This Girl Needs a Belt!

On October 24th I joined 'Boot Camp with Jess and Company'

This is after one week of working out. One week wearing a 30 lb vest while working out.

Since then I have lost 8 lbs!!! and feel amazing. I am doing workouts I never dreamed of doing and now I cannot wait to get to the gym every morning.

Hopefully, I will get some measurements soon but I will tell you my clothes are fitting again and I feel like I look good. My arms are looking toned.

This is the best move I have taken for my overall health. Today one of my trainers came to me and said "You have come so far in such a short time, You will have no problem reaching your goals."

I believe him! I can do this.

Along with working out I am doing a meal plan. I eat 6 meals a day. I actually eat the same thing all week long which is great for me. I do not like planning food and I do not like having to come up with something new every day. This takes all the work out of it. Plus I am learning how to prepare so many new things. I am loving it. I also like it because I know I am getting the nutrition I need for all the working out I am doing.

The best part is I feel good all together. I am tired a lot but overall my energy has improved!

Stay tuned!

If I ever find my camera I will take another picture.

Death of a Fruit Fly

Clapping your hands frantically will yield approximately 1 fly per hour. They are tricky little buggers. You can however come at them with your finger and smash them, but you have to get the right angel so they do not see you coming. If you try to catch them in your hand they disappear when you open your hand. My solution... I run my hand under water in case they are in there I drown them.

These darn flies are driving me crazy. They like to eat my dinner when I do I would not be surprised if I had one of them for dinner last night.

My plan...though they are persistent and tricky they are dumb. I hear if you put a little treat in a bottle, then put a funnel on the top they will fly in to get the treat. But the "catch" is they will not be able to get out because they do not realize that the entrance is also the exit!

Wish me luck in my experiment. Anyone have some wine...I hear that is a good bait.

Short commute, steep hills

As the weather starts turning colder I have been assessing the hills I now live on and travel up and down daily. This is going to be a fun winter. I am reminded of some thoughts that I once shared. I feel there will be plenty more of these to come.

Icy Thoughts
By Jessica B.

Oh I hope I stop soon...
There is the curb...
stuck in the gutter I hope not...
I am hungry...
Remember when my house was not on a hill...
To far past the driveway I will have to turn around

The following are more thoughts as she spun her wheels attempting a turn back up the hill...

You knew this would not work...
I am hungry if I get stuck here I might not get the dinner I want...
I hope a car does not turn down this street...
burnt rubber not really a good smell...
Oh remember when my house was in the desert...
Note to self next place I live there will have hot guys next door

Thoughts as she drove around the block...

Should I try from and uphill aproach or a downhill...
Who should I call to coach me...
what shall I have for dinner...
oh nice Christmas lights...
here goes nothing...

Parked safely in her driveway. Jessica heads for dinner

Sleepwalking in Utah.

There are not any big stories for Utah just a bunch of little gems.

-Woke up one morning with all the sheets and blankets from my bed folded and stacked nicely on my bed.

- found myself wandering my room on occasion no purpose known...usually I realize I am up just tell myself to get back in bed.

- I use to have a curio cabinet in my room woke up and the door was open. I do not remember the details anymore but in my dream I was looking for something.

- When I was really stressed with school, surgery and other stuff... Monica would hear me talking night after night and she would come in and see how I was doing and I would get mad at her for talking to me. I usually would try to tell her I was awake and not talking in my sleep. I finally asked her to ignore me because it only stressed me out.

- I sleep in clothes that I would consider immodest for public...In my dreams I start to realize what I am wearing and become uncomfortable...I use to just pull the blankets up...lately I have woken up in modest shirts I did not got to bed wearing.

Oh how I wish I could remember all the odd things I have done. I have been sitting up in bed a lot lately in my sleep...until recently i changed pillows...I wonder if comfort has something to do with it.

So apparently it is not sleepwalking I am doing because I am aware that I am walking. Whereas sleepwalkers do not know they sleepwalk. One may say I am lucid dreaming because I can talk myself back to bed...but I don't really think I control my thoughts. I don't know what it is but I hope it has provided you with a little entertainment.

The fun continued into the college years!

In 2003 I became a Certified Nurses Assistant (CNA). At that time Amber had moved back home and instead of making Jeff share a room again the girls shared a room. It was fun I loved it. We all have talked in our sleep at some point in time and gotten caught by each other. I remember Amber and I trying to keep Monica talking when she talked in her sleep. Whenever I talked in my sleep I would get embarrassed that I was talking and become defensive saying I am awake I do not know what you are talking about but really I was still asleep or woke up and new I was caught.

