Because it helps me love life again...

You may have noticed that I changed the title to my blog, but the explanation must come another time because I have something else I want to blog about more. 

Life is kind of like a roller-coaster.  It brings you up high where you can see all the beautiful views, and then it drops you (you know the feeling where your stomach is suddenly in your mouth) and leaves you breathless, scared, and maybe a little exhilarated (but that's only when you know the momentum will take you up high again).  Well, it seems like I have had a lot of roller-coasting in my life, and it hasn't exactly been the most enjoyable thing ever.  However, as I'm writing this, I think of two quotes by President Gordon B. Hinckley:

The first one, "Life is to be enjoyed, not just endured."

And the second, "Life is just like an old time rail journey ... delays, sidetracks, smoke, dust, cinders, and jolts, interspersed only occasionally by beautiful vistas and thrilling bursts of speed. The trick is to thank the Lord for letting you have the ride." (emphasis added)

I work as a student secretary on campus, and we get the Ensign and New Era magazine every month.  Learn more about them here.  Yesterday, they both came in, and I was SO excited!  Jayze's and my subscription recently expired, so I hadn't seen the September Ensign yet, and I hadn't read the New Era for months.  I had some downtime, so I flipped through the Ensign and the article entitled, "1,000 Things to Be Thankful For" caught my eye.  In short, the author's 12-year-old daughter was given a school assignment to write an essay about 100 things she was thankful for.  She rose to the challenge, asking other members of her family for help.  By the end, she had a little over 1,000 things she was thankful for.  First, I thought it was cool her school teacher gave her class that assignment, and second, it's awesome she was able to come up with over 1,000 things to be thankful for.  I also liked how she asked her family members for help, because then it helped them think about what they were thankful for in life.

Soooooo, I decided to start my own list.  Granted, I only have 172 (compared to 1,000, that's a small number!), but writing it down has helped me think about what I am thankful for more throughout the day.  I'm able to catch myself when I am being negative and think of my thankful list instead.  It really has helped me love life again and know Heavenly Father is aware of me and the different things I go through.  Life is so much better when I focus on the positive rather than the negative, and I have felt a lot happier.  :)

So, in no specific order, here's my list of 172 things (which is still growing day-by-day by the way).  :)

Thankful For:

• my husband, Jayze
• our baby boy
• the aches and pains and hardships of pregnancy because I am just grateful my body is able to be pregnant
• feeling the baby move (helps me know he's okay, and it's such a miracle that a little baby is inside me)
• that I can still fit in some of my clothes - it has been wonderful for our budget
• my Savior, Jesus Christ
• my Heavenly Father
• the Holy Ghost
• the temple - sooo blessed to only live a couple of minutes away from it here in Rexburg
• my home
• Mom
• Dad
• my brother, David
• my sis-in-law, Emily
• my nephew, John
• my baby niece
• my sister, Emily
• my brother-in-law, Silas
• my baby nephew, Breck
• my sister, Felicia
• all of Jayze's family (that would be a lot to list!) :)
• phones
• phone calls
• texts
• emails
• winks from my hubby
• holding hands with my hubby
• hugs
• kisses
• dancing in the kitchen
• our dishwasher
• pictures
• light
• rules
• warnings
• our car
• my job - seriously, it's awesome - a piece of my heart is going to break when I quit, but our baby is soooooo worth it!
• my visiting teachers - they really are the sweetest
• visiting teaching 
• my old ward
• my new ward
• The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
• laughs
• ability to type
• stars
• moon
• sunsets
• high standards
• goals
• pictures of Christ
• personal revelation
• to be a woman
• the knowledge of eternal life, of forever
• tithing
• vacations
• faith
• hope
• foot massages - my husband is amazing at giving those!
• laundry - because it means I have clothes
• washing dishes - because it means I have dishes
• dreams
• wishing wells
• compliments - make the day so much better
• opposition - cause it makes me stronger 
• time to heal
• time
• alone time
• butterflies - proof change for the better is possible
• water fountains
• treadmills - especially in the winter when it's too cold to run outside
• support from others
• service
• Disneyland
• Temple Square
• indoor plumbing - "it's gonna be good" - Hercules  :)
• family reunions
• beauty
• improvement
• a-ha moments
• rainbows 
• the Sacrament
• covenants
• blankets
• pillows
• snuggling with my husband
• my husband's job
• flowers
• sunshine
• summer rain
• pen and paper
• to live in America
• freedom
• agency - the ability to act and not be acted upon
• internet - for the good, not the bad it brings
• repentance
• forgiveness
• ability to exercise
• date nights
• good books
• good movies
• long, hot showers
• fluffy towels
• dancing
• good music
• our full-size bed - sooo much better than sleeping on the floor like we did our first week!
• dresser
• our huge, orange kitchen - super retro, but it's awesome :)
• questions
• The Book of Mormon
• The Doctrine and Covenants
• The Pearl of Great Price
• The Holy Bible - King James version
• lds.org
• Mormon Messages
• Living prophets
• priesthood
• our current bishop
• my previous bishops
• my new sandals - just bought them, and I LOVE them!
• our budget - keeps us on track and financially honest
• good company
• lessons learned
• trials
• water
• grocery stores
• holidays
• smiles
• bed sheets
• vacuum cleaner
• kitchen towels
• watermelon
• dark chocolate
• ice cream
• home-cooked dinners
• plants
• our betta fish, Wyatt
• missionaries
• Olivia
• Erika
• Desirae
• Kelcie
• good examples
• inspirational quotes
• snail mail
• electricity
• milk
• hard workers
• success
• failures
• tender mercies
• prayer
• my body
• Plan of Salvation
• chapstick
• fans
• air conditioning
• heaters
• Ensign
• New Era
• toothbrush
• toothpaste
• good memories
• lotion
• ability to read
• ability to write
• higher education
• birthdays
• a good night's rest
• projects
• other people's ideas 
• ultrasounds
• nail polish

I know there is much, much more to be thankful for.  Right now I'm thankful that it's raining outside.  I'm thankful it's the weekend.  I'm thankful Heavenly Father is patient with me and all my imperfections.

