Goals for 2014....and Remember 2013

As the year came to close, there was a lot of reflection on how 2013 went. Of course then sitting in Sacrament meeting today a lot of people were reflecting on 2013 and commenting on how great or how not so great 2013 was. I've decided that since it's 2013 I will list 13 things I did or learned in 2013.

1. Driving in snow.... so not my thing! I learned that you don't hit the brakes when you hit a patch of ice...yes this California raised girl did that....it didn't go so well haha
2. Driving 3 hours to the temple is totally worth it... EVERY single time!
3. Living on my own wasn't all it was hyped up to be.... moving in with roomates... totally a better option!
4. Kidney stones really are painful and if anyone says otherwise they obviously don't know what they are talking about.
5.  Became an owner of a 2013 Honda CRV and absolutely love it!!!
6. Sent one of my best friends, my cousin Chelsea and my little brother Chad off on missions for the church. (I am currently now writing 5 missionaries ....used to be 7 but two are home and my other cousin gets home in February!).
7. Quality time with family in Utah and Cali over the summer=the best thing ever!!! I love spending time with family!
8. With the help of my roommate/friend who experimented with my hair (and I let her ;)) I was bold this year with colors and had purple and pink in my hair. Everyone said they love it but I think I'm good with it and want to go back to original colors haha.
9. Reading my scriptures and praying daily make my days go by so much easier and better. If I don't I've noticed a huge difference in my day!
10. All those body mechanics in nursing school weren't just a simple read....they are meant for real life. And even though I do bend and move correctly I somehow managed to hurt my back but it's getting better with time and rest and not lifting more than 15 pounds.
11. I took on a new motto this year: Live Every Moment, Laugh Every Day and Love Beyond Words. True words to live by :)
12. New Mexico started to grow on me more.... learned to love and appreciate it more.
13. Spending Christmas in Hawaii with my family was the best ending to the year I could possibly ask for. (Don't worry my Christmas posts will be coming soon!)

2013 in New Mexico is where the Lord wanted me to be. That may be the same for 2014, who knows.... haha I feel like a lot is going to happen this year in 2014 so hopefully it's a year full of fun, laughter and lot's of new things!

My goals for 2014 are:
*Continue to read my scriptures daily
*Attend the temple often and do more temple work for my ancestors
*Take more weekend trips away and try and see family more this year!
*Eat healthy and work out daily
*Strengthen my relationship with family, co-workers and friends
*Continue to trust in the Lord and let him guide me through this life

I love you all who read this and I hope that this year brings you lot's of love, happiness and peace.

Finishing Up Days of Thanks

Day 21: Happy Birthday Daddy!!! I'm so grateful that I have the best Dad ever even if he isn't with us physically anymore. I miss him every day but I know he is always near by.

Day 22: Laughter. Today I'm grateful for laughs. Especially with my co workers who make my work day more enjoyable by smiling and laughing.

Day 23: I'm grateful for Saturday's. Not only are they short days at work haha but it's also the day to start prepping for Sunday.

Day 24: Today I'm grateful for the Sacrament and the opportunity I have to partake of it each week and renew my covenants with my heavenly father.

Day 25: Scentsy!!! Anyone who knows me knows that I like things to smell good haha. There is scentsy all over my house and while my roommates may not necessarily enjoy the strong scents sometimes our house always smells good :)

Day 26: Today I'm grateful for the scriptures to read from and learn from. There are a lot of great teachings and lessons to be learned in there.

Day 27: text messaging is a blessing haha. Seriously I love that I can text the people I care about the most or call but when you have something quick to say it's nice to just send a quick text message. :)

Day 28: Happy Thanksgiving. I'm grateful for the opportunity to sit down with good friends and think about the past year and what I'm thankful for. (I spent Thanksgiving with the Hathenbrucks this year.... due to work had to stay close to home)

Day 29: As November comes to a close and Christmas approaches, I am thankful for my Savior Jesus Christ who died for me and made it possible for me to return and live with Him and Heavenly Father again someday.