So back to my new position as a nurses assistant. Once I started working the sleep walking started as well. For awhile I just heard call lights in my sleep and had to fight the urge to get out of bed and answer the call light. Then it happened...I woke up one morning and there were no sheets on my bed. They were there when I went to bed. After looking around I found a wad of sheets and blankets. Let me explain why I found then in a wad. When I am at work and taking the sheets off a hospital bed I would pull the corners off the bed and wad the sheets together and toss them in the laundry. So in my sleep I stripped the bed of linen.

Oh it gets better. I did not put those sheets back on my bed properly because at the time my bed was on the floor tucked behind Monica's and Amber and it was just a hassel. So a night or two later I found myself working again. This time I was dreaming that the charge nurse (head nurse) had given me an order to put a warm blanket on a patient. (Warm blanket is a heated blanket when you apply them to patients you want to put them next to the skin and put the other blanket back on top to seal in the warmth). So being the good CNA i was I climbed out of bed and prepared to put the blanket on the patient. So here I am standing over the patients bed. As I stand there I start realizing the patient is Monica. So I climb back in bed knowing I this is just a dream. Well the charge nurse got really mad at me at this point so I climbed out of bed again. As I stand next to Monica's bed I start to tell myself the trouble that will come if I touch her. In order to put this blanket on her in the process described above she is bound to wake up and then she will laugh at me because I am sleep walking. Likely she will wake up Amber and they will both laugh at me. I climbed back in bed. I think I got up a time or two more but never actually put the blanket on her. Maybe I stood up to the nurse, who knows.

This last one I did not remember doing until the next day Amber asked me about something related to it. Amber and I were hanging out in our room and she asked why everything from under her bed was sitting on the floor between our beds. Once she asked that it all came flooding into my memory. I said "Funny you should ask, last night when you were in your hospital bed you asked that I lower the head of your bed, in order to do that I had to move all this stuff for it to go down." I then remembered how weird it was that all that stuff would be stored under a hospital bed. My bed was on the floor and hers was not so I could see under it.

I am sure I did more during this time in my life but those are the ones I remember well. From then on I told Amber and Monica if they every woke up to me moving them "not to worry I was just changing their brief."

This is me hard at work at Banner Baywood Medical Center. The start of my Orthopaedic career.

A Sleepwalkers Day Never Ends

I am sure I did some more walking through the years but I do not remember much more from the younger years.

In high school it started to get really interesting! It all started my junior year of high school when I worked at the little league concession stands. When I got home from school I would head to the concession stand and I worked there until 10 or 11 most nights. Once I got home I always had some homework to get done before I could go to bed. Once I went to bed and was asleep I started to dream that I was at work. I would dream that a customer came to the concession stand counter. I would actually get out of bed and go to my dresser and take care of the customer. Once done with that I would climb back in bed. Once I felt comfortable and ready to sleep (even thought I was sleeping the whole time) another customer would come and I would get out of bed to help them and do the whole thing over again. I did this night after night and many times throughout the night. The strange thing was I knew what I was doing, I knew I was asleep but I still felt I needed to get up every time. The sleep I did get was not very restful.

Tales of a Sleepwalker

I have decided to document not only the happenings in my daily life but also those things that go on late at night when most are sleeping. These stories have entertained many...I hope to accomplish the same here...

My earliest memory of sleepwalking was when I was pretty young. I do not remember much but the image of me digging through a closet. My dad tells me he found me and I said I was looking for the sun.

When I was in junior high my family moved. I always shared a room with my sister Monica. When we were setting up our room I remember we debated whether we should have bunk beds or not, then we went back and forth on who’s bed would go where. That night my dad found me standing in the hallway. He led me back into my room (I remember all of this). I went to Monica’s bed and complained about her being in my bed. My dad told me to sleep in the other bed and we could take care of it in the morning.

In this same house I remember waking up one day with the image of a baby lying on two pillows. I then realized I did not have any pillows on my bed. I walked to the other side of my room and lying in the corner was two pillows and a doll lying on top of them. Random I know.

Lucky for all of you I remember when I sleep walk so there are plenty more stories to come!

Part of it All

This past week I had the opportunity to play softball with my ward. Our stake had a season and a tournament and I played one game in that season. I wanted to go more often but I always talked myself out of it for reasons such as soccer and fear of having to meet new people. The very last game in that tournament I actually showed up to play but they had enough girls so I went home to study. They won that game and in turn won the stake tournament. Since they won they got to go on to the regional tournament.

This is where I come in. Wednesday night was the first game of the tournament I joined the team. That game was fun. Halfway through the game we actually realized we were playing the wrong team. They let us play on. We won 15-0.

Thursday night we had three games to play. The first game was awesome. We were neck in neck with the other team until the last two innings. We ended up winning the game. I kept making minor errors in this game and felt I was not helping the team much but had fun all the same. The announcer took the liberty of calling me Jessie B. It made me cringe every time she called me up to bat. A dear friend on the team went up and asked her to call me Jessica. From then on she would say "Jess-ICA B is up to bat" I will take that any day over Jessie B (said in a whiny voice).

