11:11 and 9:01

As many of you know, I have this quirky love for the time 11:11. It makes me so excited! I love the number 11, and I love the look of four 1's in a row. Ever since I was little I remember being delighted by this number! I hardly ever see that time anymore. During the day I'm at work and even if I did check the clock, it's not a digital one. And I'm almost always to bed by 11:11, and so I miss it at night. But a couple of nights ago I was up that late and randomly checked the clock and it was 11:11, and the same feeling of delight came back! I just love that number, and I think I always will.

Another time that makes me happy is 9:01. When Chad and I were dating, we would wait to talk on the phone until after 9 so we wouldn't rack up our cell phone minutes (we didn't have the same cell phone company, but both had unlimited night minutes). So during that time, 9:01 was I-get-to-talk-to-Chad time (i.e., happy time). Some days it was so hard to wait until after 9 to talk to Chad. I can remember sitting in my room and studying, and checking the clock every five minutes to see if it was 9:01 yet. It's embarrassing to admit, but it's true. I'm so glad those days are over and we can talk in the mornings, evenings, and after 9:01! :) So now when I see the time 9:01, it is a reminder to me of the blessing of being married to Chad and not having to wait until 9:01 to talk to him!

Here are two happy memories related to my love of the number 11:

This actually is a really crazy story. It was November 11 (11-11) of 2005. I was on a three day trip to Northern England with my London Study Abroad group. We had started the day in York and then traveled to Liverpool. It had been a very happy day of fun traveling and sight-seeing with great friends. Once we got to the hostel we were staying at, one of the professors announced that they had already assigned the rooms and that he would announce who was staying in what rooms. And guess what?! I was assigned to room 111!!! Totally by chance. Talk about happiness for a girl who loves the number 11 AND traveling in England. So this picture is of me in my Liverpool, England hostel room #111, on 11-11, with my alarm clock at the time 11:11. As you can see from the picture, I'm pretty excited about the whole thing. :)

And this picture was also taken on a very happy day. It was the day our car's odometer hit mile 111,111. Pure joy! :) Not only that, but it was while Chad and I were on our National Parks trip, definitely one of the most happy weeks of my life. That was such an awesome trip!!

President Hinckley

I just found out that President Hinckley passed away this evening. I will miss him so much!

I went to a stake Relief Society fireside tonight, and when I got home I noticed that Chad had called me. "That's odd," I thought. "I wonder what this is about." Chad never calls me when he's at work. When I heard his voice on the phone, I could immediately tell it wasn't for any happy reason. He told me that he had just checked the local news at work, and I've probably already heard, but...

At this point I'm thinking, "Oh no. Not another tragic accident. Not another death in our ward. Oh please let everyone be okay."

And then he finished--"President Hinckley passed away tonight."

And as bad as it sounds, I felt relief from that statement. That's not tragic! That's happy news for him! He gets to be with his dear Marjorie again! After Sister Hinckley died, I've felt that as much as we needed and wanted President Hinckley to be with us, he really just wanted to be with his sweet wife. And now he is! And I think we should rejoice in that!

The next thought that came to my mind was a prayer. "Heavenly Father, please tell him how much I love him. Please tell him how much all of us love him, and miss him. Tell him how much good he did, and how we will never be the same because of his influence on us."

President Hinckley is my prophet, and although I will miss him dearly, he will always stay with me. Through the things he's taught me by his words and example, the presence he radiated and inspired me to try to emulate, the encouragement he has given me, the way he has touched my heart for good. He always inspired me to do a little better, stand a little taller, be a little kinder. They don't come much better than Gordon B. Hinckley!! We'll miss you, President Hinckley! Oh--and tell Sister Hinckley hi from us! :)

A Few Things

First:

I wanted to thank Jessi for posting on her blog here about Google Reader! I’ve been using it and it has been saving me a ton of time. I would recommend it to everyone. It’s been so nice to go right to the blogs that are updated, comment on them, and be done, instead of checking and rechecking a lot of blogs every day that aren’t updated. THANK YOU JESSI!


