one. incredible. woman.

This past weekend I had the amazing opportunity to meet Elaine S. Dalton. Anyone who has ever heard her speak knows of the power in her presence and the eloquence of her words. She drove up to Timpanogos Lodge with her husband to speak and meet with us Folk Dancers at our Opening Social. The night was packed of fun games, tasty food, and other exciting activities. But as it came to a close, Sister Dalton arrived and literally changed each and every one of our lives. Permanently. We all left feeling refreshed, renewed, motivated, and most importantly - reminded - of who we are and why we do what we do. There is nothing better then getting an applause and a "You can do it!" from one of the Lord's anointed. I'm so grateful to have women like this in my life and for the constant motivation and inspiration each of them offer me.

The Journey

Two weeks ago I started my last "first-day" of school for my undergrad. Since that day, I've had a lot of "I'm really old." moments on campus. Just the realization that I'm starting my fifth year here...makes me feel old. Not to mention I know a great deal of both faculty and students as I pass from class to class and I can tell I've been here a while.

But I'm not complaining.

I love it. I love being here and I love knowing so many incredible people who have and still are changing my life. Along with those "feeling old" moments, I've had a lot of emotional moments. I'm not ready to say goodbye to BYU and move on. I know I still have a few months here, but just thinking about leaving makes me miss it already.

As a result, I am soaking in every single moment, every opportunity, absorbing every smile, and seizing all the teaching moments I have been given. 

Our theme for our Folk Dance show this year is The Journey. When Jeanette announced this at our team retreat it brought tears to my eyes as I thought to myself, how appropriate. I began this journey 5 years ago as a little freshman in a big sea of strangers. But it didn't take long for BYU to become my home and those "strangers" to become my best friends for eternity. 

So here I am, a super senior (by choice...). Married for over two years already to a graduated man who works a real job with a real salary. Completed two minors and almost my major (two classes away). Been part of five tours with the BYU Folk Dancers and preparing for two more next year. Just submitted my graduate school applications last week. I can't help but feel a little old.

So here's to the beginning of a new year as I approach the end of this incredible journey. I've learned so much and have accomplished more than I ever dreamed of  - all results of living righteously and consistently getting on my knees for direction. May this be the best year of my life with many more to come! Go cougs!

I'm Feeling 22

Regardless of how cliche the title of this post may be, I just couldn't resist. Words cannot describe how happy I am right now. This week I turned 22 and it has been the best birthday I've ever had in my entire life - all thanks to my incredible husband! Monday I got off work early and headed to a full-body massage that Eric got me for my birthday! After I got home Eric sent me a text that said, "Can you get all dressed up and look cute by 7:20?" Well, 7:20 rolled around and he surprised me by taking me out to eat at my all-time favorite restaurant, La Jolla Grove. 

 After a wonderful evening of food, chatting, laughing, and spending some much-needed quality time together - we went out for frozen custard, my favorite dessert. Finally, we drove home - singing to Michael Buble and feeling like a million. There is nothing better then getting dressed-up and spending some one-on-one time with your best friend. When we got home, Eric opened the door for me and as we flipped on the lights, about 40 people appeared from behind our furniture and yelled, "SURPRISE!" I was so speechless I started to cry. Never has anyone thrown a party for me before and it had been a very hard past few weeks. Here I was, after spending an incredible night with Eric, looking at all of my very best friends faces smiling and wishing me a Happy Birthday. It was such a wonderful feeling seeing everyone and realizing how many incredible friends I have. Thank you EVERYONE for coming and making my party a success!

Sorry for the fuzzy photos...

As if Monday wasn't enough, I woke-up on my actual birthday for early morning rehearsals to a delicious breakfast of french toast (my favorite) and a delicious vegetable omelet! I've never met someone who hates mornings as much as Eric - and for him to get up earlier then needed to make me a breakfast is a HUGE sacrifice. It meant a lot...not to mention tasted yummy!

Wednesday for lunch us girls went out to Gurus to celebrate and spend time together! Since we'd celebrated at my birthday party on Monday, we celebrated Jaymie's birthday as well!

Wednesday after practice we went out for pedicures and got some more girl time in....

 And to make my birthday even BETTER...when Eric got home from rehearsals late that night, he brought me a beautiful plant that I've been wanting for a long time!

Can I just say how lucky I am to have so many incredible friends who care so much about me and constantly build me up when I'm feeling low? Eric worked so hard on my birthday and made me feel so incredibly important and I am so grateful for him and all he did to make sure I felt loved. =) I had a fabulous birthday and every time I think about it get all happy inside again. Here's to being 22!

Park City Retreat

After a long summer of dance withdrawals...we finally started rehearsals back up this past Tuesday. All week we had long 8-5 rehearsals and then we finally got to relax and head up to Park City for our new team weekend retreat. I am so excited for this new year and for the incredible personalities we have on team this year. We have so much to prepare for and so many experiences ahead of us and I am anxious to soak every last bit of it up that I can before graduation. Words cannot express my excitement and also my gratitude for the opportunities that lie ahead for all of us! Here's to a FABULOUS new year!

Color coordinating!

More color coordinating!

Love late nights with these girls!

Early morning hike up Stewart Falls!

Always singing ...

Love these two!

Our new team!

Such a beautiful day!

Some of the best friends a girl could have!

"Surround yourself with greatness." -Chad Lewis

always look up

I only have 7 real weeks of Summer before dance and school grab hold of my life again. I'm currently working 3 jobs, getting 3 different certifications from the NCCPT, applying for grad school, keeping my gym time consistent, studying for the GRE, applying for loans and house hunting, trying to volunteer my 200 hours for grad school, juggling 2 dogs, and cooking for a very busy and hungry hubby. Eric is working on average 13-15 hours a DAY, 6 days a week. Life is hectic. But I have been living in this constant awe of the blessings that keep happening in my life. The jobs basically were laid into my lap, and I'm doing what I love while doing them - so it doesn't really seem like I'm working. So many windows have been opened up, opportunities introduced, and I feel like everyday I'm getting closer and closer to the woman I want to be in a few years. 

Where do you picture yourself in 5 years? I know if I keep working hard, I'll get where I want to be. In the mean time, I'm so grateful for the tender mercies I receive constantly and am also grateful for the trials in my life. They make me so much stronger and make it easier to recognize the blessings as they come.

 "Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. It turns what we have into enough, and more. It turns denial into acceptance, chaos into order, confusion into clarity... It turns problems into gifts, failures into success, the unexpected into perfect timing, and mistakes into important events. Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today and creates a vision for tomorrow." -- Melody Beattie

Back in the saddle again...

The year is flying by and I already feel that Summer is half gone! I just returned a few days ago from our 17 day tour in Nauvoo, had a few days to catch up on sleep (I'll pretend that happened...), unpack, adjust, turn in costumes, etc. Tomorrow I start working my new job and am super excited (and nervous), but we will see how it goes. I've already put way too much on my plate for this Summer, so hopefully I can tackle it piece by piece and get every thing accomplished in the next 8 weeks! Yikes!

Tour was incredible. I could go on and on about the experiences, the missionary work, the fun, the laughter, the tears...everything. But to sum it all up, the past few weeks made me realize how blessed I am to be where I am in life, doing the things I am doing, and to have so many incredible people at my side sharing the journey. I know that many people don't understand why I keep dancing, sacrificing so much time and money into this program...but I know it is a gift from God and that it is what he wants me to be doing with my life right now. I have grown so much closer to him and all of his children through the experiences that have been given to me while being in folk dance. Here are a few (not even a splinter of all my pictures from tour...), enjoy!