Sarah Ida

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2011-12-11T17:44:00.001-08:00

An update.

I just left this....

and came home to this...

I feel pretty blessed to have lived in beautiful Helena, Montana. And I am so happy to be back home, in Utah. Life is good.

It has been a while since I blogged and I feel like there are so many things to share (so many pictures!), but I don't think I will. If you want to know about the last year, call me, and we'll go to lunch and I'll tell you about it. :)

Weekend away

2010-11-21T19:47:00.001-08:00

I love Helena, and I've loved being here... but since I don't really know too many people here it gets a little boring on weekends sometimes. I was talking to Allison and we decided to meet in the middle - in Idaho Falls. She brought two of her nieces and we had a fun weekend hanging out, swimming, and shopping. Allison and I also had a chance to go to the Idaho Falls temple.

Pottery

2010-11-21T19:30:00.001-08:00

A few people in my family have been reading a series by Ben Behunin. The Remembering Isaac series. The books are so good, very uplifting and written by a potter, about a potter in a small little town. Well, when I was in Salt Lake my Mom, Dad and I decided we wanted to go to Ben Behunin's pottery studio. It was so fun to go there and see where the books were written and to see a bunch of his potter, and of course, to meet the author himself! :)

Halloween!

2010-11-21T19:23:00.000-08:00

The employees of Fast Enterprises in Montana... pretty spooky.

Girls Night!

2010-11-21T19:16:00.001-08:00

This post is probably pretty self explanatory. :) It was a good night.

Brandon and Candice

2010-11-21T18:43:00.000-08:00

My good friend, Candice, got married at the beginning of October and I was lucky enough to be part of the wedding. It was a fairytale wedding - absolutely gorgeous. Congrats to the beautiful bride and groom!!

4th ward youth

2010-11-21T18:34:00.001-08:00

Aside from my own nieces and nephews, the youth in the Helena 4th ward have got to be some of the best out there. My calling in the ward is laurel advisor so I get to hang out with these girls quite a bit. I love it!

Helena Happenings...

2010-11-21T18:11:00.000-08:00

Holly brought Avery, Layne and Kyler here when I first moved to Helena. We went hiking and just hung out at my house. Allison was here too... it was so good to have some familiar faces!! :)

at McKenzie River Pizza Co.

Allison and I on the top of Mt Helena

Kyler sleeping with his Grizz jersey nearby

Avery and Layne hiking Mt Helena

hiking Mt Helena

I am lucky enough to live across the street from Spring Meadow Lake. It is the perfect little lake to run around and it is really pretty. You can see Mt Helena in the background.

I made it a goal while the weather was still warmer to hike to the top of Mt Helena every week, so here are some pictures of me hiking. I LOVE the views from the top. The trailhead is only a couple of miles from my house and this mountain has SO many trails on it. I love this town. :)

Playing catch up

2010-11-20T18:33:00.001-08:00

First on the list... I turned 29. Yay.

At least my parents were visiting me in Helena so I wouldn't be alone for my birthday! :) Aren't they just fabulous?! Thanks for coming Mom and Dad, and thanks for everything you did for me while you were here. I love you both lots!!

Allison was here the weekend before my birthday so we celebrated a little early.

Photos

2010-10-23T20:32:00.000-07:00

So, I feel kind of silly posting these, but I won a photo shoot from my friend, Michelle, and I think she did a pretty good job... here are the results...

to see more of Michelle's work check out Michelle Andersen Photography.

Helena!

2010-09-16T22:06:00.000-07:00

My new home. :) Its pretty here. Really pretty.

My house is pretty too. :)

Do you know what you can do with a LOT of packing paper?

2010-09-16T21:03:00.000-07:00

This is what my kitchen (in Helena!) looked like once I started to unpack... I decided to just see how big the mountain of paper could get.

The pile started getting very large and I realized I didn't really want to leave it there, so I had to move the mountain to the garage....

I had been talking to Allison about all of the paper and she had the brilliant idea to use it as a prank on someone. Too bad my packing paper is in Montana and the people we know are in Utah. .... but wait... Carrie (my lovely sister) was moving at the same time and has the same kind of mountain of packing paper. We took it (thanks Carrie) and filled, yes FILLED, Katie's room. Katie is Allison's roommate. It turned out pretty good... a nice prank, if I say so myself. Now the paper is safely in some boxes in Allison's storage, ready to be used again. Look out. :)

Moving time

2010-09-16T20:51:00.000-07:00

Goodbye house in North Salt Lake. I will miss you. I will miss my little yard. I will miss my little deck. I will miss (LOTS) the swimming pool and hot tub. I will miss my cute little house. Isn't it a cute house? :) TONS of packing paper and 98 packing boxes later the house was empty and I am off to Montana!

