slightly obsessed

Life is more than crazy right now. 

Midterms, work, studying, homework, and other adventures abound this week.

But that just makes the few minutes I have to talk to people, prepare an FHE spiritual thought, take a walk to look at the mountains, or just sit and listen to a few songs all the more wonderful.

Enjoy this list of just a few things I am slightly completely obsessed with currently.

this song.

"Begin Again" by Taylor Swift

this quote.

"Sir, my concern is not whether God is on our side;
my greatest concern is to be on God's side,
for God is always right."
Abraham Lincoln

this talk. 

"Sunday Will Come" by Elder Joseph B. Wirthlin

my job.
like a whole lot.
I mean, just how cool is this?!

these people.
otherwise known as mi familia.
aren't they adorable?

this perspective.

"Love grows best in little houses, with fewer walls to separate.

Where you eat and sleep so close together, you can't help but communicate.

And if we had more room between us,

think of all we'd miss.

Love grows best in houses just like this."

missionaries. 

as always.

mountains.

unfortunately, I have no pictures. 

I really need to start using that camera more.

also this song.

"In Christ Alone" cover by Owl City

and this quote.

"Every righteous thought, word, and deed is a victory for the Lord."

Robert C. Oaks

Keep smiling.

Have a lovely week.

Oh and this is just too funny to not share. 

Enjoy all you young single adults out there.

slowing down

I don't have classes on Fridays.
Which is the greatest thing ever.
But somehow my Fridays end up being the craziest days of the week.
In a good way, though.

This Friday was particularly hectic:
I woke up way too early and couldn't go back to sleep.
So I did some studying and watched a beautiful sunrise.
Then I put in a few extra work hours.
Before I realized that we had cleaning checks. Who schedules cleaning checks on a Friday night?! crazy people.
Cue three hours of scrubbing down my bedroom, bathroom, and the kitchen.
One downside of not having a roommate: two cleaning check jobs.
Another hour of work.
Musical number practice. Which included hunting down a few other singers.
More cleaning.

In the middle of the craziness, though, I got some time to enjoy some pretty great things:
     My friend opened his mission call.
      I babysat my cute cousins. Seriously, I do not get enough interaction with kids under the age of 18 years.

Oh, and we passed cleaning checks.

All in all a wonderfully exhausting and productive Friday.

Now it's on to a long weekend.
I intend to do some extra studying, do some extra work, and maybe spend a little extra time with some friends.
I just might even watch a few sunrises.

"We would do well to slow down a little, proceed at the optimum speed for our circumstances, 

focus on the significant, lift up our eyes, and truly see the things that matter most... 

Walk in nature, watch a sunrise, enjoy God's creations, 

ponder the truths of the restored gospel, 

and find out what they mean for you personally. 

Learn to see yourself as Heavenly Father sees you:

as His precious daughter or son with divine potential." 

- President Dieter F. Uchtdorf

Enjoy the day off on Monday.
Slow down a little and take some time to enjoy the simple beauties that life offers each day.
Keep on smiling!

happy valentine's day

Have a very happy Valentine's Day with friends, family, and other loved ones.

Or you can just sit at home (like myself) and make cookies, listen to sappy country music, and watch a chick flick.

Like this one.

challenge accepted

Single Awareness Day is on Thursday.
Otherwise known as the over-commercialized and yet ever-popular Valentine's Day.

I have nothing against celebrating Valentine's Day.
I love making Valentine's for cute little cousins who still appreciate them.
And I think it's a fun day to celebrate together with all the single ladies. aka my best friends.

I just think it's a little ridiculous when people start moaning or judging their self-worth about being forever alone if they don't have a date or special someone for Valentine's Day.

Valentine's Day is a day to celebrate the ones you love, whether you're single or not.

One of my friends posted this challenge on her blog.
I share it all with you now.

"Well, we're a week [two days actually] from Valentine's day.

and soon Facebook will be flooded with "Single Awareness Day" stuff.

Usually in the past, I've joined this massive self-pity fest,

but this year I thought I'd try something different.

This week I'd like to challenge everyone, 

(myself included)

to contemplate and write a thoughtful letter to your future sweetheart.

Someday, when the time is right,

you'll find each other,

and you'll know it was all worth the wait."

Challenge accepted.

So whether you celebrate with good friends, a special someone, close relatives, or even on your own.
Remember those who love you.
Remember the love of your Heavenly Father and your Savior.
I promise: you are never alone.

Have a very happy Valentine's Day everyone! 

You are loved.

feeling sentimental

My littlest sister turned sixteen earlier this week.
Where did the time go?
I miss those days when we could just run around in the backyard with the only problem being the limitation of our imaginations.

back when I was the tallest. and we were all totally adorable.

I get in these sentimental moods every now and then.
Usually it comes from some sort of traumatic experience.
But I think this time it's mostly been from religion classes, talks I have been reading, some reflection, and this general time of year.

