This life of mine

I just read one of my friends mission e-mails. She is serving in the Philippines and it is so incredibly humbling to hear about the living conditions. Water that's so dirty not even a hefty water filter will make it drinkable. Children walking around in shoes that are 5 sizes too big. I could go on and on. I can't even comprehend i'm sure how humbling the circumstances really are because i'm not there seeing these things first hand.

It's seems almost ridiculous that it takes a holiday such as thanksgiving to remind myself to reflect and be grateful for this seemingly crazy life of mine.

I'm thankful for change.

I've learned recently that no matter how much we try to resist change it is inevitable. In the long run it will always be worth it. When one door closes others are opening all around us.

I'm thankful for hardship.
Without the bitter the sweet would never taste as good-or perhaps we wouldn't notice the goodness of everyday.

I'm thankful for Friends and Family.
I truly adore them with everything in me. They accept me for me. Any goodness in myself is a pure reflection of them and their influences on me. I have some of the best examples.

I'm thankful for pure and loving service from others.

I am a very blessed girl.

How to endure the winter in Logan

I feel like I should be a qualified source of info seeing that this is my third year living in the arctic. Last Friday I got home from work and was literally chilled to the bone. I crawled into my bed just because I needed warmth. This was an efficient way to get warm but not a very efficient way to socialize/ get things done. Next I sat at my kitchen table holding a burning candle in my hands. I was panicking, it was like I had never been colder in my life. What was happening? I thought I had figured this Logan winter thing out. Apparently not.  I was awfully suspicious though so I checked the thermostat and....turns out the heat in our apartment was turned off. So now I'm back to thinking I'm practically a professional when it comes to doing the Logan thing.

• So first things first make sure the heat is on. 
• Drink hot chocolate on the daily! 
• Purchase fleece lined leggings (they're dangerous. Confession: when I put mine on I avg wearing them for about 30 hours straight before I get the will power to put something else on.) 
• Bake as often as possible. (utilize that extra heat from the oven.. oh and maybe the baked goodness, which will also be warm)
• Wear chunky scarves. I literally wore the same scarf like four times last week. SEE!! 

I don't know whats more embarrassing- posting these pictures to my blog (social suicide) or the fact that I took them in the first place. 

May we all stay warm together. And may I soon be the proud owner of an electric blanket. 

easy to please

Honestly it is all about the little things. I am pretty sure that all I need in life is a full tummy and somebody to make jokes. Good thing both of those are pretty easy to come by. And it's a good thing that I laugh at just about every joke. 

This weekend Kenn got baptized. It took about everything in me not to sit in front of the font with all the other kids under 5. (but like i'm only twenty....and not married.) It was really fun to see Kennadee's excitement through the weekend. She is such a cutie. Saturday night I overheard her singing primary songs in her room because she had just gotten a mini primary song book. It just melted my heart. 

One of the most memorable things from my baptism was a picture frame I received with notes written all around it. So I wanted to do the same thing for Kenn. Naturally I found mine and made her take a pic. She was insisting for like 3 minutes that she wear her plastic vampire teeth in the picture. Like she wanted nothing more in life then to wear those darn things and this is me pleading with her to take a normal pic. For posterity sake...you know?

All weekend long I had to keep making her promise me that she didn't hate me. I had the honors of braiding her hair for the baptism and let me tell you this girl HATES having her hair touched let alone brushed through. So you can imagine the pre-baptism pep talk. "don't hate me, okay. do you hate me?" Then I would say "I love you" and give her a big wet kiss on the cheek pretending that she isn't a mature 8-year-old who doesn't like that stuff anymore.

Ethan discovered that the tramp was taken down so instead we raked up the leaves just so we could jump in them and scatter them all over the lawn once again. Sorry grandpa. ;)

Saturday evening I accompanied some of my siblings on a perfectly good date night. You guys I am such a good 5th wheel, it's not even funny. Dinner and a movie though? I am all over that especially when Mike and chels owed me a movie. (they made me birthday coupons and it has been all the laughs lately.  Every time we're together I pull another one out. Such a great gift, i'm telling you. And it forces them to hang out with me.) my siblings are the best for 3rd, 5th, 7th, or even 9th wheeling. And I don't even think they mind very much. because let's be real, I'm way fun to be around. HAH

To top off my weekend we partied at the newlyweds perfect cottage on Sunday night. Tay and Stephen are leaving logan in just a couple of weeks. I am beginning to feel very uneasy about the whole thing. Why don't people work around my time schedule and my needs? I'm way selfish. Anyway, I just really love these kids. They are my family away from home.  

 And my friends are babes right? 

Also this semester has less weeks then fingers on my right hand.  One more final push and maybe I'll make it. Part one of year number three is almost complete. ahhhh