Since we won the first game we had an hour break then we would play in the semi-finals. This game was pretty intense as well. We felt pretty good about where we were at because their pitcher was not that great. However, they put up a good fight and took the game. I did shine in right field though. I caught a pop fly! My batting started shaping up in this game as well.

We had one more game to go. This game was to determine third place. Our excitement had died a little at this point but we played on. This game was a lot of fun. I believe without the pressure of the big win we just had fun. Every time of ran to first base the guy there complemented my swing. After two games I had a lot of practice. We ended up loosing this game but not after we put up a good fight in two extra innings.

By the time we were done playing I was exhausted. What a fun night. What a great group of people. I am finally ready to admit that I am part of a ward and I love it.

Today at church one of the guys sat down in front of me in sacrament meeting and put is hand up in front of me. since I am not use to talking to many people at church it took me a minute to register he was high fiving me!!

Hopefully I will have the team picture to post soon.

Days 3, 4 and 5

Day 3

I will admit this day was not very exciting but I did what I needed to. I am preparing to become a certified orthopaedic nurse. I just need to take a test on all content Orthopaedics and I will have this certification. I basically just looks good and the surgeon I work for wants me to have it. I did a little studying. I also had a very heated conversation with few people on facebook about 90 dollar tickets for people who run out of gas on the I15 in Utah county. One friend felt the new fine was very socialistic. Oh it was a fun conversation. That evening I went with some friends to Syracuse Utah for my friend Cheree. She just got her mission call!! She will be serving in Nashville Tennessee Spanish speaking! I am so excited for her.

Day 4

My day started with a nice walk to the end of the avenues. While I was walking I was studying flash cards on sports injuries. Once to the end of the Avenues I ran/walked back. It was a nice day. After that I hung out with my roommate she loves Netflix TV shows so I always enjoy watching with her. I also went shopping. I was in need of a swim suit for Day 5. After shopping my day was very uneventful. Still enjoyed it.

Day 5

I started my day at 7am packing and preparing for a boat trip!!! A bunch of my guy friends have a friend who has a boat and someone whispered in his ear that I wanted to go boating. So he called me up and planned a trip. We were suppose to be to his house at 8am so my roommate and I made it there ten minutes early. Which is impressive. The other two that were coming with us did not make it till 9am. Not so impressive. We set out for Utah Lake. It was such a fun day. We started by just swimming around the boat. Eventually we tried teaching my roommate to wake board. It was fun we will get her up next time. I went next I got up but was not able to do much. We did some tubing. Had lunch and just lounged around the boat. I absolutely loved it. I was far better than my original plan to sit on the shores of a lake and read.
One thing I found interesting and very flattering was this guy that took us boating. I met him for the first time in April at a friends birthday dinner. We talked some but nothing memorable. Then he was there when I went to the U2 concert. I do not remember anything special about these encounters but apparently he just adores me. In a little sister kinda way. He always tells the boys to invite Jessica. I have not been able to go to anything else until today. So all day he praised me up and down and told everyone (my roommate and two other friends I brought) how wonderful I am. It was funny. As the day progressed he expounded on why he felt I was so wonderful. He liked how I am able to be Mormon but be real and non judgemental as well. He has obviously not had good run ins with Mormons before. At one point he said he really felt there was something to this life that we were preparing for something greater. I told him I completely agree and I know that in our next life we do have an opportunity to be powerful and receive great blessings. I told him that because I believe that I believe we are earning those blessings and showing our dedication and desire for greatness. He loved every word I said.
Today was a reminder of how important it is that we are sharing our light. That we are being Christlike examples. I am grateful he has been able to see that in me. Especially during a time that I feel I need to improve in this area. Apparently I am not doing as bad as I thought. I am grateful for this reminder of who I need to be.
After boating I came home and showered then ran out for dinner with some friends. We wanted to go to a place in Park City but once we got on the road there traffic was backed up for two hours, so we flipped around and went to Charlie Chows. It is a delicious Mongolian Grill. Had great dinner with some great friends.
This week has been so great. I am so glad I took the week off even though I had no real plans. I will also keep you posted on this weekend because it is going to be fun filled!!

Day 1 and 2 of my week off.

Day 1

Monday turned into my catch up day. I got those things done that just needed to be done. Cleaned my room, did laundry and cleaned the kitchen. The best part of the day was the run/walk I went on. I love the Avenues. It is such a fun neighborhood to walk in. Such fun houses and building to see and hidden parks. I just love it. After that run I made lunch and watched Mythbuster "Shark Week". Busting all the myths of Jaws. It was fun I do not watch TV regularly so it was nice to do it because I can this week.
In the evening I read and I went for a walk with a dear friend. Yet another great walk through the Avenues. It was fun to chat and share stories.