My activities when I'm in said moods include:
     listening to some classic songs with those lyrics that actually make you think. like this.
     going through some old family pictures. see above.
     taking a few more minutes to just look at the mountains. I really love mountains.
     writing in my journal for a while.
     maybe even doing a blog post. which is kind of a journal.

I have such incredible friends here in Provo.
They are amazing examples to me.
Almost forty of my closest friends have received their mission calls over the past three months or so. I know several more who have submitted papers and are anxiously waiting for their calls to arrive.
These girls are like sisters to me. Their faith, their diligence, their willingness to obey and to serve astounds and inspires me to improve each and every day.

The boys who are on their missions [and who are about to head out] are just as incredible.
I could not have asked for better people in my life.

I have amazing family members that I have been blessed to be with for eternity.
Parents, siblings, cousins, aunts, uncles, grandparents.
They are some of my best friends. They continually teach me and support me.

There is nothing particularly special about today.
But the fact that I have today is special for me.

To all of you who have been with me since the beginning.
To those who have come into my life a little more recently.
And to you who will bless me sometime down the road.

Thank you.

You have made each minute of this journey wonderful.

I can't wait to see what adventures lie ahead.

Keep smiling. 

Life is a beautiful thing.

And that smile of yours is going to bless someone else today.

In other words: 
I just wanted to say thanks to you all, ok? Because you're awesome and deserve to be recognized for that awesome-ness. So forgive the sappy post and just take it for what it's worth.
Love you all.

humorous and inspiring

People are incredible.
People are also hilarious.

Here's a few things from the past week or so that have just made me smile or think.
Hopefully they evoke a similar response from you.

"Behind every great man is a woman rolling her eyes." -Jim Carrey

Received this email from BYU freshman housing: 

(remember that little announcement from conference?)

"Have you thought about where you'll live next fall? Why not live on campus? For Fall-Winter 2013-14, we will have designated upperclassman communities at Heritage Halls and Wyview Park. 

Want to live on campus but not in the designated upperclassman buildings? No problem! You'll also be able to select from any of our other available spaces on campus. Just keep in mind that if you're not in the upperclassman community, you'll be around freshmen. 

Room selection begins tomorrow, February 6, at 10 a.m. 

BYU Campus Accommodations"

Now for the inspiring:

"The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams." 

Eleanor Roosevelt

"It matters not what someone was born, but what someone grows to be." 

J.K. Rowling

"I'm only as tall as my heart will let me be, and I'm only as small as the world will make me seem. And when the going gets rough and I feel like I may fall, I'll look on the bright side, I'm roughly six feet tall."

The best dreams happen when you're awake.

Have a lovely weekend everyone.

january, mountains, and epic music

I am kind of a movie nerd. which you probably already knew.

One of the best parts about movies: the music.

While I study and work, I often listen to movie scores, such as:

Spirit: Stallion of the Cimmaron

The Chronicles Narnia

The Incredibles

and of course... UP.

[They work wonders for motivation.]

I am still obsessed with the mountains. With snow on them, they are just gorgeous.
And at sunset? Gosh they are absolutely beautiful.

This has been one of the strangest weeks of my life thus far with some random things happening with family and friends.
But it ended wonderfully as I got to spend time with some friends. Oh, and I got an A on my New Testament exam.

Today I washed every single dish in our apartment that had been piling up.
Life is interesting with a Brazilian roommate who pretends to not understand you when you ask her seven times to wash the dishes.
An hour and a half later, my hands are raisins and I'm finally eating some lunch.
But it's clean. And that's what matters for now.

My cousin, Christopher, opened his mission call! 

I am beyond excited for him to serve the people of Paraguay! 

[seven of my good friends also opened their calls that day. craziness]

Last weekend, Rachel and Mom came to visit!
Rachel had an audition for the music school, so Mom flew out with her.
I spent some time with them in the mountains taking "senior pictures" for Rachel.
They explored my apartment and BYU campus. I still don't have a roommate by the way. 
They joined me for lunch in the Cougareat one day. I joined them for dinner with some family.
Basically, it was a blast.

Up Provo Canyon with my sister. Absolutely gorgeous.

Best friends since the days we were born. Gosh I love these boys! 

Mom and Rachel with me. It was great to see them!

January basically consisted of me working, studying, studying, and working.
You know, that fun stuff big kids do.
I have become a pro at HTML programming. sort of.
And I became even more of a history nerd, if that's even possible.
I have approximately zero social life as all of my friends live on south campus, are at home waiting to go on their missions, or work early-morning jobs.
I can no longer stay up past eleven.

Some inspirational thoughts for you:

"A Pep Talk from Kid President"

[basically the most adorable pep talk you will ever hear in your life]

Stop being afraid of what could go wrong and focus on what could go right.

No one looks stupid when they're having fun. Amy Poehler

What would be the point of living if we didn't let life change us.

Happy February to all of you.
It's going to be an exciting month of birthdays, anniversaries, snow, and who knows what else!