finishing up them papers

I had my physical earlier this week and now all that's left is to have my stake president interview then have my bishop send the information off to SLC! I guess that within the last few months Sister physicals have become a little more in depth than they used to be and for that reason alone I'm glad I had a female doctor. I was in and out of the Student Health Center within 30 minutes. I was anxious at how long the process would take but it was sooooo easy. Surprisingly easy. So, if you're reading this and wondering if you'll make it through your physical don't worry about it. It's all good!

Another exciting thing I got to check off my Missionary To-Do List is that I got my passport! You don't need to have one in order to send your papers but since I want to go out of the country pretty bad I figure that if I have a passport already my chances of going foreign are that much better. I set my appointment to get it all sorted out a month ago and it came in the mail last week! Hooray for items checked off!

[obviously my computer skills are lacking because idk how to flip my pictures to 'readable']

It's kind of weird to think that in just a few months I could be anywhere in the world with a name tag on. Anywhere! One of the nice things is that the temple is everywhere and so is the Spirit! That means wherever I go will be for a reason and good things will come of it. I went to the Mesa Temple this morning to sit and contemplate my life. There wasn't much contemplating and it was kind of chilly so I didn't sit too long but I felt good watching the sun come up behind the palm trees to shine on a House of the Lord. Unfortunately, my camera phone skills are horrible and I failed to capture just how beautiful the moment was. Trust me though, a tear or two was shed as I hummed A Child's Prayer to myself (and to the occasional elderly couple out for their morning speed walk). It was beautiful and I cannot wait to go in there!!

Satan sure is a smart guy...

My worst enemy is self doubt. I worry and stress over completely unnecessary things and that gives Satan a huge doorway to my spiritual well-being. Recently I've been anxious about what I'm going to do after my mission and if I'll have money and where I'll go to school and what I'll study and what kind of job I want... After a good tear or two (being emotional and crying really isn't my thing so I know he's working extra hard) I realized that what I should be focussing on is the time I have right now with my family. I get to spend every evening with them doing whatever we want! I've never been able to do this before! I should take advantage of this precious time before it's gone. Another thing I need to do is study up and prepare for my mission. I want to read the BoM again before I go and read PMG so I kind of know what I'm getting into. I haven't taken my mission picture yet either... I'm way thankful to those friends of mine who are serving missions right now because their words help me so much. A few of them who wrote home today shared words that helped me to calm down and really think about what's important. They helped me to refocus simply by sharing their missionary goodness. I can't wait to be surrounded by people like that and to be someone who helps others feel good too! Life is good.

Today I Can Choose

I love stumbling upon a quote I've saved from YW. My leaders were 100% inspired as to what we would need to know as we grew up. The following is one of those life guides that helps me make good choices and really think about the kind of person I am and what kind of person I want to become. I don't know who wrote it but I'm glad they did.


Today comes with built in decisions, great and small. The clothes I put on, the road I travel, the people whose lives I touch... in fact, nearly everything in my day depends on how I choose. Today I can choose to carry the blame myself, or to hold out a helping hand, to shout out loud in anger or to wait ten seconds, to cloud someone's mind with doubt, or to lift a heart with encouragement.


Today I can choose to count stars or to count mud puddles. When I go to the store I can choose to see how much there is to buy instead of how much I have to pay. When I get stuck in traffic, I can see, in every other car, a person just as important as me. Today, because I live in a free land, there are a thousand thongs I can choose: the neighborhood I live in, the friends I laugh with, the work I do, the thoughts I think, the dreams I dare. And what I will become, in spite of my fears and failure, in spite of the talents I lack, in spite of all the privileges I never had, depends on how I choose to challenge myself today. For I have power, if I choose, to act instead of complain, to speak out instead of cherish a hurt, to seek justice instead of get even, to love the world instead of wait for the world to embrace me first. What I choose today may well be the cause of my tomorrow. Today I shall live as I choose.


Let me choose wisely and well...

Shopping & Reading.

Me and Peyt, my adorable little brother, are chillin at home tonight and while he plays his computer games I look at the clothes I wish I could buy from Anthropologie and at the letters I should write back to. Both of these activities are in the same area as shopping and reading, two things I love. But what's the point in looking for new clothes if I have NO IDEA WHERE I'M GOING ON MY MISSION?? It's a bad investment - even though I really, really want new clothes.