Day 2

I set out to pick up another dear friend for our day trip to Antelope Island. I was shocked when I heard there was an island on the Great Salt Lake. I have not made it to the Lake since I moved to Utah so I figure it was time. Once on the island we drove to Garr Ranch and wandered around. We saw tons of Bison on our way to the Ranch. After the Ranch we went on a 3 mile hike to Dooley Knob. It was a great hike. However, on this island there is no shade or trees for that matter. It was noon so the sun beat down on us. Thank goodness for mother Cheree and her snacks. It is the only way I survived. At the top of this island we pondered life.

On the way down the mountain we discovered the millions of spider that lined the trail. We were surprised we had missed them on our way up...they were every where. My favorite moment was when Cheree tried to snap a picture of one but realized she was rather close to several others so she dropped her phone beyond their web.

After the hike we went to the beach side of the island and grabbed some lunch. Buffalo Burgers...quite delicious. Then we walked down to the beach and made our way through the cloud of brine flies and into the muggy waters of the Great Salt Lake. You can walk out quite a distance before it gets deep. It was a nice walk and we watched the brine shrimp swim. Then we headed home. Such a fun trip.

I got home in time to take a very short nap then head out to SOCCER. I love soccer right now it is so much fun. Every Tuesday I play with a fun group of people in North Salt Lake. Tonight's game did not disappoint. We played for a good hour when it started to rain. We played through it a little but then in started to come down hard. Right before we got under the picnic areas it turned to hail. By this time we were soaked to the core. Once the storm blew through and the rainbow appeared we headed out to play some more. This time shoes were squeaking and I was sliding all over the place. It was a great game.

I ended the night at the groccery store and as I toted all of my food and blankets and shoes up the stairs I biffed it. Luckily my head lost momentum and I only bit the step instead of shattering my teeth on it. My only scars are on my fingers from the grocery bags. When it comes to falling up stairs I am skilled.

I am loving this week off!!

Just a thought

I got a calling over text message, then a few days later was asked to speak in church over a text. To be honest I really just laughed when those text came through. I know my Bishop is very connected to technology and don't mind his invites and reminders about ward activities. It is kinda nice to be reminded he is involved and aware of our activities.

Today I was text and asked to come be set apart to my new calling during Sunday school. I quickly responded "I will be teaching Sunday school and unable to make it." The response was "okay same time next week then." I did not bother to respond I will be teaching Sunday school next week. Now I realize this is similar to an email that they might send out just quicker response time. However, I am saddened that the personal interaction is lost. Likely the person sending the text does not know who he is responding to, just one of the many he sent a mass text to. I think it is so important for people to feel like they are known and that others are aware of them. We all crave that feeling. When we become one in a mass text that feeling is lost.
I will continue to resist advances in communication technology because I miss human interaction.

The other night I sat with 5 friends all of which had their phone out. I miss the days of sitting around and just chatting without interruption. When everyone was in the same conversation without talking to someone else they would obviously rather be with. I have been in car rides where I was merely the chauffeur, because everyone had the phones out texting and calling others. I might look into that new car feature that will not allow phones to be used in the car. Not only will this keep me from being tempted to text while driving but everyone else will have to sing along with myself and Barry Manilow or NSYNC.

Maybe that is the real reason everyone is on their phone in my car.
I know I must go forward and embrace these changes but I should not have to loose human interaction. I am grateful that I can be so connected to my family despite the miles between us!

I Can Do All Things Through Christ.

I was asked to give a talk on this subject this week. My thoughts went immediately to the many things I am trying to accomplish in my life. Marriage, bettering my role as a nurse, and living a healthy lifestyle to name a few. I couldn't help but think of all the solutions the world has to offer. A few years back "The Secret" taught us all how to have everything we want in life. Oprah and Dr Oz always have the latest information. Their are fad diets to produce immediate results and whatever problem you have I am pretty sure there is an App for that. None of these fads really supply us with a long term solution. So my first thought was if we turn to the Lord first for direction he will help us accomplish all things.
I called my dad and asked him for some direction in the planning of my talk. He offered great insight and took the talk in the direction I wanted it to go. He said as we come to understand the nature of Christ we gain greater insight on what the word ALL means in the statement ...I Can Do ALL Things Through Christ.

Christ focus is on our spiritual development those things that are going to bring us back into our Father in Heavens presence. So ALL things is going to mean spiritual matters rather than our worldly desires and aspirations. Even if our desire to be the top in our field of work is in the best interest of our families. We need to be disciples of Christ.

When we fear our responsibilities or feel inadequate in our callings and responsibilities.

Let us remember...I can do all things through Christ

When we feel there is no way we can pay our tithing this month.

Lets us remember... I can do all things through Christ.

