The Simple Things of Life

I have been so happy with things lately and just felt so calm and at peace and kept thinking about how I love so many things and really should update my blog more too. So as I have been enjoying the simple things of life I am going to write them down.


1- I love hot chocolate. My new absolute favorite is pumpkin spice hot chocolate. I absolutely love it! Its one of those things that I can just drink and automatically feel happy and all warm and fuzzy. I am getting on this new obsession of pumpkin thanks to a friend of mine :)

2- I love the random things my dad does to make the rest of us happy. The other day he put cups on his ears and just went around doing normal things and kept forgetting they were on. He will also sing and some of the most random times and just know my dad isn't like my mom and well lets just say he isn't in any choirs around :) but it makes it that much more enjoyable ha ha.

3- I love blankets. I collect them I guess you could say. At our family Christmas party I got another one to add to my collection and I love it! I have so many and I use them all the time. I do have a favorite that I use the most because it is so warm and soft but I really do just love blankets because I hate being cold and well I love anything that will keep me warm :) When I watch a movie no matter how warm it is I have to have a blanket ha ha.

4- I love brushing my teeth. I know thats weird to a lot of people but I actually love to do it and do it all the time. I just love clean teeth it makes life so much more enjoyable ha ha but I really do love to take care of my teeth!

5-  I love cookie dough it is just so delicious and magical. I just love how it is just so amazing and yet so simple to make. A little piece of heaven in a bowl. mmm

6- I love having everything organized. Even when I was a kid I was kinda a neat freak not in the same way I am now but I just have to have everything organized and in a home where I know exactly where to find it. It needs to be in places that others can find it also because it drives me crazy when people can't find things and I will need to go find it for them. I mean come one I organize my movies in alphabetical order and shirts in sleeve length and color order!

7- I love blueberry muffins! They are so amazing especially when they are still warm and steaming.

8- I love dancing with my little sister ha ha. She has some of the most awesome dance moves and it is just so random! Walking home from my brothers yesterday we were dancing the whole way home it was pretty much amazing!

9- I love friends who are always there for you no matter what. People who will drop whatever they are doing to be there for you and to help and don't resent you for it later. People who you can tell things to and know that it won't go farther then just with them. Relationships like that don't come very often and when they do its so cool to be able to get a friend like that.

10- I love waking up and getting to spend as much time as you want just relaxing in bed until you are ready to get up. Its actually what I am doing right now and haven't gotten up for an hour and a half. I love taking my time to get up and get ready in the mornings. Now I am going to go Christmas shopping and finish decorating for Christmas!!

As for my goal last time I really did try to have faith in people and it turned out the times I didn't was when things would go wrong but if I really tried to keep having faith in other and what they would tell me things would just seem to work out. It really took a load off me trying to judge others really is hard work and I am really glad its not my job!

My next goal is to try not to be so down on myself. I really am going to try to look at myself not so negative and not put myself down so much. The past couple months have been really big poor me months and I really need to work on that. Here I go!!   I hope everyone has a Merry Christmas!!!

Ready or Not

I have had such a crazy couple of weeks and had to make some really big decisions. Those decisions aren't over yet and I still have more to come. My next ones will get to be made in the presence of my family though which is easier because there is always someone around to talk to.  This time of year is perfect to tell everyone the things I love I should have done it before Thanksgiving but at least I'm doing it!

1- I love the holidays! I know that I have said I love Christmas but its not just Christmas its the whole thing. Its from thanksgiving on that people are just so much more in tune with what is really important. Its what really matters in life not the other things we worry about on a daily basis but the love we all have for each other and for the doing service and being there for each other.

2- I love guidance during hard times. I know as I have had to make my decisions recently that I had help from a caring Heavenly Father. He makes things easier for us if we just let Him. I know I am grateful for that in my life.

3- I love clementines those little orange things, they come around during the holidays and I just never seem to be able to get enough! They are so delicious and so easy to eat compared to oranges.

4- I love solitaire it is totally the don't have to think just put cards around game. Its the game I play when I am stressed or just super bored. It is such a great game!

5-I love buying things for other people. There is just something magical about when you buy something for someone because you just know they will love it and then watching their reaction when they get to see it. I love that feeling. I'd rather buy things for other people then myself any day but only if I know what I am looking for ha ha.