Goodbyes

2010-09-12T14:19:00.001-07:00

I have some great friends and co-workers in Utah and I'm so glad that got to get together with a bunch of them before I left. These first pictures are my farewell party for work. Instead of the usual drinks and appetizers at a bar, I chose to have my party at a park with families. It turned out great. I worked with some fun people in Utah and I will miss them - thank goodness for AGM. See you all in Texas! :)

...Allison isn't a co-worker but she knows some of them and I wanted her to come with me. :)

These pictures aren't part of the farewell party, but we had another party of sorts during my last week of work. It was our end-of-project BBQ where we serve the entire Tax Commission a yummy BBQ lunch. We held our Run for Families of FSMA at the same time.

One of my co-workers, Beth, planned this fun lunch at Red Butte Gardens. We've been talking for a while about going there and we finally made it happen during my last week. We got a few of the ladies from work together and had a picnic. It was beautiful!

What a surprise!! (ha!) Allison through a going away party for me that last week also and so many of my closest friends came. Thanks so much Allison for planning that! I loved it. These are some of my favorite people in the world. (not all of them, just some) :)

Love this group! Allison, Kara, me, Candice, Mindy, Becky and Lindsey. Thanks girls!

10 years

2010-08-30T20:54:00.000-07:00

I can't believe its been 10 years since we all graduated from High School. It was so fun to have the reunion and see a bunch of people that I haven't seen in a while.

They let us have the school open so we could walk through and reminisce. We had to find the Grizzly and get a picture. We also got to see the hallways (classrooms were locked) by the orchestra room and choir room... lots of good memories! :)

Love this group!! (but there are a few people missing from the picture - we love you too!)

Can you read this?

2010-08-30T20:43:00.000-07:00

So, I think I have a stalker at Taco Bell. Every time I go there I get one of these fabulous little hot sauce packets. Now, if only I could figure out who is leaving them for me.... :)

Girls Night Out

2010-08-28T00:14:00.000-07:00

I love these girls! Three of my adorable nieces came over to have a night of girl bonding time.

Bees Game!

2010-08-28T00:08:00.001-07:00

Birthdays

2010-08-27T23:20:00.000-07:00

Here are some pictures of some really fun birthdays that happened in August. We celebrated my Dads 70th birthday by throwing him a surprise party. Here are some pictures of the day.

My good friend, Allison, had a birthday too and we celebrated by going to Lagoon! Wahoo!

Isn't it ironic?

2010-07-18T15:39:00.000-07:00

Just when I think I finally get to live near one of my sisters (Carrie is moving to Salt Lake from Missoula), I find out that I am being transferred to Helena, Montana. Thank goodness that Holly and her family will still be in Missoula or I might be a little mad. :)

Yep, I am moving to Montana! After the initial surprise of finding out that I am being transferred, I am now pretty excited. I think its going to be fun! I start working there on Aug 30. I have loved Missoula every time I have visited, so hopefully Helena will be similar. Maybe I'll even meet a Montana cowboy. ;)

My New Toys

2010-07-10T21:15:00.000-07:00

I've been wanting to learn how to golf better for a while, so this weekend I was looking through KSL ads and craiglist and I found an awesome deal on a full set of clubs and a golf bag! I am so excited! I went golfing today to celebrate. :)

this is my celebration after hitting a birdie at the 8th hole! Wahoo!! (my only good hole) :)

SIsTeRs!!

2010-06-27T19:41:00.000-07:00

I just got back from our Sisters Trip 2010 in California, at Melinda and Staci's house. It was so great to be with the girls and Melinda and Staci's house is always perfect. Thanks for a great few days ladies! :) Love you! Tina and Kristen, we missed you!!

2010-06-27T19:29:00.000-07:00

Last week I made a little trip to Vernal and while I was there I got to go to the temple with my parents. It was beautiful... the Vernal temple looks a lot different from the others, but I liked it.

