! (The whole world wants us to grow up - be busy & productive &... &... &... & it's so easy to forget to find joy, to forget the things that kids so naturally find JOY in - like the simplicity & magic of every day!... How can we ever forget those things?!?)

I still have a lot of wishes. I wish people the best. I wish the laundry would clean & fold & get put away on its own, & that the dog poo would scoop itself. I wish the happy moments would last forever, & the sad ones would only come around enough for me to appreciate them all! I wish I were more patient, that I laughed more often & more real. I wish... I wish... I wish...

My wishes are specific & exact, broad & undefined. They may be near & dear to the secrets of my heart, or big & far reaching.

There are things I wish might have been, things I wish I understood about here & now, opportunities I wish I'd find, & those things big & small, that I hope & dream - I Wish - for the future.

I think we sometimes forget about making wishes when it seems that our dreams come crashing down in on us. I know that the plan-making part of me all but died when all of my plans fell apart... So I can believe that as we sometimes see our wishes floating into space unheard, instead of being wished upon that "Wishing Star", that be might stop "believing" in wishing.

I think that just maybe, our "grown-up" version of "wishing", just might be found in HOPE. ...& while I may not have it all figured out (or even some of it kind of figured out), I still have hope. As much of a mess as I may still sometimes be, I hope. And my greatest hope lies in Christ. Faith & hope are tightly linked, as M. Russell Ballard so perfectly put it: "As we put our faith and trust to work, hope is born."

I'll be ... "Wishing & Hoping & Thinking & Praying & Planning & Dreaming..."

Now I just need to get out there & find a dandelion to blow... :o)

to Make a Wish...

(& to take some pictures of! I LOVED these that I randomly found,

& look at all the reflective thoughts they inspired today!)

What do you wish??

General Conference!

Well, I'm almost a month & 1/2 late posting this now, but....

Better late then never, right??

We got a group together, & took a trip to Utah for General Conference. It was a good trip, lots of fun....

We stayed Thursday night in Henderson, then got up & drove the rest of the way from there.

We took turns driving, except for when Jared had his truck to drive back to AZ, then he drove it the whole time, & my car still had drivers taking turns. :)

She said if I put this on Facebook she'd kill me... THIS is totally NOT facebook. ;)

Chelsea, My Dear Little Sis... I LOVE You with All My Butt!! (Because it's bigger than my heart) & don't you forget it. Also, I LOVE this picture!

This is Jared at our pit stop before we left Utah. & the mountains behind him. Simply stunning.

My amazing roommate! Ashley is Absolutely Fabulous! :)

The best part of the weekend though, had to be listening to the words of the Prophet & Apostles of Christ. We could have done this in Arizona, or nearly anywhere we might have been throughout the world, but given the opportunity, we went to participate in one of the sessions in person. What a wonderful experience! They spoke of building a foundation in Christ & strengthening families.

Other themes I heard repeatedly were letting Christ change us & our lives, understanding & receiving personal revelation, scripture study & prayer, repentance, teaching in the home & strengthening the home, the worth of women & power of mothers, & hope in Christ through His Atonement.

The gospel of Jesus Christ was taught through word & song, & most especially through the gentle promptings of the Spirit of the Lord.

There were so many good things said. These are some of my favorite quotes (some I heard repeatedly), & favorite things I heard through the whisperings of the Spirit.

The gospel changes lives.

It has never been easy to follow the gospel of Jesus Christ. It still is not. "But we are who we are and we know what we know."

~Boyd K. Packer

Hope does not depend upon circumstance, but on faith.

~Wilford W. Anderson

"We should learn what we should learn, do what we should do, and be what we should be." ~Henry B. Eyring

"Temptation is more subtle and more brazen than it ever has been."

~L. Tom Perry

The scriptures are revelation and will bring more revelation. Study and ponder them.

~D. Todd Christofferson

Sometimes we believe that "there must be an easier way." ... "The safety of the church lies in the members keeping the commandments."

~Bruce A. Carleson

Testimony brings responsibility and accountability.