Day 30: Last but not least  I'm grateful for the month of November where I can give thanks for what I have and remember to always give thanks not just this month :)

Happy Days of Thanks!!!

Thankful Days 5, 6, and 7

Day 5:

Today was a rough day at work. I had a patient who was upset and told me I needed to be more flexible (as in working with what he wanted) so I could be a great nurse not just a good one. I took it kind of hard because I try to be the best nurse I can possibly be but let's face it, no one is perfect and we all have hard days. Today though I am grateful for my job and the opportunity I have to serve my patients whether they like it or not and I know that I'm helping them and that's all that really matters. Besides...next work day will be better I just know it :)

Day 6:

Okay since I moved to Farmington it's been an adjustment trying to adjust to the weather. My allergies instead of getting better have actually gotten worse if you can believe it! Point in case.... it was 23 degrees this morning at 8!!! Like seriously!! That was too cold! And it's only the beginning of November!! I'm going to freeze this winter haha!!! So I made myself a cup of hot cocoa with my breakfast! I'm so grateful for hot cocoa and blankets haha! They definitely keep me warm!!

Day 7:

I am grateful for service!!! Last night I had the opportunity to go out and do visits with the branch here and visit some wonderful people in our branch. It was great! I love doing service and feeling like I've helped someone just by smiling at them or giving them a hug :)

Days of Thanks 2, 3 and 4 :)

Day 2:

I am grateful for crafts! Keep me busy and I love doing them!!! And now that it's starting to be Christmas time, I'm finding lot's of cute crafts to do and some to even send to missionaries but that will be a post for another time ;) For now, I'm just grateful for crafts and fun projects to do :)

Day 3:

I am grateful for the temple. I haven't been able to go in a while but I'm hoping to in a couple of weeks or at least by the end of month when I'm in Phoenix :)

Day 4:

I am grateful for emails!!! Seriously one of the best things about the start of every week is getting an email from all my favorite missionaries :)

30 Day of Thanks

Since I'm not posting on FB for the time being, I will be doing my 30 day of Thanks posts on the blog. Can't promise I will do it daily but I will get my 30 thanks' in :)

Today I am grateful for my family. It's hard being away from them because I am a super family oriented person and moving to a place where I knew absolutely knew no one, was WAY outside my comfort zone. But it really doesn't matter because no matter where I am, my family will always be there for me. And I hope they know that I am always there for them as well. :)

Some extended family members I feel a closer connection to than others but I love all of my family no matter what. And I love those who aren't "related" to me but are my family as well. Like the Hathenbrucks and Jacksons... their love for me is more than I ever asked for but I am truly blessed to have them in my life.

So thank you to all my family wherever you are for all you do for me. Even if you think you haven't done anything, or we haven't talked in a while... you have. I'm blessed to know you and so grateful to have you in my life! Love you all!

Life.....Always An Adventure :)

Due to some recent events, I am taking a break from facebook. Don't worry it's not anything major haha I just need to take a break from the things I see/read on facebook. In a way it's a good thing because now I can blog more :)

I had to take my car in to get fixed this week. I know I know a brand new car that already needs fixing... let's just say I had a fight with the garage and the garage won :( And it took me three months to finally get my roof fixed but the people are super helpful and friendly and I hopefully will have my car back in no time.

Being without a car all week definitely makes me even more grateful for a car! Kind of can't go anywhere far but walking places is good. It's nice that the gym is right behind my house now so to save on gas I just walk and it's really starting to pay off but that's a post for another time ;) Anyways, I am not one to ask for help very often. I like to be the one to provide help, not the other way around haha it's something I'm working on but I'm really grateful for the people in my life who have offered to take me the places I've needed to go while not having a car. It's been a huge blessing and those people truly were blessed helping me out.