And here's another picture - not related to the Vernal trip - but look who's driving!! :)

Havasupai (long post warning!!)

2010-05-26T21:59:00.000-07:00

It was definitely the trip of a lifetime, and definitely someplace I will visit again. It was my first experience backpacking, and I loved it! I was really nervous how I would do carrying a heavy backpack, but it really wasn't too bad. The group was great too, I met some awesome people and hopefully this trip won't be the last. Havasupai is the name of the reservation in Arizona which borders the Grand Canyon. It took us 12 miles to drive to the hilltop, and then it is 8 miles to the Supai village and then 2 miles past that to the Havasupai campgrouds. Here's how the trip went....

Wednesday

We woke up early and started our drive. We ended up making pretty good time and arrived at the hilltop around 7 pm. We got all of our stuff ready and started hiking through the canyon. The trail has about a mile and half of steep downhill right at the beginning and then it is pretty much a flat/gradual downhill 6.5 miles to the village. We hiked for a couple of hours on Wednesday night and then set up camp for the night. That was a fun night getting to know everyone in the group a little better.

Thursday

We all pretty much woke up when the sun came out. ... but I doubt any of us really slept all that well, I think there was a time in the night we all woke up and were laughing at the guys searching for animals in the bushes. Anyway, another couple in our group met us at our campsite just as we were packing up. So, we gatherered everything together again and hiked the rest of the way to the village. Once we got to the village we checked in and (stopped at the store for ice cream!) got our wristbands and we were all set. We hiked the 2 miles to the campground (mostly downhill) past a few waterfalls, including Rock Falls and Havasu Falls. Once we found our camp site we dropped off our stuff and rested for a bit and then decided to head to Mooney falls which is a mile past the campgroud. I did not love Mooney falls. You had to pretty much climb on the side of the cliff to get down to the falls. They had chains and had carved steps into the rocks, but I'm not of fan of that stuff... If you've hiked Angels Landing, its like the last part of that trail, but worse. But the falls were pretty and it was fun to swim around and GREAT to cool off. I think after that we just headed back to camp and made dinner and headed to bed.

Friday

I woke up from my fabulous, or not so fabulous, night sleep on the super soft picnic table pretty early and waited for the rest of the group to wake up... Once we were up and had breakfast we hiked back up to Havasu Falls. I think these falls are the most famous falls. But you could really see the damage from the floods in 2008. One couple in the group had been there just before the flood and they kept saying how much the landscape had changed. Havasu Falls were definitely beautiful and there was no rock climbing required to get to the pools. But the pools weren't very deep so it wasn't a great swimming spot. However, I think this is where the girls got to wash our hair. That felt great! After spending some time at Havasu Falls we decided to head up to Rock Falls because we thought we remembered people swimming there. I'm so glad we headed up there. Rock Falls were great! A bunch of people were able to jump off of the falls (not me, I'm a wimp), and we could climb up behind the falls too. There were a couple of deep pools to swim in and a huge flat rock we could all lay out on. Since we were already more than half way back to the village we decided to go to the cafe for lunch. Yum! Now, that is backpacking! ;) I think we just went back to Rock Falls after we ate - played around some more there and then headed back to camp. Oh yes... I can't forget - we met Mihayla (I have no idea how to spell her name) on the way back from the village. She just started walking with us. Super cute little 6 year old girl.

Saturday
We wanted to go back to Rock Falls for a little bit and explore them a little better. The main fall that we spent time at on Thursday was just one waterfall, but there were about 5 more up the hill a little ways. So we climbed up to those, but we didn't spend too much time because the mist from the falls was so cold. It was pretty though. We spent most of the day at Rock Falls.... just laying out and swimming. We had packed up our camp and backpacked up the hill to Rock Falls in the morning and we were just going to spend the day there and then finish hiking out that night. We decided to break up the hike out a little bit which I am so grateful for! We also made a little stop in the village cafe again to get a good dinner. Then we started our hike out.... we made it to the bottom of the hill and then we set up camp. It was COLD on Saturday night... we all slept really close together, but I think I had the cheapest sleeping bag... I was freezing! We woke up early (and frozen) on Sunday morning and hiked the ~2 miles up hill (hardest part!) to the cars. It felt so good to make it the whole way!! Before I left I was convinced that I'd have to get horses to carry my pack or that I would pay for a seat on the helicopter... but nope... I packed my stuff the whole way! It was awesome!