6- I love turkey noodle soup or chicken noodle soup homemade. Ultimate comfort food around the holidays. My mom always makes turkey noodle soup right after thanksgiving and I love it. I didn't get that this year being away from home but I hope to get it when I go home for Christmas!

7- I love the sound of rain. When it is raining at nights I love to stay awake and just listen to the pitter patter on the roof. Or go driving so you can hear it all over the car. My mom use to take up driving around when there would be big storms so we could see everything happening.

8- I love traditions. In my family we have so many Christmas traditions I love it but not only with Christmas traditions I just love all traditions. I get this warm fuzzy feeling when I hear about people talking about their traditions or I get to talk about my own. We now have traditions for everything, birthdays, Christmas, Christmas eve, Christmas parties, New Years, Thanksgiving, girls camp, valentines day, etc. I have grown to want my children to enjoy these special traditions as much as I always have!

9- I love swings any time I am upset or sad or just ecstatic swings are there to help get my emotions under control or gives me a chance to let everything bad go and just focus on the good. Any time I would be feeling upset or anything I would just go swing it is just another comfort.

10- I love having reminders of all the good things in life. Others who put their grateful lists on their blog to help remind me there are so many things to be happy about and to love. For the simple things everywhere that also help keep that in my mind to remember that there is so much to be happy about and never giving up.

My goal is to start having more faith in people. I am starting to get in a rut of judging people or what they mean with something they say I don't see the bigger picture or see the way things really are. I read on my friends blog that says "be kind, for everyone you meet is fighting a hard battle." - Plato. I loved it because it is the truth my battles might seem so hard but I know there are always harder things to be going through and everyone has their own hardships and we just need to remember that and to not jump to conclusions to quick.

Time goes by

I really need to keep this up because it really isn't to hard to think of 10 things I love. Plus it really does keep my spirits up and make me think I can always do better.

1- I love that I have such a special close relationship with my sisters that nothing could ever change it. Time hasn't and so many trials hasn't. It really is unique and I would not change that relationship for anything else in this world.

2- I love birthdays. It doesn't matter if its my birthday or someone else I just love them! Mostly because I love to buy things for other people and to see their reaction when they open it. It is just such a festive time for people and it makes them happy.

 

3- I love bubble gum. Lyndsey has recently again brought back that love that I seem to forget sometimes. It is just so much fun to see who can blow the biggest bubble. What better way to feel child like?

4- I love Gilmore Girls. I own all the seasons and have recently picked them up again and going through my favorite episodes. Its great because as I get older I get more of the jokes out of it as time goes by.

5- I love the smell of leather in a new car. Its the classic new car smell. Jill just got a new car and it didn't smell like a new car until they put in the new custom leather. It is such a good smell ha ha.

6- I love Bliss chocolate. It is by far my most favorite chocolate of all time. I keep some all the time and when I feel at my worst I eat it. I am afraid that if I eat it to often it will lose its greatness and helpfulness of making me feel better.

7- I love pop tarts. Along with my Gilmore Girl addiction I watch them eat pop tarts all the time and now am addicted to pop tarts as well and love to eat and watch both at the same time. Best ever!

8- I love tomorrows. I am officially afraid of the dark which makes me so much more grateful for the day. For light and the sun. It is a new beginning each and every day to become a better person. Every day I hope to get a step closer to being better then I was yesterday and if I accomplish anything that was better then the day before I feel like I succeed and have many more tomorrows to conquer today.

9- I love our military for all that they do for us day in and day out and how much goes on behind the scenes that we don't realize. Brent left the USA today to help our country. Leaving a family at home for a year. It takes great sacrifice and dedication to do something so incredible as serve our country for our benefit so we have the freedoms we have. They are absolutely on the top ten in my book of heroes I want to be more like.

10- I love military families for the support they give the military. For all that they sacrifice and go through so that we may be able to live in peace serving people they don't even know and at times people who mock them and what they are doing along with their family who is serving the country. They keep going and supporting and giving up so much for people they don't know all around them. They are just as amazing as those who go away to help they just stay here to hold down the fort. Absolutely incredible people that way to often people take for granted and overlooked.

I am still trying to keep in mind all the amazing little things around me even with the big things there. My heart is full of being grateful which is fitting because of thanksgiving. We really are in a time where if we can stand strong we can accomplish mighty things. Keep positive and everything will look a little brighter. 

Love this weekend

1- I love General Conference! It is just the greatest 2 weekends in the year ever! I watched all four sessions and enjoyed every minute of it. There is just something different about that weekend that totally makes everything better. Now that it is over I feel a little sad.

