Home Sweet Home

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!
Once upon a time there was a family of three. And until now, peace abides in the home, and we love each other. They all lived happily ever after. The end.

Just a fact: Thanks to the Pilgrims, I am here. Literally. My Great Great Great Great Great unlcle came over on the Mayflower. He was a part of the first Thanksgiving. 

So I've been home for 4 days and I have 3 left. I'm at the hump of the Vacation so to speak. And here's what I've come to realize.

I miss the sound of the water hitting the sand. I miss the smell of the causeway once you get onto Curlew Road. I miss the way my hair feels here, and my skin. I don't have to do so much here as I do in Utah. I miss my friends I hate leaving them. I miss Chik-fil-a. Got a chicken sandwhich! Couldn't have been happier at that moment. I miss the smell of my bed. My Bed in general. I missed the sounds the birds make on the beach. Oh the sand..Yeah it's white, and soft. Nothing like it anywhere else. I miss the old people. They are so cute until they open their mouths. I miss seeing Vera Bradly Every where! No one knows that it is in Utah. The crazy drivers. Yeah I'd rather have crazy drivers than all the slow ones in St George. I miss my missionary opportunities. I don't get the same kinds of experiences as I do here. I miss Moes southwestern grill! Mm so tasty. And Firehouse subs cherry limeade. Nothing like that either. OH and how the candy doesn't get super hard, and rock like..it stays soft here. 80 degrees in November. Beach on Black Friday. I think yes! I miss the nice cars you see everywhere. Oh the diversity! I've never been so excited to see a line at the store with all different kinds of people, not just white. The sound that my screen door makes on the porch I used to hate it..now it's comforting. Or how it's a pain to park in the driveway because it's on a hill. Love that now too. All the New York, New Jersey, and Boston accents!! The palm trees, the bridges. I didn't realized I missed so much till I got here.

Since I've been home this is what's happened..Saturday night my mom and I went to Moes after she picked me up from the airport. What a joy it was traveling..NOT! I have the worst Karma with flying. I got through security just fine. My first flight was delayed about 30 minutes..no biggy, but then my next flight..2 and a half hours..and then I had the joy of sitting next to a Vietnam Veteran who had a PHd in LIFE. Such a funny man. Well at least he thought he was. Sometimes he would actually stop talking and my eyes would shut by themselves and then would be woken up by the sound of him starting to tell me another story. Once I finally landed in Tampa, I couldn't stop smiling. Especially when I saw the signs that said welcome home =] 

I walk into my house..and we have new furniture, and new hardwood floors..they kept it a secret from me, but it looks awesome! I will take pictures and put them up later. But I was so excited! 

Sunday my mom and I got up and when to Michael Begg's homecoming at church. He just got home from serving a 2 year mission for the church. And just got home 2 weeks ago today. He's changed for the better, and grown up a bit. Then my mom and I spent the day together.

As of right now I can't really keep the days straight, but I do know that I have been helping my mom paint the office, it's been a tedious job, painting the borders along the wall and what not, but it looks good! I hung out with Michael Begg on Monday afternoon/night. We went to the park and played frisbee which I epically failed at, and then we played catch with the football..sad thing is that the sun starts to go down early here so we didn't stay for long. But we went back to my house and made some brownies. Michael did the honors of cracking the two eggs, and helping to pour the mix in the pan. They turned out alright. I'm not a big brownie fan, I'd rather eat the batter than the brownie itself. Then we went to subway, got it to go. And guess where we ate it..in the Publix parking lot. Yes that's right. It was awesome. For those of you from the other side of the country..Publix can not be compared to any other grocery store, but it's the best grocery store on the planet. At this point he started to act normal again. Being on a mission for two years is kind of..how do you say it..sheltered from a lot of things, and so after a few hours Michael finally got out of the shell or bubble, I dont know what you want to call it and started talking again. After that we went to the causeway and just talked. It's so good to be home.  Then tuesday my mom and I went out and about, and to lunch, I went to Beall's which is a store like Macy's, but the Florida version of everything. It's not the same Beall's that is out west. Not even affiliated with one another just in case you were wondering. Anyway. Then I drove out to Michael's we went to Manteca's I think that's how you spell it. It's a mexican restaurant, that used to be called Mariposas, but was sued by another guy who had the same name restaurant or something I don't really know, but it was delicious! And we went and got some stuff for his dad afterwards, and  to his house. Sound's kind of boring but it wasn't. I think the two of us can have fun doing almost anything together.

I went out to dinner with my favorite girls, and Jeremy. We went to flame stone. I hardly ate any of my food. That's when I think to myself how nice it would be to have someone around to eat my left overs haha. I'm talking about a dog of course.. ;) But it was nice to catch up with everyone. Most of us will be graduating at the same time! This is our plan in our imaginary world. Kerry and I teach, Anna is our school nurse, Melissa will be the art teacher, Kristin can be the health person, and then Tiffany will buy our house we will all live in together. The end. It's not going to happen, but we all plan to come back to Pinellas County that's fo sho!

I'm going to have to be reminded as to why I love St George all over again. It's going to be cold when I get back there, not too happy about that one.