And Second:

I wanted to share with you the happy news that I did my hair curly for three days last week! I recently blogged about how much I loved how my hair went curly in Hawaii, and I was able to get it to go like that here in Utah! I’ve always wanted curly hair, and I am so excited about this. Even though it’s just the bottom half of my hair that goes curly, I still like it, because I can put half of it up in a clip and it still looks curly. I hope this lasts, and it wasn’t just lucky hair days for a few days. Here’s a picture I took of myself, I was so excited about my curly hair:

And Third:

Today it snowed a lot again, and to be completely honest, I don’t mind it at all! It is so fun and beautiful. The only two things I don’t like about it are: driving in it and knowing my family and friends are driving in it, and how it makes going running harder. But I do love how it’s so pretty and it makes the day out of the ordinary. I have shoveled our driveway so many times since the first time I shoveled it on December 1, and I have to say I’m getting a lot better at it! Today I shoveled about four inches of snow off our driveway twice, once before going to work and once after work, and I was pretty proud of how quickly I could get it done. See this picture of our house? Well, the mounds of snow around our driveway and in front of our house are at least double now! We have been getting so much snow!

Hooray for Adam and Jessie!

Adam proposed yesterday! He and Jessie will be getting married in May, and I am so happy for them! I love Adam so much, he is such a good friend and brother to me, and I am just thrilled to see how happy he is. He and Jessie make a perfect match and we are so excited to have Jessie be a part of our family!

He proposed at Rock Canyon park. Jessie's good friends Brock and Laura, Jessie's brother Lance, Adam's roommate Loren, and I were looking on as he proposed (but it was kinda hard to see anything because of how dark it was). Loren and I had (on cue from Adam) snuck up in my car without our lights on, rolled down the windows and blasted Michael Buble's "Everything" to add to the atmosphere of the proposal. :) After Adam proposed, he motioned for us to join them and celebrate with them. After we got there Adam showed Jessie the rings he got for her, and this is a picture of him putting one of them on her finger. They are so beautiful and sparkly!

Afterwards we went out to eat at Los Hermanos and celebrated some more. It was a very fun night.

CONGRATULATIONS ADAM AND JESSIE!!! WE ARE SO HAPPY FOR YOU!

What We Need

Lately I've been thinking a lot about what we as Americans feel we need. And more specifically, I've thought a lot about how many people in America do not feel a need for a Savior. It seems to me many people might believe in, worship, and obey Jesus Christ more if they actually felt they needed Him. But since they feel they are doing just fine without Him, they don't bother.

In 1 Nephi 10:6 Nephi says, "Wherefore, all mankind were in a lost and fallen state, and ever would be save they should rely on this Redeemer." If people realized how lost they are without Him, I think more people would be relying on His grace and doing whatever they could to thank Him for it. It is so crucial to understand our absolute need for a Savior.

As I've thought about this, I've thought about what Americans do feel they need, if it's not a Savior. What do we think we need in order to be happy? I've come up with four answers. The world tell us we need to:

Be beautiful.
Have lots of nice things.
Be more talented than other people.
Be smarter than other people.

And the nasty trick of these four "needs" is that they can never be satisfied. Four examples to illustrate:

Be beautiful:
I watched a clip of the Miss America Reality Show on Saturday night, and do you know what they said? The people in charge said that all of the contestants needed makeovers, and some of them needed "major overhauls." Are you kidding me?! Despite the fact that they had already won their state's beauty competition, they still weren't beautiful enough. The world tells you you must be beautiful to be happy, and then they drag you down saying your hair, face, and whole body needs to be changed in order to meet the standards of beautiful. In short, you will never be beautiful enough, but you must do everything you can to keep trying.

Have lots of nice things:
Last weekend my aunt was telling me that she works for a 65 year old physician who doesn't own a single thing, and is still in major debt. He has nice cars, a nice home, and nice things, but he never feels he has enough, and so he has to buy more things, and get into more debt. Our whole nation is in a plague of debt because of this "need" we think we have to have nice things.

