Wednesday, January 30, 2013
Monday, January 14, 2013
The Call: Lisbon Portugal
Just after reading where I will be serving the Lord for the next 18 months
we call this one, "excitement"
Letty is wearing a "hand hat", it's a new fad.
She's trendy.
two of my best friends since high school
Me & the Lettster
Hanna & I (+ their lil fetus!)
Cuz Club!
Shea & I, soon to be in the MTC together
#sistermissionaries #lasvegas #lisbon
Modeling the mission packet
of course
Three of the Sexy7,
love them!
My Grandma Susan,
a huge part of helping me make the decision to serve the Lord as a Full Time Missionary
Before Pic with the Mission call.
It was killing me to wait 5 more hours to open it.
Cooper just showing his support. woof.
Honorary Cousins-BFFS-Roommatesforlife
On December 4th of 2012 i received my mission call to Lisbon Portugal! I will be serving for 18 months, teaching in the Portuguese language and I report on April 3rd 2013!
I was so shocked when i saw Portugal on that piece of paper. As soon as i read that, i was crying and laughing and unsure of how to say Lisbon (i always hate butchering foreign words....but i'm getting used to it seeing as i have no idea how to say much besides Thank You and Goodnight in Portuguese!)
I felt such a sense of rightness and peace when i wrapped my brain around the fact that i was indeed going on a mission and that it was to another country, across a sea that i've only seen a handful of times in my life. It was such a blessing to be able to have so many friends and family members there to support me- both in person, on the phone and on Skype.
I am so blessed to be full of faith and a desire to share the happiness i feel because i strive to follow Christ and to use His Atonement every day of my life. I seek after the true things in this life and I can't wait to teach people about love, and our Savior's true church that has been restored to this Earth so that we can be happy and return to Him.
There are so many people in this world who have great faith- that faith can be added to and increased through reading the Book of Mormon and by learning of Christ and his life.
I love my Lord and his children.
I can't wait to share this incredible journey with all of you!
Thursday, March 22, 2012
dreaming
i am sitting here in the photo lab sipping my diet coke, reading for my art theory class (loathing) and day dreaming.
i want to see the world. so badly that i feel physical discontent at the fact that i'm sitting down, in a dark room studying while it's so beautiful outside.
why can't the photo lab have windows?!
tonight is the opening of my show! i am very excited!
(and i'm hoping that no one will notice the imperfections...haha yikes!)
i love having dreams though, i just am tired of them only being in my head.
graduation is so soon...i hope i can find a way to make it a doorway to adventure.
here are a few pictures from our RS activity (pizza party, freezer jam demo & games at the morris' house!) and from last friday's girl's night- jason joined in!
i want to see the world. so badly that i feel physical discontent at the fact that i'm sitting down, in a dark room studying while it's so beautiful outside.
why can't the photo lab have windows?!
tonight is the opening of my show! i am very excited!
(and i'm hoping that no one will notice the imperfections...haha yikes!)
i love having dreams though, i just am tired of them only being in my head.
graduation is so soon...i hope i can find a way to make it a doorway to adventure.
here are a few pictures from our RS activity (pizza party, freezer jam demo & games at the morris' house!) and from last friday's girl's night- jason joined in!
getting in touch with our western sides
the girls out with sister morris' horses at our RS activity!
sis reynolds giving us a demo
kyla & kara watching on!
learning how to make strawberry jam!
love these RS ladies!
308's dancing queen!
adoration.
best friends!
making a mess with chocolate. jason looks like the joker from batman...
muddy-buddies party style
smoldering semester
i'm 94% sure that i have A.D.D...
Wednesday, March 21, 2012
Sigh of relief!
after two semesters of working on my senior thesis project, or better known as my BFA (big fat art*) project, it is finally hanging up! gallery style! it is incredible to see so many pieces of mine hanging in a public place, FRAMED nonetheless! it seems like the digital age has stolen that luxury (and admittedly a little bit of a headache) of framing and hanging photographs.
it's been quite the project, getting all of this together. it didn't help that i waited until there was only about two weeks till INSTALLATION! (saying that makes it sound like my project is some kind of spaceship preparing for launch)
i will tell you, shooting this project was definitely the easiest part of it all, and the most fun. i wish i was one of those really famous photographers who could just hire others to do the headache that is dealing with matts, frames, hooks and all that jazz. but i am grateful (now) that i could learn how to do all that by myself. it's really satisfying to see a hallway full of prints that i've slaved over, to see people look at them. i've already heard a lot of good compliments and kinds words about them and the show has only been up for a day!
i'm so grateful for all the people who have helped so much with this project:
1. the "subjects"- i'd rather call them friends and loved ones- who gave up their time to let me get to know them, and braved me with a gigantic 4X5 camera.
