I know I kinda dropped a bomb the other day about moving to Spain. Hehe...that was on purpose.
I really don't have many more details than that, though. I'm going through a program run by the Spain Ministry of Education called North American Cultural Ambassadors. Basically, I'll be working in Spanish schools (specifically in Extremadura) teaching students about English and North American culture. That's all I know. When I know more, I'll tell you. I'm nervous. And scared. I think sometimes my heart and my head don't quite agree on things. For example, my head thinks I'm an adventurous world traveler. My heart quite enjoys being close to the people that I love. It's an inner-battle that I'm constantly engaged in. My head won out on this one. My heart is suffering. I'm sure I'll be ok. I usually am. My real reason for this post, though, is to tell you about what I've done all weekend. In our church, every April and every October we have what's called General Conference. It's a time when our living prophet, Thomas S. Monson, and other church leaders address the entire church, whether in person or over satellite, tv, radio, etc. It's a weekend full of spiritually uplifting music and messages - an invitation to live the higher law taught by Jesus Christ in the New Testament. Elder Jeffrey R. Holland gave a great talk about what General Conference is and why it's important. You can listen to it, and many other inspired and inspiring talks, by clicking here. If you're listening for his talk, it's at the end of the Sunday afternoon session. Some of my other favorites were President Dieter F. Uchtdorf and Elder Paul V. Johnson, both in the Sunday morning session, Elder Boyd K. Packer and Elder Russell M. Nelson in the Saturday afternoon session, and Elder Henry B. Eyring in the Saturday morning session.
I was able to attend the Saturday morning session in the Conference Center in Salt Lake City and it was a marvelous experience to see so many faithful people coming together in a united desire to better themselves and the world around them. I'm grateful to be a member of a church that emphasizes the importance of both having the unshakable faith in our Savior Jesus Christ and His inifinite Atonement as well as the diligent works we need to manifest that faith by keeping His commandments and serving those around us. I have felt His patient, never-ending love in my own life as I have fallen again and again and He has been there to lovingly help me as I pick myself back up again and return to Him for forgiveness and strength. He is the Savior of the world. Without Him, we can have faith in nothing, nor have hope in anything in the future. With Him, we can receive strength and comfort now and have faith and hope for deliverance from all of our trials in this life, whether self-inflicted or not, and eternal life in the life to come. I know that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is His church on the earth today. He restored it through the prophet Joseph Smith and continues to guide it through His current prophet, Thomas S. Monson. Jesus Christ is at the head. I am forever grateful to know and have a personal relationship with my Savior and I'm grateful for the knowledge I have of His love for me and for all of us.
Sunday, April 3, 2011
Friday, April 1, 2011
the announcement
I have an announcement to make. Kind of a big one.
Extremadura.
What does that mean to you? Probably not much, since most of you don't speak Spanish. Well, it doesn't really mean anything. It's the name of a region. In Spain.
That I'm moving to in September.
Extremadura.
What does that mean to you? Probably not much, since most of you don't speak Spanish. Well, it doesn't really mean anything. It's the name of a region. In Spain.
That I'm moving to in September.
Sunday, March 27, 2011
emma the bear
Last week I got an unexpected package in the mail from Miss class at Lincoln Elementary in Indianapolis, Indiana. It took me a second before I realized that my niece and nephew go to that school. Excitedly, I opened it up.
Inside was a tiny little stuffed bear named Emma who came with her own travel diary. My niece Emerson is in first grade and as a geography lesson, each studnet has sent out a small stuffed animal--a travelmate--to someone in a different state. It is then that person's reponsibility to write a little about where he or she lives, include some photos from the travelmate's adventure there, and then send her on to someone else in a different state or country. Whoever has the travelmate at the end of May sends it back to the school and the class can see all the places their travelmates have been.
Isn't that cute? I was so touched that Emerson chose to send it to me, but then I realized I'm probably the only person she knows personally that doesn't live in Indiana. I was still super excited about it.
So a few days ago, Jaime and I went to the temple and to BYU where Emma and I had ourselves a little photo shoot at Provo's most famous landmarks. I tried to include the mountains in both pictures, too, since children in Indiana most likely have never seen a mountain in their lives. I really think Emma had a great time during her stay here in Provo, Utah.
I was wearing my BYU attire that day, not to enhance the photo, but because that was the day BYU was supposed to advance to the Elite 8. Instead, they fell apart in overtime. Boo.
I have now sent Emma along to my friend Rachel who lives in Washington, D.C. Safe travels, little bear!
Inside was a tiny little stuffed bear named Emma who came with her own travel diary. My niece Emerson is in first grade and as a geography lesson, each studnet has sent out a small stuffed animal--a travelmate--to someone in a different state. It is then that person's reponsibility to write a little about where he or she lives, include some photos from the travelmate's adventure there, and then send her on to someone else in a different state or country. Whoever has the travelmate at the end of May sends it back to the school and the class can see all the places their travelmates have been.
Isn't that cute? I was so touched that Emerson chose to send it to me, but then I realized I'm probably the only person she knows personally that doesn't live in Indiana. I was still super excited about it.