Anyway... Havasupai is a beautiful place, and backpacking is a great adventure. I loved it!!

Salt Lake Century!

2010-05-16T17:58:00.000-07:00

I had signed up to ride in the Salt Lake Century with a goal of maybe riding the 37 mile option. I'd only ever ridden maybe 28-30 miles before this and I thought if I did 37 it would be good. But after talking with some people (good motivators)... I decided to try and ride longer and see how I felt. My friend, Allison, said that I should keep riding and she would pick me up if I didn't think I could make it to the end. :) Well, I ended up riding the 70 mile option. 70 MILES!! I was so excited that I was able to finish this... without dying... and without being dead last. I loved it! The weather was great and I rode with a guy (thanks Mark - wherever you are) the whole time and we pushed each other to keep going. I had never met Mark before and will probably never see him again, but I sure appreciate riding with him. He wanted to take a shortcut back, but I told him we had to finish the whole thing. I felt pretty good through it all and I'm very excited about my goal to finish a full century (100 miles) in August.

AGM 2010

2010-05-16T17:44:00.001-07:00

Here are some pictures of the latest Annual General Meeting for Fast Enterprises. It was in Florida this year and a lot of fun...

In case you missed the last one...

2010-05-13T22:43:00.000-07:00

The chamber choir I am in (it is a small part of the Utah Voices choir) is having their first concert on Saturday at 8 pm. The group is called Verus Vox Vocis which means True Voices. I think its gonna be good. :)

Saturday May 15, 8:00 pm
Bountiful Community Church
100 N 400 E
$8 per person
tickets available here or at the door

3 things...

2010-04-16T20:49:00.000-07:00

There are three things that I have been thinking about and want to post... and here they are.

#1. Yay for springtime and sunshine! and... YAY for bikerides!! I was FINALLY able to take my bike out and go for a ride. This picture isn't me... but you get the idea, right?

#2. I love this song. I've heard it a lot, but lately I've been listening to the words more. Love it.

#3. I love this girl...

One of my greatest friends, Mindy, has moved to Bountiful and I love having her close by. The other day we got together and went on a walk on the Legacy trail (have I mentioned I love the sunshine and warmer temperatures we've been having?!?). I just have to say that I feel blessed to have such as awesome friend in Mindy. We are so much alike, I can tell her anything (and I do), and she always makes me feel good about myself when I'm around her. Here is a quote that makes me think of Mindy... we've talked about this before so I think she'll appreciate it. :)

"Anybody can sympathise with the sufferings of a friend, but it requires a very fine nature to sympathise with a friend's success." - Oscar Wilde --- or maybe it's just true friendship when you can sympathise with their success.

Also... Mindy and I weren't the only ones on our walk. Check out this cute guy.

Utah Voices

2010-04-04T17:45:00.000-07:00

I've been part of a choir called Utah Voices for the past few months. We rehearse once a week and I think we are sounding pretty good. Utah Voices is a community choir that is based in Davis County, but we have members from Salt Lake County as well. It has been great to be singing again! Anyway, our next concert is April 30... here are the details:

tickets available online here

Travels... (part 2)

2010-04-03T11:29:00.000-07:00

Delaware? ...is that by China?

Here are just a couple of pictures from my trip to Delaware. You'll see the conference room that we pretty much lived in, and some other sights.

Travels... (part 1)

2010-04-03T11:11:00.000-07:00

So, I'm a little slow to write this post, but I needed to post some pictures of my recent travels. First, I got to go to Colorado for a couple of days and be with my sister. She just had a baby a few days before I got there, so I got to meet Brigg! He's adorable and it was so fun to hang out with Deb's family.

Charly showing off her letters:

4 days old and smiling?!? :) : )

"Peace" from Wesley

2 years old!

2010-02-25T22:26:00.000-08:00

Happy Birthday to my cute kitties!! TJ and Izzy turned 2 today. I wasn't feeling up to throwing a party, but next year, you're all invited. :) These cats are my buddies.

Here's TJ

and here's Izzy
I know I look lovely, but I love it when they cuddle. :)

$2,160...