2- I love the weather cooling down. It is definitely getting me in the spirit of the holidays! Hearing about all the snow back home makes me want to sit in front of a fire with hot chocolate and a heated blanket curled up watching a movie or reading a good book. Considering it is going to get up to 80 degrees here I don't think that will be happening but it is a good thought anyways!

3- I love airplanes so that I can take trips to see my family and have it only take 2 hours to get there! Hooray for modern technology!

4- I love lotion, I am obsessed with it. I have to constantly put it on because dry skin gives me that yucky feeling like nails on a chalkboard.

5- I love shoes! I have about a hundred pair of shoes but they are getting so old which means I need to go shoe shopping soon and start to throw out the breaking ones :( and as Jennifer puts it no matter how much your weight changes shoes and purses stay the same size and still fit ha ha

6- I love naps for those days where I just feel like I can't take it anymore and then just sleep for about an hour and I wake up with a whole new perspective! It is so wonderful. I wish I could take more naps more often.

7- I love stories of my childhood and talking about them with friends and family. There are so many stories that I can think of that just make me laugh so hard. Like kicking down my brothers vent in his door because I wanted inside even though it was way past my bedtime, or thinking there were sharks in water towers (thanks Shanda and Jed), for playing with the Powells and having Taylor change his mind every 5 minutes if we were friends or not, for playing dress up (which I still do to this day) and playing games like school and spank tag with my sisters!

8- I love the first snow of the season even though I'm not there for it this year I can still feel it. There would be nights I would just sit awake for hours waiting for the snow so I could go outside and sit in it. As kids when it would snow before we went to bed we would run outside and make our annual track to play snow monster with our big fort for home base.

9- I love colored acrylic, I did acrylic nails on myself which I haven't done in about a year on myself so it was a little harder then it use to be which means I need more practice! I did my ring fingers purple which I think Jill thought was a little weird but people who are in the cosmetology industry or who get their nails done often know what I am talking about!

10- I love folding warm laundry! Even though laundry is one of my least favorite chores there is just something about warm laundry, the way it smells, the warmth making my constantly cold hands warmer, and when I am cold enough just sticking on my jacket while it is warm. I love clean clothes :)

Good Day

So today was a day where I tried to think of everything positive to keep my spirits up here are some of the things I thought of. 

1- We went out to dinner and man I love teriyaki chicken and oriental salad mmmm.

2- I love Christmas music I can listen to Christmas music all year round. Christmas is just the greatest time of the year because there is just something different about it there is something that makes people happy an extra positive boost I don't know there is just something different if you can find it. I get that feeling when I pretend its Christmas.

3- I love the sound of kids laughing. While driving to dinner all the kids in the back were making loud obnoxious sounds to get Shaylen to laugh just a little giggle and it makes the whole obnoxious noise thing worth it. Once Shaylen laughs they get excited and all start laughing also. So good!

4- I love having communication to people at home in Utah. It's just so great to be able to talk to them and know what is going on. We live in such an awesome world to have the communication tools that we have.

5- I love that the weather in Arizona is getting cooler. Getting in the car doesn't put you into an instant sweat anymore! Also you can spend more then 5 minutes out there without getting heat exhaustion!!

6- I love memories, being able to think of the good things in the past is one thing to keep everyone going. Its the base of positivity, to be able to think about good things when you are down to help bring you back up.

7- I love praying because there is something about it that no matter what else is going on  you can always count on prayer to make things better. Even if its just 5 minutes to take your mind off of this world and all the hard things going on. Sometimes those 5 minutes are all you need.

8- I love being able to have better things to change your attitude. Our own desire to make things better then they were.

9- I love hair ties for days like today where I just wanted to be as comfy as possible so I threw it up where ever it wanted to go Or days where I put it up in a cute pony tail or some other totally awesome updo, they are just so handy!

10- I love pictures to help remind us of things that have happened. You can see so much emotion and feeling from one picture. It is so true that a picture says a thousand words.

Last goal: For a little while I kept forgetting but I think today was the best day of noticing the little things and noting the positive. It really helps and I hope I can keep focusing on that and working on it always.

New Goal: I am going to try to love people deeper and more sincerely. I know that sometimes I love people for my benefit which makes it selfish love or its jealous love but I want to have sincere love for others. Love that is like the love of Christ unconditional and patient.