And I'm thankful because life really is good.

Cherish the moment... 

 

July Madness

The past couple of weeks were crazy busy!  But also super fun.  Here's a quick rundown of what happened (in no particular order):

• My sister had her baby. 
• My husband and I hit our one-year mark.
• Attended the Flake reunion.
• Went to the McCleve reunion.
• Celebrated July 24th.
• Traveled in a car a total of about 28-30 hours (there and back).
• Our baby is 34 weeks old.

Who knew so much could happen in two weeks? 

The reason for all this madness is that Jayze and I were able to go to Snowflake for the 24th Celebration, plus some.  Rexburg is about 14 hours away from Snowflake, and we did the trip in one go on the way down.  We traveled with Jayze's sister and brother-in-law, NaElle and Cody, and their toddler, Crue.  It actually wasn't too bad.  We had to stop more (thanks to my pregnant body), but we made it safely.  It helped that we had four drivers in the car because we were able to rotate all night.  We left Rexburg around 9:00p.m. and arrived in Snowflake around 11:30a.m.  It always amazes me how excited I am to make it to Holbrook (those who know the area know why).  From there it's only 30 more minutes to Snowflake.  And dang, it felt soooooo good to be in Snowflake!  Jayze and I hadn't been there since Christmas.  Home is definitely where family is.  I don't think I would like being there quite as much if my family didn't live there.

The same day we got to Snowflake, we went to the Melodrama with my dad and sister, Felicia that Jayze's sister and brother-in-law, Jewel and Steve, were in that night.  It was so much fun!  I was a little skeptical of how it was going to turn out (I don't think I had ever been to a melodrama in my life).  Jewel and Steve did an amazing job - they pretty much stole the show, but maybe I'm a little biased.  :)  Wish I had thought to bring my camera!

That weekend was the Flake reunion, as well as the 24th Celebration.  I was able to have a small, breakfast baby shower before the Flake rodeo, which was so fun.  Jayze's mom and sisters helped plan and decorate for that.  It turned out really cute.  Getting baby clothes made it seem even more real that this baby is going to come out soon....

 Still making me laugh after almost a year of being married.  :)

The rodeo was really fun to watch.  I sat with the Flake's (who else?) and watched my husband wrestle cows and steers and whatever else was out there. 

The parade was on Saturday.  Sadly, I was not able to watch it because...I was in it!  Steve conned, coerced, begged, kindly asked Jayze and I to sit on the Wells Fargo wagon and wave.  It was actually pretty cool to sit in an authentic Wells Fargo wagon.  Plus, it rained towards the end of the parade, so it was good being all nice and dry. 

 Jayze, his sister Jewel, and two of her kids, Maggie and Clark.

The silly kid just wanted a funny picture!  Hence, him sticking out his tongue. 

On Sunday, we watched the play, "What Power Can Stay the Heavens."  My mom had a huge part in bringing it together, so it was neat to go watch it.  It's a play about the prophet Joseph Smith's life.  The Spirit was really strong throughout the whole thing.  I'm so grateful for Joseph Smith and all he did in restoring the gospel.  He was an amazing man.

The next week was pretty chill, which was nice.  We just hopped back and forth between the McCleve and Flake families.  I'm a little sad though, because I realized I took lots of pictures when we were with the Flake's but not so much the McCleve's.  Next year, I will remember to bring my camera battery charger!  :) 

Jayze and I hit our one-year mark on July 31st.  We had already celebrated it in Rexburg (we didn't really feel like celebrating in Snowflake), so we just took it easy that day.  We slept in, watched a movie, ate tons of watermelon and cantaloupe (thank you Dad!), and ate dinner and played games with my dad and grandma that night.  It was a good day. 

The McCleve reunion was wayyyyyy fun too.  Jayze and I actually slept in a tent!  Our first time camping together! It rained cats and dogs on Friday, but thankfully our tent didn't get toooo wet.  And I was grateful sleeping in a tent wasn't uncomfortable, even being 8 months pregnant.  We played games, ate lots of food, chatted with family, took pictures, did crafts, watched and participated in the horseshoe tournament, and had no phone service the entire time (which was nice because then I could focus on the moment better). 

It was soooooo good being with family again.  And what's great is I was able to see my sister, her husband, and their adorable little newborn on the way back up to Idaho!  They named him Breck Silas Andersen, and he is just so perfect.  When we walked into their apartment, I could feel the Spirit really strong.  I think that comes from Emily and Silas, but even more because of a little baby that just came from Heavenly Father.  I'm so grateful I was able to hold that little baby and hope my baby turns out as cute as him.  :)  Only 6 more weeks....

Welp, that about sums up the past couple of weeks.  Happy July!  Now on to August...