Blessings Of Life

Today I went through two boxes that were full of memorabilia from throughout my life. I read old letters from friends and family. I looked at picture after picture of fun times throughout my high school years and my first semesters of college. I read entries in my past journals. As I went through those treasured items, I laughed and cried. I am a very sentimental person. I feel things deep within my heart. Life has been so good.

As I scanned through old journals, I read about some hard times. Those times ranged from boy drama my first semester of college to struggling with my testimony as a 14 year old girl. It was neat to flip forward in the journals after reading about a struggling time to see how I got through it. I guess you could say that I learned lessons from my past self today.

I also read about good times in those journals. It made me reminisce on some special and fun memories. I couldn't help but think of the fact that in a couple years, I will look back and reminisce on the stage of life I am in right now. Sometimes you don't realize what a special stage of life you are in until it is past.

I'm grateful for journals. For pictures. For faded and worn letters of encouragement and love from others. I want to get better at writing in my journal today. I want to continue to take many, many pictures. Then, in the future, I will be able to show my children and reminisce on the blessings of life.

Little me :)

My family :)

High School

With my siblings on Christmas Eve 2007

Summer at Snow College with my best friend Rachel



First semester at BYUI

Look for the good in life... it can always be found!

A Kind Deed

A kind deed. It makes you smile. It warms you from the inside out. Seeing an act of kindness makes me want to become better. Whether I am the recipient of the act or whether I see the act of kindness from afar, the result is the same. Since we have been back in Rexburg, much service and kindness has come our way. Our families have been helping us so much! They helped us move all of our stuff into our apartment, and have spent so much time helping us get everything organized. We are so grateful.

I hope to follow their example of service. I believe that one person can make a huge difference. One kind deed can change a life. It may seem small to you, but to the recipient of your small act of kindness, it is huge. I have noticed that I usually forget about the kind things I do for others, but the kind things that others do for me are embedded in my heart. They are a reminder of all the good in the world. Pass it on :)    

Leaving Phoenix

We are moving back to Idaho this week. Definitely a bittersweet situation. Our time here has been very special. We have been able to explore a new city and make some good friends. Jaren and my relationship has been strengthened. The thought of driving away makes both of us sad. I have a feeling that we will look back on our time here as a "summer from a dream." That is what it has been. Jaren just barely said, "You can't put your finger on it. There is not just one thing we loved about Arizona. We loved it all." The Lord has blessed us so much this summer. It has been really neat to see His hand guide and bless us in different ways. Isn't it interesting how much we are all "in debt" to the Lord? We can never pay him back. 

We are huge fans of Arizona now. We love it here. A man that Jaren met at his internship is taking him to meet with the director of admissions of the medical school down here this week (A BLESSING FROM THE LORD IN AND OF ITSELF). So who knows... we could be moving back to AZ in two years :) I'm just grateful that God is in charge.

Jaren and I are on to a new adventure. Even though we are sad to leave, it will be exciting to move into our new apartment and to be by our families again. I will be starting a masters in Social Work program next month as well as looking for a job. I'm also taking the social work licencing exam in a few weeks (very nervous!!) which will hopefully open up job options for me. Jaren will be going back to BYUI to finish his bachelor degree. Life is changing. Change is hard for me. But, I realize that without change, we would never grow. We would never learn or continue to develop. I have also learned that when change happens, I lean on the Lord more. So... bring on the change! ;)

Here are some highlights of our time here...

Our first horse race

Professional baseball game (Diamondbacks)

Baseball stadium

Us with our friends Taylor and Dean

So many good places to eat!!

Hanging out downtown

Morning hike

Resort swimming pool

Resort

Our FAVORITE frozen yogurt ever! We ate a lot of it while we were here :)

Dinner theater

Bowling night

At work (Sports Camp)

Cheesecake factory :)

Hanging out with our friends. Such good people!

Expressions of Love

It is those small and simple expressions of love that mean the most.When Jaren tells me I'm beautiful in the morning. When he does the dishes before I get home. When he squeezes my hand three times during church (our code for "I love you"). When he is so quick to forgive when I say I'm sorry.

Neither Jaren or I are perfect. We argue and think of ourselves sometimes. But, it is those simple expressions of love that make it all worth it. I am so grateful that I married Jaren in God's temple. Because of this, I can be with him forever. Our marriage will never end.

This video is amazing! It brought a tear to my eye. It's the stuff that matters the most.

Beautiful!

It was beautiful! Everything about it was beautiful and peaceful. Jaren and I were taking a walk past sundown through our neighborhood when we noticed lightning beginning to strike across the sky. As we approached home, Jaren suggested that we grab a blanket from inside to lay on so we could watch the lightening. Brilliant idea. As we laid outside, everything was so peaceful. The night was silent, besides the sound of the thunder booming through the sky. After a while, the sky started to sprinkle on us. For the majority of the time, we laid in silence. Both of us were reflecting. I loved being close to nature. It caused me to reflect on how amazing God is. This world is amazing!

With how crazy life can be, it can be so nice to slow down and take in the beauty! We can find beauty everywhere if we look for it. Sometimes we just need to "Be still and know that God is God" (Psalms 46:10, D&C 101:16). That night, it would have been very easy to rush in and do one of the many things I needed to do. I'm so glad that Jaren suggested we take a few minutes to soak it all in. It made the night memorable.