Since I've been kind of stuck at the house, I've been working on some projects that I'm excited to share in later posts :) And I've been watching this new TV series that a good friend of mine got me interested in. Thank goodness for netflix to keep me busy while working on projects. Anyways...it's also given me time to evaluate my life. Yes, my life has been difficult the past while however I am grateful for my Heavenly Father and Christ's hand in my life. I have this saying that eventually will be up on the wall in my room it has all these words on it: Be Happy, Think Positively, Stay Strong, Work Hard, Have Faith, Eat Healthy, Exercise Daily, Love Freely, Live in the Moment, Read More, Relax, Laugh Out Loud, Worry Less, Forgive and Forget, Give Generously and Be Grateful.

Aren't those awesome words to live by?! What a great reminder I get to see each and every day. I can't wait to finally put those up on the wall next to my temple and Christ picture. It's going to be great! Anyhow, if you want updates on my life... don't bother checking facebook. I won't be on there. But I will post on here and hopefully post pictures soon.

When It Rains... It Pours

It's been a long time since I've blogged... I know... sadness. Truthfully I love blogging and just kind of got out of the habit of blogging all the time.... however now I need to get back into for a few reasons... One... it's calming and relaxing to write my thoughts down.... and besides my journal... I need to be better at documenting what's going on in my life or my thoughts rather because really it will be good for my posterity to read.

With that said, I am back to blogging...or trying to be haha. And I don't want this post to be a "Oh I'm so sorry for you"....I just need to write what's been on my mind and leave it at that.

I would say that for the most part, I'm a happy individual, loving life and trying to be everyone's friend. Granted when times of trial come upon me, I have a hard time continuing to be happy while going through the trial. I guess I never really noticed that I did that up until recently.

Now... here's where I don't want anyone to start feeling sorry for me

I really am not going to go into detail on anything I've been going through....mainly because I know that there are a lot of people out there going through even more difficult trials then I am currently experiencing. We all have problems... we all have trials that God has given us. We are here to be tried and tested. One thing that I've learned over the years is to never lose faith in Him. If He brought me to it, He will lead me through it.

The past few weeks have been extremely trying and difficult. I've felt like I've failed at some things and other things I've asked myself "Why Me?". Yes, I will admit that I did ask that more than once the past few weeks. It's been rough but all I can say is that even though it's been difficult, I turned to the Lord and prayed hard for peace and comfort and for His help to get me through. Keeping the Faith is really what it's all about.  And He really has been there for me and given me peace and comfort.

I know that the Lord has a plan for me. I think my problem is I'm a little too impatient and want our timing to align haha but I've learned to trust in Him and I know everything will be okay. I also have to remember that while going through my hard times, I need to be happy despite what's happening to me. A really good friend of mine pointed that out to me this week. Actually now that I think about it, more than one individual told me to smile and keep on going. I guess I needed two people to remind me of that this time around haha. Don't worry I'm smiling and thanking Heavenly Father for my difficult times because it's made me into the person I am today.

I am proud to say that I love my Heavenly Father. I know He loves me. He has a plan for me. Through all my hard times and difficulties, He is there helping me through. He has also blessed me with people here physically to help me through. Without my family and good friends, my life wouldn't be the same.

I know that right now Farmington, New Mexico is where I need to be and like I always say it's an adventure worth taking :) Every single trial I've experienced or am experiencing is for my good and learning. I just hope that during my adventures... I can share with others what I've learned from them. I am who I am today because of my trials....and of course the good times that come with the hard times because really we do get good times also :)

So really when it rains....it pours in my life... BUT I have the Gospel of Jesus Christ in my life and I know that my Heavenly Father and Jesus love me. And I have great support all around me to get through it all.  It's like that song in the Prince of Egypt, there can be miracles when you believe, who knows what miracles you can achieve when you believe..... maybe my trials are hard.... but miracles do happen when I believe and when I'm helping others.