Okay so with it being Thanksgiving and all, I should say a little about it.
My Top 10
1. The Gospel
It's so simple, but shapes who I am.
2. Family
Small as it may be, it's perfect, and I wouldnt have it any other way.
3. Friends
I have been blessed with a tight knit group of friends about 10 from high school that I love dearly, and some I have made through college that have helped me both in so many ways.
4. Scriptures
The only thing that I can rely on for truth sometimes, and yet brings me such peace and comfort. Coming to know Christ, and striving to be like him every day through the life that he lived. And through the scriptures I can learn to live for him.
5. Education
Many of you know that I have strong feelings on getting an education, hence why I am an education Major, but to take this quite literally, as we die, we can't take anything worldly with us, except our education. What we learn and come to know is what we as people become.
6. Nature
What more can I say about this, except that every little thing that has been created by the Lord is precious and beautiful. The earth is a magnificent creation if we step back and take it in. It's so simple, but we often forget the simple things in life. Surrounding us is a beautiful scenery that people pay to vacation here and we live here.
7. Faith and Prayer
The only thing that keeps us close to our Heavenly Father, and his Son Jesus Christ. It's how I have come to know my Savior, and how I continue to believe.
8. Children
Children brighten my days. If we could all have a perspective as a child we would all have more happiness in our lives. When do we stop seeing that perspective?
9. Laughter
Laughing. The one wrinkles I wont mind having when I'm old. Just laugh and chemicals are released that relieve stress.
10. Love
Need I say more?

Simple. I know, but truly they are the things I am most grateful for in my life right now.

The end is drawing nigh!

The Semester is coming to a close! I can not wait!!

Here's what's going down for the next month.

Thanksgiving Break! 

Homeward bound

Study for finals.

Finals week.

ARIZONA!

SCHEDULE FOR SPRING =]

Applied for Graduation this week! I will have my AA in May!

I will apply for the Elem Ed Program in the spring for Fall, cross my fingers that I get accepted.

School is winding down! Two more weeks after Thanksgiving! Loving the idea of not having school for three straight weeks! 

I am going home tomorrow!! I can't wait you have no idea!

Saw Harry Potter! It was awesome! I just wish that we could all have a Dobby in our life. To boost our confidence and have a constant friend. Everyone in the world would be so happy all the time! 

Short and sweet and to the point.

The end!

Eternal Growth

Things have been so crazy. I've hardly had time for myself. If I'm home I'm studying, eating, or sleeping. But Something that I've found that helps me cope..driving. I've always known this, but sometimes people ask me how I stay seine. And it's just that. Going for a drive! It's that simple.

In one of my institute classes we are studying Doctrine and Covenants. I love D&C. It puts things so plain, and doesn't beat around the bush. It's the only revealed book of scripture that was written down in english. But one of the things we were talking about is nature, and that our Heavenly Father loves nature. We related it to the sabbath day and how it is a day of rest. Reflecting on how the Lord felt on that one day of rest, I'm sure he looked around and took in the beauty of his creation. As should we. The time that we live in now is a time of fast pace, and technology. We are the generation least connected with the environment, putting aside recycling, and go green things. The greeks, mayans, aztecs, and romans were more connected with nature. They learned through nature, and even made their building based upon the stars. They knew more about the sun moon stars and seasons than we do with the science and advances we have now. It's fascinating to me.  With that said, I think it's alright to say that we can all spend a little more time reflecting on the simple things around us. With this time of year, the leaves change, the clouds get lower, it gets darker earlier and brighter earlier. The stars are brighter at night. The sunsets more colorful. Funny how that all works out. 

I was thinking about the word grow. As a gospel setting growth can mean many things. But as far as Heavenly Father goes, he wants to see us grow in eternal things. The things that really matter. Like family, how we spend our time with them. Serving others, with a glad heart, and willingly, and seeking the Lord for his help and guidance. Being happy, finding things that make us happy that we can share with others. Growing in things that make us better. It's all connected. It's just that much easier to get back up when we fall when we are growing in eternal things. When you know where you want to go, and act accordingly, you'll get there. 

School is going great. My education classes make me just want to get out of college already and teach. One thing is for sure that I really want to teach little kids. They are just so dang cute! I'm hoping to finish out this semester with a 3.5 GPA. Lets see if I can keep up my grades for the next 4 weeks. I can't wait for this semester to be over with. I've work harder this semester than I think I ever have since I've been in college. It's paid off thats for sure. Student government finally slowed down. Now it's just little things here and there that we have to do. We got 2 showings of Harry Potter bought out from them theaters for the midnight showing! And in 3 hours we were sold out! And yes I got my ticket to it! 

Basketball started! =] You know what that means!? I LOVE BASKETBALL SEASON! =]

Work work work work. It seems to take up all of my life. I work about 40 hours a week. You could say I'm just a little bit tired at the end of the week. But Sunday rolls around and I"m refreshed and ready for a new week! I love it. Tutoring saves me yet again. The kids brighten my week. Unfortunately with the holidays coming around they don't need much of me to help out, so I wont get to tutor for a few weeks.

The weather here has been gorgeous. Not much longer and it will start to get colder than my likening. But I suppose that comes with the times. I don't like layering on clothes just to stay warm to get inside of a blazing hot building! It's rather annoying if you ask me. I like it when its warm and sunny. Beach weather preferably, go figure.

I'll be home in a week! I'm so excited to be home! The closer it gets, it seems that I get more home sick!