2010-02-16T08:50:00.000-08:00

is the amount that someone tried to charge to my credit card. (insert VERY annoyed/scared/frustrated sigh here) I checked my credit card statement today online, which is something I do fairly often, and I noticed that I must have become a huge fan of golf. Golf World, Golfio Inc, and Golf Warehouse look to have become my new favorite stores in the last couple of days. Unfortunately, I have never shopped at any of them. Someone must have used my credit card number to charge some pretty fun equipment. I am a fan of the employees of Discover Card though. I am not liable for any unauthorized charges and I have a new card being shipped soon. Too bad there is the hassle of switching all accounts over...

Anyway... that's how my week started. How's yours?

Cruisin'!!!

2010-02-13T11:59:00.000-08:00

I got back a week ago from a fantastic vacation to the Mexican Riveria. I went on a cruise with some of my family and their friends. You can read a couple of other blogs that describe that we did (they wrote it better than I could)... Melinda's blog and Mom's blog. But here are some highlights...

evidence of the race around the ship... Melinda and I should have won. :)

PUERTO VALLARTA: rainy day...

MAZATLAN:

CABO SAN LUCAS:

Holidays...

2010-01-21T17:45:00.000-08:00

Here are some pictures from the holidays... I'm a little slowing at getting them posted! I spent Christmas Eve and Christmas with Eric and Tina and family. It was a lot of fun, and the kids were so cute...

Primary

2010-01-04T22:43:00.000-08:00

It has been a while since I've been in Primary, but I think its time I go back. I just got called to be the CTR-4 primary teacher with my friend, Allison. We had our first class this last Sunday. We have eight 4-year-olds in the class and they are going to be all sorts of fun. If anyone has any ideas how to teach 4-year-olds how to choose the right, please pass it on. :)

Let the fun begin!

Happy New Year!!!

2009-12-31T09:36:00.000-08:00

2009-12-29T10:04:00.000-08:00

“You have brains in your head. You have feet in your shoes. You can steer yourself in any direction you choose. You’re on your own. And you know what you know. You are the one who’ll decide where to go.” – Dr. Seuss

So it seems there has been some confusion with my last post. So I just thought I should clarify.
I am not sad. I am very happy.

Sometimes I remember that it is not a bad thing to be single and sometimes I don't remember that. I do have my days when I think that I will never get to be a wife and a mom. But I do believe that will happen when the time is right. I believe strongly that it is much better to be single and happy than in a relationship and not happy. I think too often people (myself included) think "single" means being unloved or unwanted. The definition is below and that is not what it means. I am happy. My life is good. I'm enjoying my time of singleness. :)
But, thanks for the words of love. :)

Quotes I like:
“I don’t like to be labeled as lonely just because I am alone.” - Delta Burke
“Sometimes you have to stand alone to prove that you can still stand.”

picture from art.com

2009-12-19T10:42:00.000-08:00

sin⋅gle [sing-guhl] adjective, verb, noun
–adjective
1. only one in number; one only; unique; sole: a single example.
2. of, pertaining to, or suitable for one person only: a single room.
3. solitary or sole; lone: He was the single survivor.
4. unmarried: a single man.
5. pertaining to the unmarried state: the single life.
6. consisting of only one part, element, or member: a single lens.
7. sincere and undivided: single devotion.
8. separate, particular, or distinct; individual: Every single one of you must do your best. It's the single most important thing.
9. (of the eye) seeing rightly.

–verb (used with object)
10. to pick or choose (one) from others (usually fol. by out): to single out a fact for special mention.

–noun
11. one person or thing; a single one.
12. an accommodation suitable for one person only, as a hotel room or a table at a restaurant: to reserve a single.
13. an unmarried person, esp. one who is relatively young.

Synonyms: distinct, particular, unwed, select, individual.

source: dictionary.com

No where in that definition does it mention: sad, depressed, lonely, unwanted, unloved, grumpy, boring, ugly as synonyms or definitions of being single. So... my decision is, its ok to be single... for now. :)

My new face :)

2009-12-16T17:07:00.001-08:00

Lights on Temple Square... and a carriage ride!!

2009-12-12T11:17:00.000-08:00

Last night Jared and I went to Temple Square with one of my co-workers, Sarah, and her family. She is being transfered to Arkansas soon and she is trying to do all of the "Utah" things. She had never been to Temple Square yet. It was fun to go again and see the lights. Sarah had to do the carriage ride too, so we joined them. The city is decked out in lights and temple square was beautiful. Merry Christmas!