Be more talented than other people
Recently there has been huge media reports about professional athletes taking performing enhancing drugs so that they can hit more home runs, be stronger, and be better at what they do. No matter that they are being paid millions of dollars, are hugely famous, and recognized for being incredible at their sport--they still take drastic measures to be better than everyone else.

Be smarter than other people:
As Chad and I were waiting in line for the Mormon Tabernacle Choir Concert last month, we tried to make small talk with a family in front of us in line. The mother was obviously in a bad mood about their place in line and blaming it on her husband. Chad tried to start up a light-hearted conversation with them to lighten the mood a little bit, and I ended up asking the mother what she did. Big mistake. She proceeded to tell me all about her studies and career goals in an extremely condescending way, using huge words and ridiculous phrases to demonstrate how much smarter than me she was. I came away from talking with her feeling about as small as a pea, but luckily Chad was able to help me see how insecure she must be to have to talk like that in order to feel better than everyone else.

I think Satan is very smart. He says, "Oh no, you don't need a Savior! Bah! What a silly idea! But you know what you do need? You need to be beautiful, rich, talented, and smart--and if you're not, there is absolutely no hope for you to ever be happy." And then he proceeds to make it IMPOSSIBLE to ever feel beautiful enough, rich enough, talented enough, or smart enough. What a jerk!

But you know what, we don't have to listen to him. We can listen to Jesus Christ, who says, "You don't need all of that. You don't need to 'spend [your] money for that which is of no worth, nor your labor for that which cannot satisfy.' (2 Nephi 9:51) You need Me and My saving grace. Come to Me, and I will give you love, peace, and happines, which is 'most desirable above all things.' (1 Nephi 11:22) Follow Me, and I will change you into a person that you never thought possible to become. (see Moroni 10:32)"

And you know what else He tells us? "My grace is sufficient for all men that humble themselves before Me." (Ether 12:27) His grace is enough! For everyone! Regardless of how beautiful, rich, talented, or smart we are! We can all be happy through Christ's atoning power! Isn't that wonderful?! And here's another wonderful thing about following Him: you realize you ARE beautiful enough, you have enough, and He has given you talents and intelligence enough to lead an extremely fulfilling life.

Oh, how I wish everyone could know of their need for a Savior! Oh, how I wish everyone could know how much better Christ's way is than the world's way! It is infinitely better, and yet Satan is doing a pretty good job of persuading people into thinking it's lame, backwards, and weird. I testify that it is not lame, backwards, and weird. We all need a Savior, and His way is the only way for us to overcome our weaknesses and the challenges of this world--to "gain peace in this life and eternal salvation in the life to come" (Introduction to the Book of Mormon).

The Cabin = Fun

Chad and I were able to go to his family's cabin this weekend, and we had a blast! There were a lot of people there (Nate, Michelle, Colby, Carson, Curt, Mike, Karen, Ben, Hannah, Jon, Preston, Caytee, and their friends Rob and Angie), and we all had so much fun. We played games, talked, laughed, ate, went sledding, went snow-shoeing, and went snowmobiling. There was SO much snow up there, some of the street signs were almost completely covered. Their cabin is in the most beautiful location, and going there is like leaving the world for a little bit. We're so grateful for the cabin and that we were able to go there this weekend.

After going to the cabin we had a little get-together with even more family at Curt and Carrie's on Saturday night. Crystal and her kids were there, along with Neal and Carol and Carrie, Brady, and Landon. The only person missing was Dale. It was so fun to be all together. And what is so exciting is that Carrie showed us our wedding video that she made! It is AMAZING. I love it so much. Thank you so much, Carrie, I can't stop thinking about it and how much I love it and how good of a job you did! We are so grateful for it!

New Job

To those of you who haven't already heard, I quit my job at the school for children with autism that I was working at. I quit for a number of reasons--didn't like the therapy they were using there, didn't like the social climate of the place, didn't like the position I was in, etc. I decided it just wasn't where I wanted to be--and it wasn't going to take me where I wanted to go, either.