When we do not feel up to home/visiting teaching, or we do not know how we will fit it in our busy schedules.

Let us remember...I can do all things through Christ.

It is all we focus on the spiritual that the other aspects of our lives will fall into place.

Let us be like Joseph of Egypt who's only focus was to serve those he was asked to serve. Maybe we too will progress to positions of great power because of our Christ like service.

May we have similar desires as the sons of Mosiah who turned down a crown to serve their Lord and Savior and bring others unto Christ.

I believe I can do ALL things through Christ when my priorities are in line with the will of my Father in Heaven.

Searching for structure

I feel right no I am suppose to date...I am suppose to attend a singles ward...I am suppose to meet a new boy every week... I am suppose to make myself available for all those eager boys to date...I am suppose to be meeting new people all the time...I am suppose to attend institute...I am suppose to enjoy large ward summer trips...I am suppose to enjoy several ward commitments throughout the week to keep me social. I am suppose to be connected to everyone and everything all the time (smart phone).

I just want to be me. I want to go to church and feel the Spirit. I just want to fulfill a calling.

So I ask myself will I be happier in a family ward or will I be avoiding all those things I am suppose to do.

I Have A Dream!

My roommate had a plan and goals so I had to say something...

I said I am going to open a hospital.

She helped me fill in the rest (she has me figured out)...

It will be a small or large pediatric hospital for hopefully well children. At first we might treat colic and diaper rash then slowly advance to more mature problems such as croup, ear infections, and sniffles to name a few. We will eventually open and ER for scrapes and bruises. The myriad of things we treat will grow much like a child.

The hospital will be run day and night by one well trained and skilled nurse. I feel consistency in these well children's life will be important. Yes you may be wondering but she will also run the cafeteria. The children must be fed.

Currently, there are no children to be admitted to this hospital but you could say they are a twinkle in this nurses eye. She will find them. They might just fall from heaven.

Beautiful capable well trained nurse seeking handsome side kick to assist in much of the same responsibilities. Most likely on an early evening, night and early morning shift, and most if not all weekends. Must be trained in dish washing and other household, I mean hospital, responsibilities. The rest of their time will be spend in fundraising for the hospital. Must love children.

Spread the word people this hospital needs to get up and functioning...there are lives to save.

Memorable May!

My little sister is in Denver working as a travel nurse. I am so glad she is having a great experience but I also wish she was back here in Salt Lake with me.

Last weekend I got to go visit her. I was afraid I would not make it because I got sick the day before I was to leave. It was a Wednesday so I was needed at work. I struggled through that day. On Thursday I stayed home from work and stayed in bed all day. I got up at three and decided I was going to brave the trip. I flew to Phoenix first which turned out to be quite a treat. My parents met me at the airport and I got to hang out with them for two hours. I was not the most exciting person but I was very excited that I got to spend time with them. Next I got to fly to Denver with my older sister and little brother. That was a lot of fun and totally worth the longer flight. I had to laugh my brother has only flown once and that was before 9/11. We did not do a good job instructing him on security. Oops.

We had a lot of fun in Denver one day we visited the town of Golden. My brothers middle name is Golden so we had fun with that. I slept after that.

The next day we went to Elitch Gardens. It is a tiny little theme park in Denver. Though it is tiny the rides are awesome. It was a fun day we reminisced about our time at Paramounts Great America in San Jose. Fun times fun times.

Later that night we went to take pictures of the Denver skyline. It was so much fun. My brother took some awesome pictures. This was a fun one we took. We finally got my sister to stand still long enough to take it. From this parking garage we could here the U2 concert. Which only got me excited for...

The Salt Lake City U2 Concert!!


My friends talked me into getting U2 tickets almost 18 months ago when they were coming. The show was canceled but we held out and kept our tickets. Let me tell you I am so glad we did because the show was simply amazing!! I know who U2 is and I know some of their music but I was really surprised that I know all of their music. They put on a great show.

Rock On!

pic found here

Nothing screams 4 day work week better than underpants on your head.

Swing dancing!!

I took a six week class where I learned 5 different ballroom dances ( I missed one week, but would not trade the fun I had). The very last week we did swing and I loved it. This is no surprise because I was inspired to take this class because in my head I did a mean Lindy Hop.

So for the next six weeks I will be taking a swing class where we will learn six different types of swing. Sorry Monica and Ken only half a class will be dedicated to country swing (so we don't get bored of the music...instructors words not mine). I am super excited about this class. Wish me luck!

Must Resist The Urge To Lead.

I always thought I was a follower in life. I thought I liked just going with the flow... I think I might be wrong... These were some of my realizations in my dance class today.

Growing up my dad would dance with us and teach us to follow. I loved it and I was excited to be able to read a partner when dancing. However, many times at dances or should I say all the time at dances there are not enough guys. As a result I have become a very good lead. Ask Monica she will confirm it! I have my dad to thank for that too!