Life is an adventure worth taking and as long as I have the Lord in my life, I know I can get through anything! Keeping the Faith. :)

Updates in 2013

Okay okay..... I KNOW it's been a LONG time since I've last blogged. Kind of crazy really because I love it but life just kind of got busy ya know? That's still no excuse.... I need to blog and write down my thoughts and life so my friends and family can keep in touch ;)

So anyways....here's what is happening or has happened in the past months since I last blogged.....warning...it might be a lot to read but there are pictures to keep you entertained as well :)



October 2012:

Had to work on Halloween.... don't worry it wasn't too exciting. I did stop by my adopted family afterwards to see the kids all dressed up. Nothing really to report other than spending time with friends and working a ton ;)

 I've been blessed to be able to go to the temple at least once a month now and it's just so great that I can actually go!!! It's hard moving from having the temple 10 minutes from your house to 3 hours away. But it definitely makes me appreciate the temple more and the blessings that come from going!

I spent Thanksgiving with the Hathenbrucks. They are my adopted family here and I just love them! I wasn't able to go home for the holidays so it was nice to be able to have somewhere to go.

I also spent Christmas with them and I just love these two! Not going to lie....Thanksgiving was hard not being with family...my first time ever by the way away from family (extended included) for the holidays and it was rough but I felt so loved. They made me feel right at home. Christmas was even harder but I am so grateful for the love and kindness this family has show me.

Also spent New Years with them....surprised don't be haha. This isn't the greatest picture but it shows you we like to have a good time ;)

It's always nice to feel appreciated and that's exactly what the Elders Quorum in our Branch did for us! We had a women's appreciation night it was awesome. Of course with friends like Brittney it always is a blast! I just love her!

 This guy is still going strong on the mission and I just love hearing from him and getting pictures!!! I had to add one just so you know he is doing well and having a good time. I just sent him a care package and I'm dying to hear how he liked it. According to Auntie he loved it though so that's good ;)

 I hit my one year mark at work. Weird how fast time has flown by.... I miss these lovely ladies though! I think a little reunion is much needed and soon!

 We've gotten snow... not as much as other places but enough for this Cali girl! This was at work one day.... the most I've ever seen at work and it was falling hard. It was pretty though...just didn't like driving in it!

Okay I hate to admit it but I was sick ALOT this winter. First I got a cold, then got over it and would get another one. Then....got even sicker before I got better. And then something else hit and it was like a never ending process of bad health. Don't worry though I'm doing ALOT better! Minus the allergies but they are under control for the time being. :)

 Got to go tubing with the Branch and it was loads of fun. Next time though I need to remember to bring gloves!! That was a mistake haha but it was fun!

 Went shooting and had a blast!!! Shot my first shot gun ever and it was so cool!!! I'm a newbie at it but it was a blast! I want to go again!

 This lovely lady got her mission call to the Birmingham Alabama mission. I just love her she is fantastic! Our good friend Alissa took pictures of us and we had a blast! Steph kept saying the camera loved her more than me but we all know it was pretty much equal ;)

 I FINALLY got to see my mom and Bret!! They came out for like two days and it was so great just to have them here to visit!! We went to the Four Corners Monument and Bret thought that was pretty neat to stand in 4 places at once!

 I just love this kid! He makes me smile!! I miss him....BUT I get to see him soon so it will be awesome!!

 Breakfast at IHOP before Steph left to report to the MTC. I miss her ALOT but I hear from her weekly so it's good :) I just love her so much!! And I'm so proud of her decision to serve and teach others the Gospel!

 Had a lovely girls night down in Albuquerque. I had a blast with these two. And of course I loved doing two temple sessions while we were there :)

 Okay....I just can't believe my little brother is 18 and his papers are IN! We are just waiting for a call! How crazy is that?! I just love him and he is going to be an awesome missionary!

 I recently went to my first carnival ever.... I know I know. Crazy right?! We have them in Cali all the time and I have never gone!! It was so much fun though! We had a blast!! And I caught some fish!!  It was a blast and of course I was with some pretty awesome people which made it so much fun!!