2. my teachers, for helping me print, their constructive critiques, and to Bro. C for letting me use his frames as well as helping me hang (that would have been a nightmare without all the help i got!)
it's been quite the project, getting all of this together. it didn't help that i waited until there was only about two weeks till INSTALLATION! (saying that makes it sound like my project is some kind of spaceship preparing for launch)
i will tell you, shooting this project was definitely the easiest part of it all, and the most fun. i wish i was one of those really famous photographers who could just hire others to do the headache that is dealing with matts, frames, hooks and all that jazz. but i am grateful (now) that i could learn how to do all that by myself. it's really satisfying to see a hallway full of prints that i've slaved over, to see people look at them. i've already heard a lot of good compliments and kinds words about them and the show has only been up for a day!
i'm so grateful for all the people who have helped so much with this project:
1. the "subjects"- i'd rather call them friends and loved ones- who gave up their time to let me get to know them, and braved me with a gigantic 4X5 camera.
2. my teachers, for helping me print, their constructive critiques, and to Bro. C for letting me use his frames as well as helping me hang (that would have been a nightmare without all the help i got!)
3. and most definitely, to my parents for funding my education, believing in my ability to succeed as an artist, student and daughter of God.
(i'm still in the process of putting my book together, that's what i will do upon the finish of this celebratory post.)
Thursday, March 8, 2012
it's just one of those days,
i went to the temple this morning. usually i go on wednesdays but i just was soooo tired yesterday and decided that since my early class is cancelled this week (yes!) that i would just go on thursday. It was a slightly longer wait than usual but i won't complain because extra time in the temple is a blessing, not a burden.
as i dragged myself out of bed this morning, i couldn't fight thoughts about how excited i was to get back into it after i got home from the temple. but while i was waiting to go into the baptistry, i decided that since tuesday's devotional was talking about how the early morning is when we can receive the revelation/invigoration that we need throughout the day and therefore we should wake up and start our day as soon as possible...i should stay awake when i got home and be "productive". i made eggs and cut my finger open while trying to cut an avocado (not alvacodo like how i used to pronounce it till an unspeakable age...) to go with my toasted tortilla and eggs. OW! but now i have a princess bandaid which is a lot better than the gross rag i used after the initial slicing. i couldn't find any bandaids right away. thanks to Ashley with the magical fairy-tale bandages! holla!
but as i was driving to school, i heard that 'you're gonna miss this' song (Darius Rucker?) and almost got emotional. weird. i think i just am sentimental about the fact that i'm significantly older than the 18 year old in that song. i can still relate to her, but it's weird to think that i was 18 almost 4 years ago, that i'm past that "i wish i was old enough...blah blah" stuff, because now i AM old enough. though, i still feel kinda young in the sense that the future still seems far away. will it always feel that way? probably...
then i started to think about how i want to be a mom that is friends with her daughters and protected/loved by her sons (three boys, two girls...ideally). but realistically, i'm sure they will find me crazy, overbearing and embarrassing. but i hope that there is a chance that i can still be a 'cool' mom. (slim chance since i'm already crazy and i'm nowhere close to being a mom).
and in honor of the (almost) one year anniversary of our spring break in Cancun last year, here are a few photos.
can you tell that i'm vacation-sick?!
as i dragged myself out of bed this morning, i couldn't fight thoughts about how excited i was to get back into it after i got home from the temple. but while i was waiting to go into the baptistry, i decided that since tuesday's devotional was talking about how the early morning is when we can receive the revelation/invigoration that we need throughout the day and therefore we should wake up and start our day as soon as possible...i should stay awake when i got home and be "productive". i made eggs and cut my finger open while trying to cut an avocado (not alvacodo like how i used to pronounce it till an unspeakable age...) to go with my toasted tortilla and eggs. OW! but now i have a princess bandaid which is a lot better than the gross rag i used after the initial slicing. i couldn't find any bandaids right away. thanks to Ashley with the magical fairy-tale bandages! holla!
but as i was driving to school, i heard that 'you're gonna miss this' song (Darius Rucker?) and almost got emotional. weird. i think i just am sentimental about the fact that i'm significantly older than the 18 year old in that song. i can still relate to her, but it's weird to think that i was 18 almost 4 years ago, that i'm past that "i wish i was old enough...blah blah" stuff, because now i AM old enough. though, i still feel kinda young in the sense that the future still seems far away. will it always feel that way? probably...
then i started to think about how i want to be a mom that is friends with her daughters and protected/loved by her sons (three boys, two girls...ideally). but realistically, i'm sure they will find me crazy, overbearing and embarrassing. but i hope that there is a chance that i can still be a 'cool' mom. (slim chance since i'm already crazy and i'm nowhere close to being a mom).
and in honor of the (almost) one year anniversary of our spring break in Cancun last year, here are a few photos.
can you tell that i'm vacation-sick?!
can't see
& i miss being tan!