I now am having to work through this in my social ballroom class. In addition to my conflicting rolls growing up. I also think I am a strong willed individual. I also like things done right and if people are not catching on as fast as me I take control. This is very frustrating to me. I don't want to be in control but apparently I am more comfortable there. I think this is why I was inspired to take dance lessons. Teach me to follow and maybe be a little more submissive.

Good news though when I dance with the instructor I follow very well... now! He uses me to demonstrate all the things he did not teach us that we should be able to do with a good lead. I own the floor when he does that!

Hopefully, I can apply this to many other aspects of my life. Maybe one in particular.

Happy Birthday to Me!!

This year for my birthday I got to celebrate along with two great friends. Happy Birthday Fabio and Madi!!! We had an adventurous birthday. We went snow shoeing. This was my first time. It was a lot of fun.

This was the first time I had sees snow piled so high. Crazy!

I decided to teach my dear friend Madi a lesson on accepting help from men. She insisted on climbing the mound on her own, ignoring Fabio's extended hand. So I set off up the hill and took his hand. Unfortunately, my glove slipped right off my hand and I slid right down the hill. Of course someone caught it on camera...Thanks Rebecca!

But don't worry I was not the only one who found themselves down in the snow!On my Birthday I had to work!! After work I joined a gym. (I have not gone since I joined...oops) Then I went to dinner with my dear friends Rebecca. We had sushi. I love sushi. After that I went home and was ambushed by three guys yelling as they entered my apartment. I screamed and covered my head. They truly scared me. Then they kidnapped me and blindfolded me and took me out to dinner. Oops Rebecca was not successful at keeping me away from food. Oh well I had dessert and enjoyed the company. I have the greatest friends. Oh on Tuesday I came to work and this is what my desk looked like. A day late but just as much love.
28 I am going to make this year a good one!

A movie and so much more

This evening was to be like any other. I was simply going to see a movie. However, the Spirit turned it into so much more...

Caught your attention?

My life is greatly blessed and I must share my experience because it will be a source of strength to me this week and throughout my life. I am a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. My life is richly blessed because of my faith in my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. I have had a testimony of the Gospel of Jesus Christ for some time now, but that does not mean I do not waiver. Not so much in what I believe but in the way in which I live it. It is so easy to get caught up in life and forget to do those things that strengthen that testimony every day. It is easy to distance yourself to the point you feel alone...in those times you know what you need to do to get back but it seems so hard until of course you finally pick up your scriptures, enter the Lords Holy House or simply get on your knees. Sometimes when you do that, your self doubt can make it harder to recognize that the Lord has seen your efforts. Luckily, our Heavenly Father is a patient Father and He waits until you are ready to hear Him...or when you create the peaceful moment when you can hear Him and His Son speak to you...so plainly and with so much love. These moments are what we deem tender mercies.

So what movie started this evening for me... The Adjustment Bureau... I saw the preview for this movie earlier today while I was watching another movie (Unknown...no is the movie title...good movie as well). Any way I went to this movie with a friend and his brother. I did not expect it to have such an impact on me. You will have to see it! For those of you who are members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints will know what I mean when I say the movie is Satan's plan. For those of you who are not I will explain briefly (contact me and I will tell you in great depth).

Before we came to earth, two plans were presented in the Heavens...Satan wanted us to come to earth without trial, our path would be set, there would be no choices. We would make it through life and return to our Heavenly Father no questions asked and in the end Satan would get the glory, because he got us all back to our Heavenly Father. Our Savior Jesus Christ also came forward, but, his plan was quite different. I like to call his plan the Plan of Happiness. My Saviors plan would have me come to earth with a gift called agency. With agency I would have the ability to go through life making decisions for myself. Because I have the ability to choose it means I might sometimes choose the wrong thing, I might end up on the wrong path back to my Father in Heaven. However, there is another key factor in my Saviors plan...this is the part that makes him my Savior. Jesus Christ offered to atone for my short comings for the mistakes and wrong choices I would make in life. He gave his life. In doing this I am given the opportunity to learn and grow through my trials...to become better prepared to return to my Heavenly Father and to prove my devotion to him in my return.

So this movie was Satan's plan in that "David," played by Matt Damon, had no choice about his destiny. He could choose the little things in life but when it came to who he would be ...that decision was made by the chief and others were there to keep him on that path. Of course one sees the good in this...a plan is in place to help us reach greatness...but what do we learn in life when there is no real trial or choice.

As I walked out of the theater I was glad I have agency and get to make choices. So I hopped in my car full of appreciation for this Plan of Happiness and it only got better. I was listening to one of my favorite CDs... The Missionary Hymn Project by Rob Gardner. The song Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing was playing. I have always loved this song but I think it was the music that inspired me in the past, today it was the words.