Fast Enterprises Christmas Party

2009-12-12T11:05:00.000-08:00

For our Christmas party this year, Fast took everyone to La Caille and Ice Skating at the Gallivan Center. La Caille is a super fancy French restaurant and we all dressed up in fancy clothes. I didn't get any good pictures there, but this first one is of the entrance to the driveway up to the restaurant. They had it all decked out for Christmas.

After dinner, we all changed in to our warmer, comfy clothes and we headed to the Gallivan Center for ice skating. It was SO cold.... but it was a fun way to start the Christmas season.

More Pictures...

2009-12-12T10:55:00.000-08:00

It's beginning to look like Christmas at my house.

By the way, this is Jared. I kinda like him.

We celebrated his birthday by going to a Jazz game and I made him this mashed potato cake. We didn't actually get to eat any of it (thank you TJ) but it looked kind of cool.... or maybe just weird.

And just because she's so cute... here's a picture of Izzy in her Jazz bag.

Lions and Tigers and Bears!

2009-12-12T10:37:00.000-08:00

Jared's sister-in-law got us tickets to take Jared's neice to the zoo. I've never been the zoo when its cold before, so I was a little nervous, but it turned out to be great! A lot of the animals were out and playing. My favorite had to be the tiger. Someday I want one. A big tiger to cuddle with. :)

Thanksgiving in Montana

2009-12-12T10:16:00.000-08:00

It's been a while since I blogged last so I have lots of pictures and updates... We'll start with Thanksgiving.

My sisters, Carrie and Holly, both live in Missoula, Montana. They invited my family to celebrate Thanksgiving with them, so we were all there except for two of my brothers, who we definitely missed!

at some point there was always a group of kids playing with the DS.

cute baby Oliver!

Drake concentrating on getting a Bingo

Layne waiting for a Bingo
Who's more excited about the Bingo prizes? Dad and Debbie or the kids?!

Gabe and Starbursts :)

Yummy (and pretty!) desserts!

Holly

2009-11-20T11:18:00.000-08:00

Happy 40th Holly!

Love you!!

...63 days

2009-11-20T11:15:00.001-08:00

63 days and I will be here... or at least on that ship. The countdown is not going to go fast enough.

ship: Sapphire Princess
destinations: Cabo San Lucas, Mazatlan, and Puerto Vallarta

Hooray!

Fasten your seat belt

2009-11-17T10:49:00.001-08:00

Today, while I was at work, I left my desk to fill up my water bottle and when I came back and sat down I reached for my seat belt. .... weird. I guess it could be a wild ride.... as a programmer, a tax programmer. Buckle up, folks.

Sleepy?

2009-11-16T09:10:00.001-08:00

This picture illustrates how I'm feeling today.

The person that gave me the roses (pictured below) might have something to do with it. Maybe we stay up way too late??? Yes, I think we do. It's worth it though.

ps. although this cat is cute, it is not my TJ or Izzy. :)

What every girl wants...

2009-11-08T21:16:00.000-08:00

24 red roses

I found these on my porch

I am a lucky girl. :)

Hey Everybody, its Family Night!

2009-11-04T21:13:00.000-08:00

Monthly Huber FHE featuring:

GABE

OLIVER

WILL

EMILY

AND OTHERS...

I must say that we had a talented group! :) I didn't get a video of Harmony on the violin, but she did a great job playing Jingle Bells! I'm love getting together every month and I'm looking forward to the next time!

Cash

2009-11-04T21:08:00.000-08:00

On Sunday I attended the blessing of Cash Daniel Ferguson. What a cute little baby! So fun to see Mindy and her family.

Some of my favorite people

2009-10-18T21:07:00.000-07:00

The lesson today in Relief Society was about families and I happen to really love mine. I've been blessed with 7 fantastic siblings.

Love you all, and wished we could see each other more often!

What?

2009-10-16T20:07:00.001-07:00

... am I in the way?

Thank you Izzy. Apparently she wasn't getting enough attention. I had a lot of "home" time this last week because I've been sick (getting better though - wahoo!), so I decided (thank you Allison) to get a puzzle.

This was actually a very cool puzzle. Times Square in New York. And it even glows in the dark. The picture shows a bunch of Broadway show signs, the Thanksgiving parade big balloons, "United We Stand" and just all the classic Times Square sights.