~David A. Bednar

Repeatedly: "But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only..." James 1:22

A journey of 1,000 miles starts with one step. Watch your step!

~Jeffrey R. Holland

"[I will] give place no more for the enemy of my soul." 2 Nephi 4: 28

Joy and pain are both essential. "...my soul was filled with joy as exceeding as was my pain..." (see Alma 36:19-20)

"Never let an earthly circumstance disable you spiritually."

"Hold on thy way. Giving up is not an option..."

~Donald Hallstrom

Build a firm foundation in Christ.

~Cheryl C. Lant

Christ overcame the sins of mankind & the horrors that Satan could inflict.

I can show my love for God by serving Him (& others) and Keeping His Commandments. ~Quentin L. Cook

"The saddest words of tongue & pen, are those that say 'what might have been'."

A distraction doesn't have to be evil to be effective.

"There is no greater good in all the world than motherhood..." ~James E. Faust

"The love of a mother comes closer to the love of God than any other kind of love."

~Robert D. Hales

Don't apply worldly judgement to a spiritual decision.

Study "For the Strength of Youth".

Repeatedly: Be quiet, peaceful, still & reverent.

A spiritual symphony of revelation...

"...Be not afraid, only believe." Mark 5:36

"Two men can do anything, as long as one is the Lord."

"The Lord must be our foundation, or we will flounder."

~James B. Martino

"We are all here because we love the Lord, and want to serve Him."

~Thomas S. Monson

"Our message to the world is that He lives..." ~Gordon B. Hinkley

I add my testimony to those that I've shared. I know Christ lives. The fullness of His gospel has been restored to the earth by a modern day prophet, & is still led today by living Prophets & Apostles. This knowledge changes my life every time I let it! :)

To read or listen to these messages, click here.

A little bit of writing...

4-11-10

To be the cause of Your pain

brings me to my knees.

Searching for the love & peace

You freely give to me

If I can give it all to Thee,

turn from my old ways,

I will be forgiven

& be pure & whole again.

How could I forget,

What it is to turn to Thee?

While I still know within my heart,

Only You can set me free.

You suffered for my sorrows,

for my heartaches, pains & sins,

So I don't have to wonder

in my heart "What might have been?"

Hurting for the pain I've caused,

hurting for lost love.

Struggling to let myself be changed,

- my heart, my life, my soul.

Certain I am broken,

on my own I lack so much.

Yet I know the power to make me whole,

lies within the Master's touch.

Photoshop Application Assignment 3

This is my favorite of our assignments...

It's just a few of the pieces of me...

Photoshop Application Assignment 2

Photoshop Application Assignment 1

Things About Me

I keep thinking people will get sick of reading about me, but then I remember this is my blog, and that's probably what you're coming for! So, here goes.

10 years ago I:

1. Took my first College Classes. (I'm taking a class the same Community College again now! haha!)

2. Started appreciating my family as friends more than I ever had.

3. Could only remember moving a couple of times!

4. Didn't know I would love to travel, because I never had!

5. Still didn't really like Spanish.

5 things on today's to-do list:

1. Get Dressed.

2. Clean my Car & Visit the Library!

3. Make the Pizza Sauce
4. Sit in my Hammock & Update my Blogs!

5. Go to dinner with Jared. :)

5 Snacks I enjoy:

1. Nachos

2. Ice-cream

3. Quesadillas

4. Chocolate

5. Fruit

5 things I would do if I were a millionaire:

1. Give

2. Help my family

3. Define my Dream House into Reality

4. Invest

5. Get more education

5 Places I have been:

1. Puerto Penaso, Cuernavaca, D.F, Vera Cruz, etc. Mexico
2. Philadelphia area Pennsylvania
3. Delaware
4. Telluride, CO
5. Spring Mountains, NV

5 Jobs I have had:

1. Telemarketer
2. Wal-mart Cashier
3. RA at John Hopkins' CTY Camp

4. Preschool Teacher
5. Kinder, then First Teacher

People I tag: Anyone who wants to! Unless you already did this.