....Jesus sought me when a stranger, Wandering from the fold of God...prone to wander...

In this life we are human and at times we may wander from God, as humans we are inclined to wander often. It is not always a great sin that causes us to wander. Sometimes it is just a short absence from doing all those things, I mentioned earlier, that keep us in Gods presence. Wherever we wander, whatever we do, the song tells that we are indebted to our Savior because he interposed and his blood was spilt for us. For each and everyone of us that we might one day return to our Heavenly Father. It is part of the plan.

If you thought this was experience enough for my testimony to grow it only got better. The next song on the CD is I Know That My Redeemer Lives. At this point I am crying and singing this song in celebration that I know He lives!! Then it is finish it off with the song that confirmed my decision to move to Utah... I'll Go Where You Want Me To Go... this song reminded me I have a work to do. "perhaps today there are loving words which Jesus would have me speak. " I have a work to do and it is my choice to follow my Saviors Plan.

I am grateful to my Heavenly Father for allowing me this evening to be reminded that He is aware of me and He has a plan for me. To remind me that I am needed in His great plan and I need to be ready to serve Him everyday.

Haleakala (House of the Sun) Volcano Maui Sunrise

Must one choose?

I have always been very dedicated to Disney but I have felt bad that my true love was from 20th Century Fox. Yes Dimitri has been my cartoon crush for some time now. Every girl loves the bad guy who turns good for a woman.

But Disney has answered my dilemma with another dashing bad guy turned good. I feel so bad leaving Dimitri behind for Flynn Rider. But look at him can you blame me. Or maybe I could keep both or these cartoon dream boats...They are from two different companies...would they ever really find out they did not have all my heart?

Disclaimer...my cartoon theories on love do not reflect any real theories of love I might have. No love triangles have or will ever exist in this life I call real.

Trying something new!

So last week I was listening to some music while driving to work. The music was something you would swing too...I thought you know I am pretty good at learning new dances. SO I decided to look up some dance classes. I decided it was not swing I wanted to learn. However, I was also a little hesitant for ballroom but it felt right...So I signed up. Tonight was my first night of social ballroom. I will admit as I thought about the class I had exciting thoughts of meeting tons of new GUYS. I do not know who I was kidding. At least the numbers were even. For six weeks I will be attending a class every Thursday night. We will learn the Rumba and the Tango. Each six weeks they do two new dances. After 18 weeks I will have learned The Rumba, Tango, Cha- Cha, Swing, Fox Trot and Waltz. I am kinda excited. Tonight I think I caught on pretty quick, by the end of the night I was teaching one of the guys. My one concern is getting my hips going. I think this will also help with my weight loss for a reason you are probably not thinking. Yep, I want to track my progress as I dance in front of the big mirror. I wont be able to hide from myself. Even though it is not the crowd I had in my mind I think it will be a lot of fun.

We can all use a little color!

My Hawaiian tan is wearing off and I decided to get some color.

The Hare Krishna Temple in Spanish Fork has a Festival of Colors every year. 30,000 people come throughout the two days to throw colors. Hopefully, they also learn something about this beautiful temple they are visiting too. This festival was started 5,000 years ago as a celebration of the rebirth of spring and as a way for the priest to show his love for all his followers.

I will admit I wanted to go to this event but part of me did not want to drive down there and go throught the effort to get there. I am so glad I did because it was just fun. I enjoyed the event but I also left a little bothered that we travel down there to celebrate and have fun. We gather in front of this beautiful temple and then the crowd that is largely made up of LDS youth from BYU and surrounding high school along with us Salt Lake travelers. We come to this temple and what do we do we "mosh". We throw people up in the air and do things we would never do on our temple grounds. Yes the music is provided by the Hare Krishna congregation, but I wonder if this is what they expect to have happen on their temple grounds. Hopefully, we have not offended them. I guess they would not keep doing it every year if it was a problem.

While I was there I saw 5 ambulances come and go within a 2 hour period. I spent thirty minutes trying to keep a girls spine aligned as she was dropped on the ground while crowd surfing. Which also got me thinking. As a medical professional I now have the responsibility to step forward in times like these. This time, like all the others, I felt really inadequate. I felt like there was more I should have done. While I sat with her and told people to leave her alone and encouraged her to take deep breaths. People asked me if I did this or if I did that. I don't know if they were just worried for their friend or if their experience should of trumped mine. I just felt that all we could do for her was make sure she did not move and exacerbate her injury. Once the paramedics arrived I helped put her on the backboard then lift her to the gurney. Then I walked away. That is one reason I like my job...I get to follow the patients to the end of their recovery. It is hard to walk away when all is not over.

Though my thoughts yesterday were not all exciting and vibrant like the colors we threw I did have a wonderful time for 6 great reasons... Madi, Maren, Rebecca, Ken, Melissa and Erin!! I have the best friends!