Speaking of shows... this is a good one:

I saw this at the Hale Center Theater a few weeks ago. I love the music in it, and its actually one I've seen in New York. If you haven't seen it, I'd recommend it.

In a couple of weeks I'm going to see this one:

I don't know much about it yet, but I bet I'm going to like it. I'm thinking about getting season tickets next year, because going to musicals makes me happy. Wonder if I could join my parents with their season tickets? (Mom, do you know??)

ps... I am not a writer. I post pictures and add captions. Welcome to my blog. :)

Reasons to SMILE!

2009-10-15T21:27:00.000-07:00

picture found here

1. I am loving the fall weather
2. I just finished a good book about an amazing cat. ... and I like my cats too
3. the cruise to the Mexican Riveria has been booked
4. I have an amazing family
5. pumpkin cookies
6. Halloween festivities - excited for the BIG party on Saturday
7. got a new Real Simple magazine
8. 3 blind dates are in the works (smile or cringe?!?!)
9. I coughed less today
10. this article I read on another blog... not sure who wrote it, but SO funny

A long-running inside joke emerged within my district in the MTC the day we started practicing to teach about the law of chastity.

Under normal circumstances, of course, chastity is no laughing matter. But when a blushing elder bears his testimony of the sacred law of self-denial by blurting out, for lack of a more, ahem, voluptuous Japanese vocabulary, “Chastity is my favorite!” I think we can all be forgiven for finding the whole thing a little funny.

Particularly because I don’t think many people would list a chaste and celibate life among their favorite things in the history of ever and, speaking from long-suffering personal experience, I can tell you that chastity gets harder and harder to like the longer it sticks around.

Now, before I am misunderstood, let me say that I am fully aware of, and grateful for, the blessings that come from saving myself for The One and Only. (Or George Clooney. Whoever comes knocking first.) The spiritual and emotional toll of illicit intimacy is certainly a higher price than I am willing to pay. But still. I can’t help feeling that I am suffering in virtuous virginity without the recognition that such a feat deserves.

Think about it.

We get certificates for memorizing the Articles of Faith, sew-on patches for learning how to tie knots and pendants, statues and courts of honor for accomplishing every goal on a predetermined list. But the honor of chastity? Not even a commemorative wooden craft or a pat on the back.

Or, think about this.

We go to great lengths to celebrate the simple act of turning one year older, which requires significantly less willpower (as in none) than decades of physical restraint. And yet, when is the last time you baked someone a chastity cake? I don’t think it’s totally unreasonable to suggest that a 30-year-old virgin get at least that.

We celebrate all kinds of milestones and accomplishments, both in and out of the church, and yet that high covenant of chastity, the violation of which is second only in gravity to murder (murder!) gets nothing. So instead of rejoicing together in the blessings of obedience and discipline, chastity often becomes a source of embarrassment, no matter how in but not of the world you are trying to be.

I never feel this more acutely than on my annual visit to the lady doctor. The conversation usually goes something like this.

Her: Are you married or in a relationship?
Me: Nope.
Her: Are you sexually active?
Me: No.
Her: Have you ever been?
Me: No.
Her: Do you drink?
Me: No.
Her: Smoke?
Me: No.
Her: Drugs?
Me: No.
Her: Do you wear your seatbelt?
Me: Yes.

And just like that, I feel like the lamest dud ever. Can a person be any more boring on paper? No sex and I wear a seatbelt? Brother. I can’t even see the edge I’m so far away.

But then in the same moment I think to myself, Now wait just a second here. I shouldn’t be embarrassed, I should be celebrated. Given my current life circumstances, I couldn’t have given better answers to any of those questions. Balloons should be falling from the ceiling. George Clooney himself should be sending me a congratulatory card. At the very least, I should be getting a cookie. Because true chastity is not what I could call my favorite. It is hard work and, let’s be honest here, sort of a bummer. But it is what God has asked me to do, and so I am doing it.

Is there anything more worth celebrating than that?

No?

In that case, I’ll take that slice of cake now.

Can anybody?

2009-10-15T21:11:00.000-07:00

Such a good song. You can find this as one of the top 10 songs played on my ipod. (too bad the show isn't so good)

2009-10-10T15:12:00.000-07:00

Trying out the new blog... I decided that I wanted to be able to do more FUN things with my blog... so here it is. :) first up... Cute cats!!!

I guess this is one way to get a drink!