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!!