So now I'm working part-time one-on-one with three kids with autism in their homes, doing a therapy I love (called Floortime). And I just started a job yesterday working part-time as a preschool teacher in a KinderCare close to my home. I'm in a class with about fifteen three-year-olds. I'm so grateful there's a co-teacher, or I think I might go a little crazy. I think I'm really going to like working there, and am going to learn a lot. It is challenging work, but also fun. I love reading stories, singing songs, teaching them about the most basic stuff that is so new to them. And it's funny, because I think all these kids are just brilliant. After working with kids with autism, they just seem so smart! It's so fun to have them look up at me and pay attention to me and understand me and respond to me! Wow. Little kids really are amazing.

I have a lot more independence in both these jobs than I did at my previous job, which I love. I really like having the liberty to make my own decisions and plan things out myself, rather than always just doing what someone tells me to do (even when I disagree with their ideologies). The people in these jobs treat me like I'm a capable person who has a brain, which is so refreshing! :) I'm very happy, and although I know these jobs will come with their challenges and problems as well, I feel so happy to be where I'm at now.

Update

I just found out that Brian passed away today. I looked out my window and saw Nicolle's visiting teacher heart-attacking her door and so I ran out to ask her what the latest news was. She told me that Brian passed away and Nicolle was home, so I went over to give her a hug. Her mom opened the door for me and let me in, and when I walked in I saw the stake president and his wife was there, and they left so I could talk with her. I was crying when I walked in and gave Nicolle a hug, but she wasn't crying at all. Other than seeming really tired, she was amazingly composed. She asked me if I knew that Brian had passed away, because she never knows what people have heard. We talked about a few things, and she was pretty rational about everything. She said that he had only passed away a few hours ago, and that she had only been home for a little over an hour. She said that everyone wants to help, but she doesn't know what to ask for because all she wants they can't give her. She says she feels like she's in a bad dream and just wants to wake up from it. Everyone, please pray for Nicolle. She is such a beautiful person and I love her so much.

Cherish the Moments

While reading the talks from last General Conference, I noticed there were three talks with similar messages. Here are their titles (and links if you want to read them):

"Do It Now"
"Today Is the Time"
"Don't Leave for Tomorrow What You Can Do Today"
(This last talk is especially relevent to this post)

When I read these talks a while ago, I thought, "Hmmm, it seems like there is a recurring theme going on here!" I was impressed by how we need to make the most of each day, and not put off the most important things in life. Each day is a gift from God.

Well, since hearing the news about Brian and Nicolle and their family, I have remembered this message and felt it more than ever. Now that I look back on them, every moment I witnessed of them together--every glance, every good-bye kiss, every laugh, every time they sat next to each other at church, etc., etc.--just seems like the most beautiful moment in the whole world. It is so true that you don't realize the value of things until they are taken away from you. At the time, all these moments I witnessed seemed so ordinary, but now looking back on them I see them as the most extraordinarly happy things one could ever have. It makes me want to cherish every moment I have with Chad. It makes me want to appreciate all the little things so much more.

This year in 2008 I want to appreciate every moment. So many people wrote in our wedding cards to "Cherish each other." I think that is so true. We need to cherish each other, and every moment we have with each other, because we don't know when that might be taken away from us. I hope I can live my life so that I can look back and say I didn't miss a chance to love, to thank, to serve, to uplift, to encourage--so that if my opportunity to do those things for a certain person were taken away, I would know I gave all the love I could in the time I had.

P.S. No new updates on Brian, but things are definitely not looking good.

Heartbreaking News

Last night I found out that my visiting teaching companion's husband got in a bad car accident on Wednesday night. He was in a car with his two daughters driving to drop them off to their mom (his ex-wife), and they hit a patch of ice and swerved into the other lane and head-on into an SUV. One of his daughters, who is 18 and who has been living with them, died in the accident. His other daughter is doing pretty well in the hospital, but he is still in really bad condition in the ICU of another hospital. He has all sorts of complications--broken bones, crushed face, internal bleeding, nerves not responding to anything, etc. It's so bad that they might withdraw support from him today. I've been praying for them all day.