 That's pretty much the happenings right now. I am in the works of moving into another place with two friends of mine. It's a work in progress only because I may not be able to get out of my lease early but I'm trying to....so we will see what happens :)


In less than 3 weeks I will be going home for a week and a half and I'm SO excited!!! It's been 9 months since I've been home and seen my family all together so I'm EXCITED!!! It will be awesome!!! And I will try to be better at blogging. This blog is probably still going to go private so make sure I know you read this so I can add you to the list when I do make it private! Now it's time for me to clean and get ready for the rest of my day :)

My Birthday Week...and other updates....

To be honest.... not a whole lot happened on my birthday this year. And.... I didn't really want it to. I had already celebrated with Emily when the Jacksons were here and I was going to Cali a week later so no big deal. I could've asked for my birthday off but.....why should I when I can work and get more hours before I come to Cali?

My birthday week started off good. The Jackson's were here, see post below. They left on the 3rd late in the afternoon and I spent the rest of the day cleaning and being lazy watching a movie. On the 4th I went to do laundry.... cool deal I know. One of these days I will have to get a picture in the laundromat but I always forget. I like my little laundromat though, the people are so friendly and nice. lol. Anyways, then I went grocery shopping since I would be working the next three days, off Sunday then work three days then fly to Cali.  Then I went to work to get some of my training papers signed. Fun times. Later in the afternoon I went over to my friend Stephanie's and spent the 4th of July with her family. I absolutely love them! They are all so great! I've been blessed to know them!

Then I worked. Wow...I know. Awesome right?! haha. Work was good. I love what I do so I can't complain. The day before my birthday though was kind of a nightmare of a day but it turned out well. And my birthday went by fast ;) I went and got myself some appetizers from Applebee's since I had a gift card and watched this movie on Netflix called Griffin and Phoenix. I actually kind of loved that movie even though it was a tad bit sad. I opened my card from my Grandparents and my gift from my mom and brother's and that was that! :)

Birthday week wasn't too interesting but that's okay. I know this next year will be full of lot's of excitement and adventure :) It will be grand! Here are some fun pictures of my happenings on birthday week :)

Me with cute little LiLi she is adorable and my new bestfriend! :) 

Hanging out on the fourth!

Happy Birthday Kati LOVE mom! She is the best! :) 

Major thunderstorm but this is what the sky looked like.... pretty awesome! 

In other updates:

*I've decided tires hate me. I've had one flat and one cracked tire in two weeks. Thus I will be replacing ALL of them (besides the one I already did with the flat) as soon as I get back from Cali. Not a fan of this.

*I really need to make some cake balls soon.  I gave the recipe to some dear friends of mind and ever since I've been craving them and just need an excuse to make them but I think I'll just take them to work or something ;)

*I'm in Cali and totally loving it but that will be a blog post all on it's own coming soon ;)

Utah!!! :)

With my new schedule (which sadly is changing again supposedly :/ ) I work six days in a row and have six days off. So what better to do then go to Utah on my days off?! Yes!!! It actually wasn't planned that my mom and brothers were also going to be in Utah but it was great to be with the whole family for Father's day weekend :) Chad had baseball camp so he drove up with Jeri and then my mom and Bret drove up Wednesday and I drove up Thursday :)

Thursday I got in around 3ish and then we all went and picked up Chad and Brad from baseball camp. We went to the new City Creek Mall in Salt Lake and it is FANTASTIC!!! LOVED IT! I can't wait to go again!!! We ate dinner at the Cheesecake Factory which was bomb! Then Jeri and Aaron dropped Brad off at the airport while my mom, boys and I shopped :) 

Friday we went to Seven Peaks Water Park! It was super busy but not too bad. All the slides were awesome and I loved going on a double tube with Bret. Haha he cracks me up! Chad was pretty funny too screaming for fun on some of the slides and dumping my mom out at the end lol. It was nice to soak up the Sun even though it wasn't in Cali ;) Afterwards we went back to Jeri's and showered then headed over to Aaron's for pizza and movie night. We had some yummy Papa John's pizza (I haven't had ANY Papa John's since I moved which is CRAZY) and watched the Dark Knight. Now I can't wait for the Dark Knight Rises movie in July ;) 

