I can't think

I'm too tired and sick to think, let alone try and pay attention to my homework and classes. This is not so much fun. It all started on Saturday morning (as my daddy can attest, I texted him complaining. It's a good thing he loves me :) ). I woke up with a sore throat and a deep desire to not get out of bed. And since I had pulled the mattress out of the fold-out bed in the couch to sleep in the family room, I didn't have to get out of bed. I just reached over and grabbed the remote and watched tv. All day long. It was nice....well, as nice as it could be with a sore throat, headache, and an unconfirmed fever (I don't have a thermometer, but I do have a pack of frozen veggies in the freezer that made my head feel a lot better...). I think I might have gotten 4 hours of sleep Saturday night, I think. Couldn't really tell ya. And yet I still went to church and all my meetings, even after deciding that I couldn't make it. I forgot to turn off my alarm, so it went off at 6:30 bright and early Sunday so I could get ready for my 7:30 PEC meeting. I figured that even though I wasn't going to go to church, at the very least, I should take a shower cuz I didn't look or smell very pretty. By the end of the shower I was feeling almost close to almost normal, so I decided that I could make it through PEC and sacrament and then come home and die some more. 

PEC was definitely interesting, mostly cuz I was so out of it that I would start laughing at the smallest thing and Bishop kept asking me why I was laughing. Which only made me want to laugh more. At one point Bishop asked if there was anything that needed to be addressed with the RS and I said no. He gave me this look that said "I don't believe you" and I replied "Ok, so I'm pretty sure there is something, but right now I honestly couldn't tell ya. I'm a little out of it right now." And that little bit right there is about all I can remember from our hour or so meeting. Well, that and a lot of laughing being done by all, but that's nothing new. We're always joking and laughing at one point or another in PEC. It's a great way to start the day. If only it weren't so early....

Then I went to sacrament and sat with Alaina. Amazingly enough we didn't bust out laughing during the songs (we usually do when we sit next to each other. It's so funny! Cuz we can't stop laughing and then we laugh harder cuz we can't stop. I always wonder what the girls think of us as we're sitting in the front of RS laughing our heads off during the opening song, and sometimes into the prayer). I'm not too sure why I went to Sunday School, mostly likely it was out of habit, I couldn't even tell ya what the lesson was on. I pretty much just sat there and stared off into space. But I can tell you what the RS lesson was about! Since it was the 4th Sunday, it was on talks from General Conference on prayer, but Emily forgot that she was teaching and so she made up the lesson during the first two hours of church. It was a great lesson despite the lack of preparation. She began the lesson by talking about unity and asked the girls if they thought the ward was united. Let me tell you those first few seconds of silence after she asked that question scared me so bad I was wide awake the rest of the meeting. I felt so much fear and tension in those few seconds because I was sure the silence meant that they all hated the ward and wanted to move out as quickly as possible. Luckily, the girls proved that wrong. I felt so much better after hearing what they had to say and they even gave some suggestions as to make us even more united as a RS and as a ward (I'm gonna talk to Bishop about some of those suggestions in the next PEC). All in all, it was a great church meeting and I'm really glad I went. Especially since later that day the RS and Priesthood leaders had dinner at the Heath's house (they are in the stake. Bro. Heath is on the High Council and Sis. Heath is the Stake RS Board Member for our ward). The food was so yummy and the company was amazing! I love the Heath's, they are so much fun to be around. And, really, who doesn't love sitting across the table from some of the cutest guys around?!?! If I hadn't gone to church then I wouldn't have let myself go to the dinner (that I learned from Mom. If I wasn't well enough to go to school, then I wasn't well enough to go anywhere else either). So, I'm doubly glad I forgot to turn off my alarm. It was a great day, even though I was sick. 

The rest of the week has gone by about the same as church. With random times I remember clearly and times I forgot where I was going and why. I had a huge group project due Tuesday that I spent basically all of Monday finishing cuz my group members didn't have their stuff done till that day and I was the only one with the time to compile it all together. I finished around 10:30 pm (again, as daddy can attest to. I called him on my way to my car from the library, it was dark and there have been attacks on campus lately and I wanted to hear a comforting voice to calm my fears. Thanks again daddy for letting me interrupt ya...and for putting up with me!), with strict instructions for the other members to print it out and bind it before class. Imagine how annoyed and frustrated I was when I got a text from one of them Tuesday morning asking me all kinds of questions about things they wanted to add to it and if I had done this or that. I almost walked out of Institute to take care of it all, but wisdom prevailed and I asked God for some help so that I could stay in class and that everything would work out and get taken care of. And it did! I got a text from this person just before Institute ended telling me that everything was printed out and ready to turn in. 