So a few days ago, Jaime and I went to the temple and to BYU where Emma and I had ourselves a little photo shoot at Provo's most famous landmarks. I tried to include the mountains in both pictures, too, since children in Indiana most likely have never seen a mountain in their lives. I really think Emma had a great time during her stay here in Provo, Utah.
I was wearing my BYU attire that day, not to enhance the photo, but because that was the day BYU was supposed to advance to the Elite 8. Instead, they fell apart in overtime. Boo.
I have now sent Emma along to my friend Rachel who lives in Washington, D.C. Safe travels, little bear!
reminder: i'm not pregnant
Last week my good friends from Indiana Andrea, Chrissi, Melissa, and I met for our monthly (except we missed last month....oops) dinner. This time our friend Hollie was in town from Indiana for the week so she came, too. She's having a baby girl next week so she was in town for a baby shower. It was also a little bit of a farewell, because Melissa's husband Thomas just accepted a job in Richfield, which is two hours south of Provo. They're moving in a couple of weeks. It will be sad to not have her around as frequently.
I love these girls. It's great to be able to sit with people that I feel like I've known all my life (some of which I actually have) and see the roads we've all taken.
It's always a little hard for me at first because they've all been married for several years and have children (or are at least pregnant), which is just a glaring reminder that I am not and I have not. But once I get past that, I genuinely love these girls and I'm really proud of who they are and the choices they've made. They're strong, faithful, fabulous women and I'm lucky to know them.
I love these girls. It's great to be able to sit with people that I feel like I've known all my life (some of which I actually have) and see the roads we've all taken.
It's always a little hard for me at first because they've all been married for several years and have children (or are at least pregnant), which is just a glaring reminder that I am not and I have not. But once I get past that, I genuinely love these girls and I'm really proud of who they are and the choices they've made. They're strong, faithful, fabulous women and I'm lucky to know them.
love at home
I got new roommates!
At the beginning of this school year, I was living with three girls that I didn't know. They were fine girls, but they were a bit messy for my very clean taste. And we just weren't friends. So coming home was not exciting, or relaxing for that matter since messes stress me out. Our apartment wasn't cute and it was usually dirty and it just wasn't homey at all.
Those girls have all since moved out. I lived by myself for a couple of weeks which, I'm not going to lie, was pretty fabulous. But it definitely wasn't homey.
So a few weeks ago, I made a proposition to two of my very good friends who lived across the hall: just move in with me. Duh.
So they did! Two of my best girls, Aubrey and Angela, moved in a week ago and it has been so fun! Here we are in St. George last month. This picture even includes our honorary roommate Jaime. She's over all the time, anyway, so we just call the extra room in our apartment "Jaime's room." We even call it that when she's not here.
They're both clean, too, so our apartment is really pleasant to be in and they brought some fab decor with them. Now our house really is a home... And it's clean!
I wish I had before pictures so you could see how ugly the living room was before they came. That big green wall is where this beauty-of-a-mirror will go as soon as we find someone to help us put it up. Nevermind the nasty stained carpet. That we can do nothing about, unfortunately.
I bought those tulips last week to welcome my new roommates. I recently decided that tulips are one of my favorite flowers, and these particular ones are nothing short of amazing! They change almost every day from droopy to tall and straight. I swear they've even grown. They are quite active and also quite beautiful.
At the beginning of this school year, I was living with three girls that I didn't know. They were fine girls, but they were a bit messy for my very clean taste. And we just weren't friends. So coming home was not exciting, or relaxing for that matter since messes stress me out. Our apartment wasn't cute and it was usually dirty and it just wasn't homey at all.
Those girls have all since moved out. I lived by myself for a couple of weeks which, I'm not going to lie, was pretty fabulous. But it definitely wasn't homey.
So a few weeks ago, I made a proposition to two of my very good friends who lived across the hall: just move in with me. Duh.
So they did! Two of my best girls, Aubrey and Angela, moved in a week ago and it has been so fun! Here we are in St. George last month. This picture even includes our honorary roommate Jaime. She's over all the time, anyway, so we just call the extra room in our apartment "Jaime's room." We even call it that when she's not here.
They're both clean, too, so our apartment is really pleasant to be in and they brought some fab decor with them. Now our house really is a home... And it's clean!
I wish I had before pictures so you could see how ugly the living room was before they came. That big green wall is where this beauty-of-a-mirror will go as soon as we find someone to help us put it up. Nevermind the nasty stained carpet. That we can do nothing about, unfortunately.
I bought those tulips last week to welcome my new roommates. I recently decided that tulips are one of my favorite flowers, and these particular ones are nothing short of amazing! They change almost every day from droopy to tall and straight. I swear they've even grown. They are quite active and also quite beautiful.
Wednesday, March 23, 2011
not done yet
You may have thought I was done posting today. I did, too. We were both wrong.
I just took a shower. Sometimes I like to stand in the shower, even when I'm done cleaning, and just enjoy the warm water. I know you do it, too; don't judge. Anyway, aside from not being very earth-friendly, it's quite relaxing and I like it. Today in my extra time, I pretended to wash my hair like I was on a shampoo commercial. They always look so happy and refreshed. It was nice for the time, but when I spend too much time in the shower, I start to feel really tired. So I was not feeling very refreshed. I actually took a nap after that instead of doing my homework. Fail.