You know what else I really, really want? To record a CD. I've only spoken about it for 4 years now. I've started a million times but never made it happen. My bishop in Provo said he would take me to one of his recording buddies to do some songs but I got nervous and never took him up on it. Lame. I should have. Right now I'm listening to "Beautiful Disaster" by Jon McLaughlin and his voice makes me want to sing more. When I come back from the mish I am going to do a CD. There's no point or reason as to why I haven't yet. Lack of motivation I suppose. One of my goals is to be on an EFY CD though so I had better get recording! Another bucket-list activity is to sing with Michael Buble and if we're going to make musical magic then I need to be vocally prepared haha.

"arise, pray, exercise (30 minutes), and prepare for the day"

When I was running the other day at the gym I had a thought about the rule to exercise daily. Maybe my companion, one or all of them, will be crazy about running and will want to sprint for the entire 30 minutes. What would I do?! I enjoy a brisk jog but am no fan of running at my top speed for longer than 100 yards. I would hate to prevent her from getting a good work out in... So as I increased my speed on the treadmill, I pondered about my exercise habits. "What type of missionary will I be?" I thought to myself, "the type who goes full 100% every day all day... or the type who slows down from fatigue and side cramps...?" I voted for the first version. To make sure I am the companion who works hard all day no matter the physical stress, and actually be the one to embrace the challenges, I have decided to do a 12 week total body transformation. I start tomorrow and my little sister is doing it with me. We're both training to be more fit: me for the mission and her for basketball.

The program is called Body for Life and was first introduced to me a few years back when I was a sophomore in high school. I wish that I had been determined enough to do it then but better late than never I guess. Neither of us are entering the official challenge but it'll be a good experience to help us be in better shape. I figure that if I'm going to be representing the Church then I better make sure I look as good as possible! People are more likely to listen to someone who is attractive than to someone who looks like a slob. How do I defend myself when I say that I love Heavenly Father if I don't take care of the greatest gift He's given me; my body? The greatest part about the program, apparently, is that it works by exercising at your max for no more than 45 minutes a day. Every other day is only 20 minutes! Those are the running days. I've done this before but it was a half-job and let me tell you, the 20 minute runs are KILLER compared to the 45 minute weight sessions. I'm excited to get back in it and prove to myself and to my future companions that when PMG advises us to "arise, pray, exercise and prepare for the day" that we will prepare for the day!

First Post on this, the Holy Blog

Well, this is certainly interesting. I've never created a missionary blog before. I've never written on a missionary blog before either. I'm sure it will contain of what most my other, less holy blogs contain: pictures, random thoughts and lessons learned. What makes this blog holier than my other ones (one for myself, one for the BYUSA presidency, and one for my leadership experiences) is that this will be completely mission based. Everything posted on this blog will be about my new journey as a missionary. Prepare yourself for inspirational photos, spiritual tangents and eventful stories.

Saying this is a holy blog is probably a tad blasphemous but hey, its my mind written on this thing and I'll think as highly as I'd like to, thank you. Fake it till you make it so I'm told.

It's the first of May and that means it's fast and testimony meeting. I should be extra spiritual today but I'm listening to a mash up of James Taylor and my mom playing the piano and thinking about how incredible it is that I could have my call by the next fast sunday. THAT IS INCREDIBLE!!! Last spring I had no idea that I could be called as a Sister Missionary within the next 12 months and now I'm wondering where I will be next spring... I'm constantly preparing for another long term adventure. When I served in BYUSA I realized that in doing the things I was most frightened of, just doing them and embracing the butterflies that suddenly swarmed in my stomach, I was most happy. It was the strangest epiphany. Like being a Vice President, even though it was completely above my skill level and out of my comfort zone at the beginning, I am attempting to live the life of an elder (according to my mission prep teacher, Brother Bott, the word elder simply means messenger of God). In a few weeks I will have a video similar to this one of my good friend Mary opening her call. Mine will be different though, it'll be a video of me announcing where I'm going because I'll first open it by myself and then have a ginormous party to celebrate!!

Does it scare me? Yes.
Is my heart pounding just by thinking about it? Yes.
Am I ready? Probably not at all.
Will I still go? Definitely, and I will love it.



PS: My good friend Matt gets set apart as Elder Medonich tomorrow and it blows my mind! While I'll miss him, I'm happy because he's going off to the Czech Republic to serve all those people. He's excited and I'm excited and we're all just way excited. =]