Bay Watch status
sun in your eyes Sierra?
nick is cute and huge. still kinda weirds me out how old he is getting...
Lucky Lex looks like Mom more and more every vacation!
;)
sisters & mom, minus the sweet lil' Sierra...
i think she was taking a potty break
just missin' the dock and yummy coconut shave ice!
aren't they so cute?!
so i couldn't have any possible readers thinking that i don't love my dad, and that i am always lookin' as fly as i do in the previous photos (haha yeah right!)
so here is a lovely gem from a night around the hotel with my dad. gotta love our sunburnt cheeks!
(the visible ones!)
it was just a good morning, especially because i love the sunshine! now i need to stop blogging and write up my BFA stuff! oy!
Wednesday, March 7, 2012
ONE MONTH!?
Life is so good, it's great. you could even say it's "grood" (gruh-oO-d). that is a word that i have made up, in case you were wondering about it's origins.
i am just so excited about my life right now and i think i can pin-point a couple of the reasons.
first, it's sunny today.
second, i got to sleep in then continued with day 6 of my renewed scripture reading regimen (10 minutes in the morning and 10 at night, that equals 20 a day in case you're mathematically challenged like I am).
third, caved in and bought my first Horkely's DDP of the week. yummm.
fourth, i delayed getting to class on time (Bro Briggs is gone anyways so attendance doesn't matter!) and got to be present for a little chit-chat with my roommate who needed both me and Makelle, it felt good to have some prayers answered in ways that I didn't expect. that is seriously the best feeling ever. praying to be more aware of the Spirit definitely pays off...
fifth, it just feels good to know that I'm letting burdens go and training myself to be more trusting of my Heavenly Father. nothing beats that sense of just doing the right thing. ya know?
sixth, i have been working on gathering all this great life advice from people i know and respect for who they are as people, especaily my friend LeeAnn and her husband Rudy (their portraits will be in my BFA and they are lookin' so good!). They both wrote me letters over this last weekend full of great advice. i have been so uplifted and touched by both reading their "words of wisdom" as well as just knowing them. I want a life like theirs.
the list goes on and on, but i think for my seventh "grood" thing today, i've been listening to Mumford & Sons all day and it honestly just doesn't get better than that. they have been my favorite band ever since i first heard their song The Cave last winter (yeah i am usually a little late to jump on the bandwagon).
you can't beat them!
this week has been a good one, weird and smattered with a few moments of sadness and a lot of stress, but definitely happiness. i just wish i had more control over everything. that's my one wish. but wishes aren't real so who cares? right? haha.
i am just so excited about my life right now and i think i can pin-point a couple of the reasons.
first, it's sunny today.
second, i got to sleep in then continued with day 6 of my renewed scripture reading regimen (10 minutes in the morning and 10 at night, that equals 20 a day in case you're mathematically challenged like I am).
third, caved in and bought my first Horkely's DDP of the week. yummm.
fourth, i delayed getting to class on time (Bro Briggs is gone anyways so attendance doesn't matter!) and got to be present for a little chit-chat with my roommate who needed both me and Makelle, it felt good to have some prayers answered in ways that I didn't expect. that is seriously the best feeling ever. praying to be more aware of the Spirit definitely pays off...
fifth, it just feels good to know that I'm letting burdens go and training myself to be more trusting of my Heavenly Father. nothing beats that sense of just doing the right thing. ya know?
sixth, i have been working on gathering all this great life advice from people i know and respect for who they are as people, especaily my friend LeeAnn and her husband Rudy (their portraits will be in my BFA and they are lookin' so good!). They both wrote me letters over this last weekend full of great advice. i have been so uplifted and touched by both reading their "words of wisdom" as well as just knowing them. I want a life like theirs.
the list goes on and on, but i think for my seventh "grood" thing today, i've been listening to Mumford & Sons all day and it honestly just doesn't get better than that. they have been my favorite band ever since i first heard their song The Cave last winter (yeah i am usually a little late to jump on the bandwagon).
you can't beat them!
this week has been a good one, weird and smattered with a few moments of sadness and a lot of stress, but definitely happiness. i just wish i had more control over everything. that's my one wish. but wishes aren't real so who cares? right? haha.
here are a few pictures from our rocket launching FHE this week!
we also had bottle rockets...and i now have a burn on my thigh.
thanks to my inability to hold them properly!
awaiting the launch!
chaotic group picture!
slightly less chaotic! :)
Wednesday, February 29, 2012
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