Saturday was kind of a chill day. In the morning us girls went to this cute store Jeri showed us that has all sorts of fun decor and crafts. Of course I got stuff to decorate my house with.... maybe I should take pictures haha ;) Then we went and got groceries for our BBQ. We had a BBQ with Drew and Taylor at a park near Jeri's. It was totally so much fun!!! Bret was so excited to see Drew and was such a good helper with Collin. He loved playing with him :) After Drew and Taylor headed home, Chad and I went and saw Men In Black 3. It was so great!! haha I laughed alot it was cute but maybe it was late so I just liked it more who knows lol

Sunday we went to Jeri's ward for church. To be honest....the past three Father's Day I haven't really wanted to go to Sacrament and hear all the talks about how great people's Father's are and all that Jazz. The first year we were in San Diego but the past two we haven't been. A year ago was super tough in my singles ward Sacrament meeting hearing all the talks and it just made me miss Dad that much more. So honestly I wasn't totally thrilled about going through that again but church is important and the Sacrament is VERY important and I was with family so of course I was going. Drew and Taylor had actually invited me up to their ward but since Mom and the boys were leaving after church, I decided we should all go together to Jeri's ward. It was actually a great sacrament meeting and didn't make me all emotional haha. I loved it. Afterwards we all drove back to Jeri's and Mom and the boys packed up the car and left. I was sad to see them leave but I knew I would see them in just a few short weeks so it was okay :) A few hours later I headed up to Drew and Taylor's for dinner and to spend the night. It was totally awesome! We had shish kabobs (I hope that's spelled right lol) and some rootbeer and trifle! It was awesome! Drew is such a great Dad and I am so thankful Drew and Taylor let me come spend Father's Day evening with them. It was great to just spend time with them. Taylor actually went upstairs to put Melia to bed and so Drew and I were playing legos with Collin. After like ten minutes though Collin decided he was done but Drew and I still were playing with them haha. We had a good much needed chat that night so I don't mind that we were playing with toys with no kid around ;)

The next morning I headed over to the SLC airport to pick up my cousin Brad and his friend Jeremy to take them to EFY. We drove back to Provo and Brad was craving some Cafe Rio. It was almost ten in the morning and check in was at 11. We found one in Provo and got there around 10:25. We had to wait for five minutes before they were officially open but the boys got their Cafe Rio and were all set to go :) We then attempted to try and find where they were supposed to check in. Mind you, I am not familiar with BYU campus at ALL so a good text to Aaron really helped and guided me in the right direction. After what seemed like forever standing in the hot sun in line the boys were checked in. The next thing was to take them to the dorms. That was pretty easy and simple with the map they gave me :) After I dropped them off and said good bye to Brad I headed back to Jeri's to do some much needed laundry. I had told Taylor I would be back in in the afternoon but I was much later than I thought ;/ Funny thing is when you do laundry at the laundromat you are done in an hour with three loads. With one washer and dryer it takes longer but silly me I forgot that! haha. It was all good though. I headed back up to Drew and Taylor's and then we all headed over to Paula and Alan's while Drew gave the kids piano lessons. Afterwards Drew, Taylor and I and the kids went to this place called the PIE. I hope that's right but whatev... it was so GREAT!!! I'm actually craving the pizza Taylor and I had it was SO good! Next time I'm in Utah we have to go again! We headed back to the house and then chatted with Drew and Taylor until late. Then I drove back to Provo. I'll admit I was sad to leave :( I really love talking with Drew and Taylor and I hope that I can be in Utah more so I can all the time!!! And of course see some of my other cousins too!!!