Nicolle and Brian are our neighbors and some of the best people you'll meet. They've only been married a couple years and they seem so happy together. Brian is a jokster and would try to scare me when I came to their door. When Nicolle would drive to our visiting teaching appointments, he'd make a noise to pretend like she ran over his toe or hit the garbage truck or something, just to tease her. He is so fun and you could tell they are so in love.

He also is really hard-working, and always busy doing things to help our neighboorhood committee. He has a lot of knowledge and connections when it comes to the issues we have as a neighborhood, and he was always so willing to help out in what we needed to get done. We had a committe meeting this morning, but it was cancelled, because without Brian, there's hardly anything to report. Just a couple days before the accident he had shoveled all the sidewalks from the neighboorhood entrance to where the homes start (probably about a one hour job), and that was definitely not the first time I saw him do this.

Brian and Nicolle are also the ward activities committee chairpersons, and they plan the best activities! They put so much time and effort into them so they will be fun for everyone. Chad and I have felt so indebted to them for how these activities have helped us meet people and feel apart of the ward. On so many occasions Chad would say, "You know who I really like? Brian and Nicolle. They are just the best couple." Needless to say, they are always serving and we love and appreciate them so much.

I feel so bad, because Kristin (Brian's 18-year-old daughter) has been my neighboor for about six months now, and I never got to know her. She seemed so sweet and I regret not reaching out to get to know her more.

Please pray for them. Everyone in our ward is fasting for them tomorrow, but if you could please keep them in your prayers, I would really appreciate it. I'll keep you updated on how things go.

Curly Hair

Look how curly my hair went in Hawaii. It just dried like that! I didn't even have to do anything. I wish that's what my hair did in Utah.

A Unique and Unexpectedly Happy New Year's Eve

I have been really depressed since leaving my family last week, and I had an especially hard day yesterday. It was New Year's Eve and everyone was celebrating with their families and I was going to be all alone. Chad was working in the ED at night and when I asked him about coming to celebrate with him in the ED, he said I could come, but he wasn't sure how much he'd be able to see me or if he'd need to go see a patient at midnight. So I bagged that idea and decided I'd ask to babysit my visiting teachees kids instead.

But when Chad got to work, he called me and said the other resident he was on with, Tara, told him that her husband, Brian, was going to come and celebrate with her at the hospital, and if I wanted to come too, he could give me a ride. The couple I was babysitting for were going to come home before midnight anyway, and so I decided to call Brian and ask to join him in driving to the hospital so we could kiss our spouses at midnight.

And then another happy thing happened--while I was babysitting Adam called and told me that he and his roommate, Loren, were at a party in my area, and wondered if I wanted to join them or if they could stop by my home and say hello. I ended up only babysitting until 8:30, and then Adam and Loren came over to my home at about 9:30 and stayed until about 10:15. We drank hot chocolate and chatted and looked at the wedding album Audra gave me. It made me so happy. So I got to celebrate New Year's Eve with family after all!

Brian picked me up about an hour after Adam and Loren left, and we had a nice chat on the way to the hospital. He is from Louisiana and we talked about the South, which of course made me happy considering that's where most my family is. Brian is really nice and it was good to be able to get to know him better. We both brought sparkling cider to celebrate with, and it was funny because he said he had never even drank sparkling cider before--I guess he just bought it because he knew Tara wouldn't be able to drink alcohol. When we got to the hospital we said hello to Tara and Chad, and then we waited in the cafeteria for them until 11:55, when their attending let them leave for a five minute break.

The four of us celebrated New Year's Eve together in the third floor stairwell where we could see all of the Salt Lake Valley and all the fireworks being put off. We counted down together and drank sparkling cider and laughed at how unusual of a New Year's Eve it was. I was so happy to be able to be with Chad, and it actually was a great view to bring in the New Year's with. We were all in really good spirits, and it was definitely a New Year's Eve I will remember for a long time.

Happy 2008 Everyone!