Long overdue.

My dad told me he keeps checking my blog ...I guess it is time for an update. Plus with Monica having a blog I got to keep some attention in my state too.

Once again I let school take over my life. It once occupied my entire life. It consumed me. Now that I am done, and have been for three months, I still struggle to manage my time well. I was so use to having no time. Now I can't seem to pull myself out of that mind set. I will get there though.

I have taken up reading which also leads to problems in time management. Once I am into a book I am hooked and I have trouble stopping. My first read this year was this book ...

I got this book at a white elephant gift exchange but it proved to be a fun read.

Next, I read the Hunger Games. I will admit I was very hesitant to read this one but I really enjoyed it. I am now reading the second book in the trilogy and enjoying it as well.

But before I started that one I read

One of those church authors. It was a great book. I found it a little predictable but entertaining all the same. Now I want a cowboy!

I am trying to make my reading time productive time as well. I read at the laundramat and as I ride a stationary bike.

In addition to reading I have devoted a lot of my energy to Weight Watcher! I started in January and have lost 10 lbs. It feels great to be doing this and I am starting to get creative with my food ideas. When I plan my meals I love food. I use to dislike food and the act of eating, but it did not stop me from eating. I did not like that I had to plan food and take time to eat it. I did not like to choose where or what to eat. Now, as I eat I savor every bite, I love thinking of the next thing to eat. When my days are well planned I get excited to be on Weight Watchers. There are the rough days too. I look forward to loosing more weight and getting healthy!!

2011

I spend my New Years Eve with a great friend. We were going to hit up the institute dance but I had to pick a friend up from the airport first so we got to the party at 1130. We danced a little and watched the ball drop in the 5 degree weather then we headed to her house of out traditional dance party in her front room. It was not as lively as past years but it was just fun to be with her. When I got home I decided to write in my journal before I went to bed.
As I wrote in my journal I was reminded of my feelings at this time last year. On New Years day 2010 my exact words were I cannot wait for this year to be over. I remember as I said those words it hurt but it was how I felt. I knew most of what lay ahead for me in the coming year and there was little I was excited about. Lets recap what I knew the year would hold....

Singles Cruise... Cozumel, Grand Cayman, Belize, Honduras... This was probably the one thing I was excited for. I got to spend an amazing week with all my besties.

Next I knew I would be studying away. Jumping through hoops to reach my goal of earning a Bachelors Degree. Though I knew I wanted to finish school I had learned I was not good at it and would therefore struggle for a year trying to stay focused and interested. Though I dreaded the year because of school. I made it through and I have earned my Bachelors Degree in Nursing!!

I knew the year would be a struggle as I worked on getting over relationships past. I set our to go on one date a month. Some might say that is not very much. But these days that is a lot. This was one date a month that I made an honest effort in making the date happen. Yes I had to ask guys out. I will admit I did not live up to my goal...but I did have some fun dates, 7 to be exact...All of which included the bowling. Well most of them did.

All year I said I will make dating and marriage my focus once I am done with school. Now that I am done with school and have to live up to what I said I think I want to get a Doctorate in Nursing. What do you think?

Those are the few things I knew were in store for me. I will admit they were not all bad things I think I just let the school rule my year and that was scary.

So here are some things I did not know my year would entail...

In March my Grandpa passed away. He was not my Grandfather by blood but he was by love. What an amazing man who gave so much for my family. I love him so much and miss him so much more.

One Legendary Aquafina Modeling Shoot...Courtesy of Carnival Glory and White Heat.

One Engagement to Fabio Alves

The best April Fools joke ever. My dear friend Emily took pictures of 6 couples I paired up and she created wedding announcements and we mailed them to our Bishop. He of course saw right through it but loved it. He loved it so much that he threw an engagement party for the twelve of us. There were games, cake and presents. It was legen... wait for it... dary!

One great camping trip with the girls!

On this trip we created a musical called "I am so glad Helen brought Ice" here is a little taste of it.

Sorry I can not turn it around.




Two great visits from my Arizona Bestie. Stephanie game to visit in August and then again on Christmas Day. I love her visits.

One great Thanksgiving. It was wonderful to return to Arizona. Our Thanksgiving turned into Christmas as we exchanged gifts because Monica and I would not he home for Christmas. As we were dreaming of a white Christmas that ended up not so white.
Christmas Eve was spent with some friends. We celebrated by sharing our traditions. My favorite was the pajamas we all ended up in.

It ended up being a pretty great year despite my fears in the beginning. So back to my journal as I thought of my feeling at the beginning of last year I was excited as I looked forward to 2011. All I know of 2011 is I will be taking a trip to Hawaii other than that the year is a mystery. I remain hopeful. The unknown ahead is full of exciting possibilities. I welcome the year 2011.