I had debated leaving Tuesday after I did a session at the Provo temple but....my sister kind of was sad that the past two days I hadn't been with her so I stayed another night. Tuesday morning I went to Provo in attempts to do a session and did sealings instead! I was stoked! I love doing them! I was really overwhelmed with how large the Provo temple is and got lost but thankfully there were kind people everywhere to help me! After the session I went back to Jeri's and took a nap. Then decided to do some grocery shopping since the next day I was driving home and after that working six days. First though I made a stop at a scrub store and bought me some new scrubs. I absolutely love them! I need to get more! After shopping Jeri was home was I went home and then we caught up with life then went to dinner at this Mexican restaurant in Provo. It was really good. I loved their salsa. Afterwards we went next door (not really...like a block down but that's what Aaron said ;) ) to get some Gelato. We got some then walked around a bit. It was cool. Then we headed back to Jeri's and I packed up my car. Then Jeri and I talked for like an hour before falling asleep.

The next day I headed out and said goodbye to Jeri and Utah. I miss it already! I'll be back in Utah in August but in Park City. I'm excited for that. Anyways... here are pictures from my fun trip!! I figured you got all the reading out of the way now time to look at pretty pictures ;) I didn't take as many as I should have though...oh well it's all documented in writing :)

The temple from the City Creek Mall

Chillin at City Creek 

Soakin up the sun at Seven Peaks!

After church on campus... Bret really liked the desks at each seat he kept trying to pull his up during Sacrament haha

Provo Temple

The view from the temple... pretty!

Bret being such a great helper with Collin!

You Matter to Him

So as most of you know, moving here was a huge step for me. A big one and I took it as a challenge and looked at it as an adventure and it has been quite the adventure. I have had a lot of feelings on my mind the past few weeks and just haven't written them down here.

Today in church we had a lesson in Relief Society on the talk President Uchtdorf gave in October General Conference. It's called, You Matter to Him. I love the talk, it's a good read. You can read it here. My favorite quote of the entire talk is when he says " No matter where you live, no matter how humble your circumstances, how meager your employment, how limited your abilities, how ordinary your appearance, or  how little your calling in the Church may appear to you, you are not invisible to your Heavenly Father. He loves you. He knows your humble heart and your acts of love and kindness. Together they form a lasting testimony of your fidelity and faith".

We all have our own conversion stories of the Gospel and part of my conversion as a teenager was understanding that God loves me. I mean I knew he did, and I've always known but as I've gotten a little older, I've come to realize just how much He really does care about me. I think I've grown closer to Him since I've moved here because I truly had no one. I hardly knew a soul when I moved. I was moving on Faith and knowing that God would be with me every step of the way. It was a hard transition for me being away from family and friends. I knew no one here. And there were days when I felt like I was truly alone but those days that thought only last a few seconds because I know that God is ALWAYS with me.

I met someone recently, well since I've moved here who is an amazing woman and is really just so talented. Sadly though, she feels like she isn't good enough and will never measure up to much. We went to dinner and I had a long conversation with her about how she does matter and how she is great and how the right people will see that. The one's that don't, don't matter. She was only here for a short time but I know we will always keep in touch and meet up every now and then. And I am going to share this talk with her. Our Heavenly Father loves each and every one of us! Like President Uchtdorf said, He knows our hearts and our acts of love and kindness. That's what matters. Remember that. And share it with others so they know too that WE MATTER. Our Lord loves us and is there for us no matter what.

Don't take life for granted..

I wasn't going to blog about this but it's been on my mind all week and I think writing it out might help, plus I think it's a good reminder to us all, otherwise I would've just kept this in my journal.