After such a stressful few days, I decided to take the rest of Tuesday off from anything related to school (everyone in that class was so burned out by the project that the teacher even commented on it and let us out a little early). Tuesday was also free pancakes at IHOP, so I rounded up a few friends and we headed to IHOP for some yummy pancakes. It was so much fun! We laughed and giggled, took pictures galore, and ate our free food. Then later I went and played night games with a group of people from the ward. It was awesome! Except now I'm so sore that I can hardly move without my muscles protesting violently. And yet I still plan on playing again this weekend anyway :D

Since then I've been trying to get back on track with my school work. I have 4 projects due within the next few weeks. 2 before Spring Break (on the same day, I might add) and the other two the week after Spring Break. Right now, I doubt that I will have enough of the last two done to be able to head home for the break. I really want to go home, but I need to work on these projects and it looks like the only time I will have will be during the break. Man! I hate being responsible!! Why couldn't I have gotten a little less of that trait?!?! : ) I think that if I spend every day in the library for 4-5 hours that I can get it all done and be able to go home (Here's hoping!). 

And I'm trying to do all of this while still sick. Needless to say, this week has been interesting (as will the next few weeks) and I'm amazed that I've gotten as much done as I have. I know that there is only one source that could have helped me with that, and I'm truly grateful for it. 

My two favorite men

On my computer I have my background rotate between many different pictures, but when this picture comes up I can't help but love it! These are most definitely my favorite two men. I love my daddy and everything he has ever done for me. He is such a wonderful man and no one comes anywhere close to him. Jason is such a cutie! He just makes me smile every time I think of him. I love going home just to see these two and feel their love for me. It's something I dearly miss when I'm here in Cedar.

I love my major!

So in my case studies class (it's the capstone for my major, which is Hotel, Resort, and Hospitality, for those who don't know) we read Who Moved My Cheese? and we discussed it today. My teacher, Lisa Assante, is just awesome and she agreed to let us bring cheese to class to eat while we discussed the book. I, of course, forgot all about it right up until I walked into class. In fact, I'm pretty sure only one or two people remembered. But it all worked out cuz Lisa brought more than enough cheese for everyone. 

What you need to know about Lisa is that she had been in the food industry for years before becoming a teacher. So of course she got many different kinds of cheese and she put them on plates in a cute arrangement. 

It was just amazing! There was so many different kinds of cheese that I can't remember all of them. I tried all of them except one or two and that's only cuz I didn't have any more room on my plate. A girl in the class made "mice" out of Milky Ways, Hershey kisses, almonds and white chocolate. I remembered to snap a picture after I had already started eating, but it still works:

Here's a close up of the mouse:

Cute, huh? 

It was the best class ever! There was so much extra that I brought a plate home for later.

I bet you're all wishing you could be in my major now aren't ya? ;)

My random trip home!

As promised, I am set and ready to tell fun stories about my trip home this past weekend. 

The best part of the whole trip was at the very beginning. Thursday afternoon Cindy and I drove down to Cali and got there at about seven. I walked in the door, dropped everything and yelled "Who wants to say hi to me?!?!?". I heard "Aunt Katie!!!!", turned and saw this streak of pink coming at me. It, of course, was Shelly coming to tackle me and say hi. Then Jason stuck his head out from the kitchen (he was obviously held back by Mom to prevent him from being trampled by Shelly) and he came running over to say hi too. Once I was able to extract myself from the kids, I went into the kitchen to say hi to Mom. Dad had a meeting at seven, so he was suppose to be gone, but to my surprise, and complete delight, Dad was home too! But after a quick hug and a welcome home from him, he left for his meeting. Rach came in about then, said hi and announced dinner was ready to eat. Overall, it was the BEST homecoming ever!

Friday was awesome cuz we went to my favorite place, Disneyland!! It was great fun. Doug performed with the Entertainers, so we all headed to D-land to watch and have fun. Too bad it rained...Just Kidding :D The rain made it the best time to go. No one was there, so the lines were basically non-existent. After we watched Doug perform (under great strain, I might add. He lost his cummerbund while dancing, but he handled it quite nicely. Good work Dawg!), we headed to Tomorrowland and the rocket boosters. Jason was WAY excited to go on the rockets. It was cute. Brea was already in line and I handed Jason down to her. He looked at me and then pointed to the ground right next to him in a "Aunt Katie get over here!" sort of way. So, being the amazing aunt that I am, I followed his order and joined him. The whole time we were in line he would look at the rockets then at me and then twirl his finger around to tell me that the ride goes in circles (have I mentioned that he was REALLY excited?) I got a cute picture of us while we were on the ride with my phone:   

Don't you just love it?!?! It makes me smile :)

After our fun adventures at the Happiest Place on Earth, we headed home for some much needed R&R, as this picture shows:

Shelly and I crashed on the couch for a nap.

The rest of the weekend was pretty much awesome. Saturday, Dad went and refereed a lacrosse game. He came home a muddy mess (it hadn't stopped raining, except for a few hours Sat. morning), he had slipped in the mud and fell. Slipping and falling apparently runs in the family...We sat and chatted with Rach and Mark for a while, ate some lunch. Then I creamed him at Sequence! Twice! (granted, Doug had to take over for the second game, but he was acting as Dad's proxy. So it's basically the same thing, right?) I don't remember much of what else we did on Saturday, it's all a blur cuz I was pretty much sleepwalking by that point in time. I was so tired! I don't remember the drive home either, and I drove from Vegas to Cedar. Let's just say it's a good thing we made it back in one piece. But I'd do it all again cuz I love being home and seeing the fam. 