I think for the rest of my life maybe my only claim to fame will be that I graduated in the same class as Jimmer Fredette. I've never met him, or seen him for that matter (except, of course, on the court), but I'm pretty sure the fact that we go to the same school makes me famous by association. Regardless, I'm excited for the game tomorrow. Purdue already screwed up my bracket by losing, so now I'm relying on Jimmer. Go Cougs!
Friday, Mark Zuckerberg and Orrin Hatch are coming to BYU to speak. That seems like just a very strange combination, but it's also an intriguing one. I'd really like to go listen to what they might have in common. And after seeing The Social Network, Zuckerberg seems like he'd be an interesting person to listen to. But they're coming at exactly the same time that I go to Institute at UVU. I'm choosing God over facebook.
Tomorrow I will be sending a 212 dollar check to the state of Utah for income taxes. I am not pleased with this. I've never had to pay taxes before. I did receive a LOT of money from the government in grants, though, so I guess I should just look at that as a sort of early tax refund. I guess. Ugh.
I just took a shower. Sometimes I like to stand in the shower, even when I'm done cleaning, and just enjoy the warm water. I know you do it, too; don't judge. Anyway, aside from not being very earth-friendly, it's quite relaxing and I like it. Today in my extra time, I pretended to wash my hair like I was on a shampoo commercial. They always look so happy and refreshed. It was nice for the time, but when I spend too much time in the shower, I start to feel really tired. So I was not feeling very refreshed. I actually took a nap after that instead of doing my homework. Fail.
I think for the rest of my life maybe my only claim to fame will be that I graduated in the same class as Jimmer Fredette. I've never met him, or seen him for that matter (except, of course, on the court), but I'm pretty sure the fact that we go to the same school makes me famous by association. Regardless, I'm excited for the game tomorrow. Purdue already screwed up my bracket by losing, so now I'm relying on Jimmer. Go Cougs!
Friday, Mark Zuckerberg and Orrin Hatch are coming to BYU to speak. That seems like just a very strange combination, but it's also an intriguing one. I'd really like to go listen to what they might have in common. And after seeing The Social Network, Zuckerberg seems like he'd be an interesting person to listen to. But they're coming at exactly the same time that I go to Institute at UVU. I'm choosing God over facebook.
Tomorrow I will be sending a 212 dollar check to the state of Utah for income taxes. I am not pleased with this. I've never had to pay taxes before. I did receive a LOT of money from the government in grants, though, so I guess I should just look at that as a sort of early tax refund. I guess. Ugh.
visitors
I graduate four weeks from tomorrow. Although I am aware that many of those graduating the same day will be three years younger than I am, I still feel pretty excited about it.
There is one problem: I won't actually be done with school.
I'll be done with my required coursework this semester, but I've decided to a language certification program for Spanish which requires me to take two more Spanish classes. So, three days after I graduate, I'll go back to class for 6 more weeks. Have I mentioned that I hated the Spanish classes I previously took at BYU? Well, I did. Spring term is not looking very exciting for me.
BUT.
My mom is coming to my graduation! After some misunderstandings as to the date of the graduation (she booked her flight for the weekend after) and then a miraculous courtesy cancellation, she has a plane ticket to come out for 5 days in April! It'll be fun to have her here, and I'm really grateful to have a family that has always supported me in my education, even though it's taken me 7 years to get a bachelor's degree and I chose to do it 1600 miles away from them.
In other news, today my roommate Angela (I have roommates now! More about that later.) was able to correctly identify a Christina Aguilera song by only the first beat. I was flipping through songs and "Dirrty" came on and I skipped past it, but not until the first beat had played. Before the next song even started, I heard from the bathroom, "Dirrty", said in her best Redman voice. I was so impressed that I needed to share. I am so fortunate to be surrounded by such talented people.
There is one problem: I won't actually be done with school.
I'll be done with my required coursework this semester, but I've decided to a language certification program for Spanish which requires me to take two more Spanish classes. So, three days after I graduate, I'll go back to class for 6 more weeks. Have I mentioned that I hated the Spanish classes I previously took at BYU? Well, I did. Spring term is not looking very exciting for me.
BUT.
My mom is coming to my graduation! After some misunderstandings as to the date of the graduation (she booked her flight for the weekend after) and then a miraculous courtesy cancellation, she has a plane ticket to come out for 5 days in April! It'll be fun to have her here, and I'm really grateful to have a family that has always supported me in my education, even though it's taken me 7 years to get a bachelor's degree and I chose to do it 1600 miles away from them.
In other news, today my roommate Angela (I have roommates now! More about that later.) was able to correctly identify a Christina Aguilera song by only the first beat. I was flipping through songs and "Dirrty" came on and I skipped past it, but not until the first beat had played. Before the next song even started, I heard from the bathroom, "Dirrty", said in her best Redman voice. I was so impressed that I needed to share. I am so fortunate to be surrounded by such talented people.
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