New Mexico is beautiful. I love the weather here, I love that it snows and then melts but it's gorgeous when it snows and it's not too much. At least that's what I thought until Monday morning. Sunday night a storm blew in and it snowed. When I got up for work in the morning I looked outside and it was still snowing a bit but I figured it wouldn't be too bad driving in to work. I knew I needed to give myself extra time to drive to work so I hurried and got ready and was on my way. A few minutes after driving, the snow started falling harder and it was hard to see. I thought about calling in and saying I wouldn't be coming in until later (I was doing computer stuff all day, not on the floor) but thought oh no, better get used to it. Ten minutes into my drive, a car in front of me was slowing down so I stepped on my brakes and I went sliding. I can't describe what happened, it was just one of those times where I didn't really know what was happening but at the same time did know. I didn't know what to do and I just kept praying that I wouldn't flip. Luckily the car stopped I basically did an upside down L except I went to the right not the left. I was fine, the car was fine and I drove the rest of the way to work but VERY slow and the entire day I was shaky and still in a bit of shock. Truthfully, it could've and should've been a lot worse in my opinion and it wasn't. And I KNOW it's because I have people watching over me and protecting me.

This whole week I've driven that road and that spot and I look and see where I could've gone into a big ditch or hit a light pole or a fence but I didn't. I stopped a short distance from a fence and the ditch was a little ways down and so was the pole. I know that when I hit that patch of ice and went sliding, someone was protecting me and watching over me and all was well.

It is moments like these though that remind me how precious life is and how in any second or moment, in can change. That's why I always tell the people I love that I love them. It's important to me. Is it important to you?? We all have people watching over us and protecting us. I'm a firm believer in that and I hope that you all know never to take life for granted and be safe on the roads!!! ;)

I've learned my lesson. The ladies at work gave me tips on driving in the snow and how to step on the brake pedal and turn the steering wheel and so on and so on but I'm definitely not a fan of driving in the snow. New Mexico is still beautiful and I love it, but when it snows again, I hopefully will be comfortably inside but if I do have to drive, it will be very SLOW and careful :)

Just a tip for the week, be careful driving in snow and remember we have guardian angels watching over us :)

Work, Work Work, Then Play!!!!

So this past week and a half I worked ALOT. Nine days in a row to be exact and with the time change..... let's just say it was extremely difficult to get through but somehow I managed to have enough energy for each day and by the night I was just completely exhausted!!!! I love working and my job is great it just would've been nice to have a day off in there some where but oh well, gotta work right!!

Emily and Jake and the kids came up for a few days to visit some friends in Durango and they stopped and stayed at my place for a day. That was nice. Course I had to work that morning but I came home around one and we went shopping and had a late lunch. It was great to see them because I haven't seen the kids or Jake in over a year! I have seen Em and we've skyped but still it was great to see all of them in person. I can't believe how big Miguel is getting! He is no longer a little kid, he is all growed up ;)

Friday I met them in Durango and spent the day with them there. That was a blast!! We went to the recreation center and swam. I can't tell you how great it felt to do some laps in the lap pool before playing with the kids. I miss my swim workouts. I'm hoping when I have a more set schedule I can join the gym and get some swim workouts in there. I love it!! We swam for a few hours, ate lunch and then swam some more then went back to their friends house. After we showered, Emily decided that her and I needed to their Razor S out for a ride. Let's just say, I like going slow haha ;) But it sure was beautiful up in the mountains in Durango. Loved it!!! Here are pictures of my fun day!!!

The drive to Durango!! Love the clear blue skies out here!!

Elissa at lunch :) 

The kids posing for us :) 

Laura and Miguel on the Razor S

Me and Emily :) 

Isn't it gorgeous!!! 

Razor S

Posing with the beautiful background and the BIG puffy jacket haha... yes it was a little cold but such a beautiful day!

Miss Emily!!

Taking Elissa out for a ride :) 

Kara cute on a ride :) 

My little Kara cute!!! Love her!

Elissa with their friends dog Roxy.  :) 

Afterwards, we ate dinner then I said bye and headed home. I had a great conversation with one of my friends back home and it was great to catch up!!! I totally crashed after that I was exhausted haha.

Saturday I just took it easy and relaxed and got some necessary shopping done then was invited to go to dinner with a group of people from the branch. It was great hanging out with them and just having a good time. I didn't stay for games because I was getting tired but it was great to hang out and have fun and I hope to do it again soon! I can't believe my weekend and days off are over but I'm refreshed and ready to get back to work!!! :)