I am NOT a fan of the ice

So last night I headed to my car to go to FHE only to then slip and fall on the ice. Surprisingly enough, that was my very first time falling! Too bad that I decided to catch myself with only one hand. Now my right wrist, and sometimes my arm, hurts. I tried to get a good picture of it for you...

Can you see it? It's just to the right of the middle of my wrist. It's a decent bruise. You can really see it in different lighting, but that's too much effort (I did try, but none of the other pictures turned out as well as this one). I can still write (and type), it just starts to hurt after a while. I was suppose to go to yoga today, but I was too afraid to put that much weight/strain on it. So I emailed my teacher and let her know why I wasn't going to be there. I'll still have to make up the class (if I want to, I can miss up to 3 times), but she was nice about it and understood. 

Ok, typing is starting to hurt me now. I have some fun stories to tell about my trip home and FHE last night, but they will have to wait till later. Right now, I think I'm going to ice this wrist a little more.

I'M GOING HOME TODAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I'm just SO giddy about going home that I woke up before my alarm went off. It is going to be an awesome weekend! I get to see my Shell-Bell and Jason-my-mason and Mommy and Daddy and Rach and Mark and Doug and Laurie and Katie and and and and AHHHH!!!!! I'm too excited!!!! Are you catching my hyper-excitedness yet?!?! :D

Oh, my alarm went off....now I have to get up and go to Institute. But I'll be getting ready with a HUGE smile on my face :D :D 

My random thinkings of the day

For my Institute class (which I LOVE), we read an article by Dallin H. Oaks called "The Challenge to Become". I really enjoyed reading it and I thought I'd share some insights with y'all. 

Recently my family has been having a discussion about the roles of males and females in society and in the church. This paragraph stood out to me because of this discussion:

Now is the time for each of us to work toward our personal conversion, toward becoming what our Heavenly Father desires us to become. As we do so, we should remember that our family relationships-even more than our Church callings-are the setting in which the most important part of that development can occur. The conversion we must achieve requires us to be a good husband and father or a good wife and mother. Being a successful Church leader is not enough. Exaltation is an eternal family experience, and it is our mortal family experiences that are best suited to prepare us for it.

When we die we aren't going to be judged on what callings we held or the kinds of people we looked up to or the amount of money we accumulated. Our judgement will be on which direction on the road we were going (toward or away from the Lord) and if we continually strived to become something better. I really like the last sentence because I like knowing what is coming and how to prepare for it. It's even better that I don't have to figure out the best way to prepare, He has already set it up for me. Now all I have to do is learn....easier said than done right? ;)

Another part that made me start to really think about how I can do something different was this sentence: 

I hope the importance of conversion and becoming will cause our local leaders to reduce their concentration on statistical measures of actions and to focus more on what our brothers and sisters are and what they are striving to become.

I think that is a very important difference to make. Just recently Bishop was worrying over the low Visiting and Home Teaching numbers in our ward. I agree that VT and HT are important in that they bring the ward closer together and help the leaders keep track of the members of the ward. But I have to go with Elder Oaks on this one. I think it is more important to worry about the members spiritual growth than wether or not they are doing their VT/HT every month. (Though, of course, their willingness and desire to do their VT/HT is a big indicator of their commitment to living the gospel, but it is not the only one.) I hate being the one to remind everyone of having to go VT just as much as the girls in my ward hate having to hear it. After reading this article, I've decided to change how I go about it. No longer will I come even close to mentioning percentages. Instead, I am going to ask the girls why they go VT and what they get out of it (I might even relate it all to going to church/FHE/ward activities...mmm, I'll have to think about that a little more, I think I feel a RS lesson coming into fruition...). I want to focus my attention on getting the girls to become something better, not because the numbers tell them to, but because that's what the Lord wants for them. 

The last point I want to make has to do with the parable of the laborers in the vineyard. I love the way Elder Oaks explains it. Alas, it is too long to type up (it's about the last half of his talk) and this won't let me copy and paste (which is really annoying). I strongly suggest you look it up and read the whole thing, it's just awesome. So, I'll just try to explain as best I can what I got out of it :) Elder Oaks is talking about how we receive our heavenly rewards and he says it doesn't matter "how long we have labored in the vineyard....What is essential is that our labors in the workplace of the Lord have caused us to become something." In the margin I wrote this: "This life, this test, this body, everything is the way it is for a reason. It is my job to find that reason and become something." The Lord has something wonderful in store for me, but He's not going to just hand it to me. I have to work and strive for it. That is what this life is all about, becoming what He wants me to become. I only hope I can make it :)