It's been a fun schoolyear.

A photo dump of some memories from junior year.

Although it's been real BYU, full of learning experiences and happy times and all that, I must say that I'm glad we're separating for the next 4 months. I'll be back soon for our finale.

(pictures in reverse chronological order)

Pando concert in a parking garage.

Ward Prom.

BYU vs. UofU ultimate frisbee.

BFF Nick and church.

The Wash Hut.

St. George.

Zion's National Park.

Elf and his kitty.

Exploring and ice cream with the roommates.

Harry gettin' pulled over on his scooter.

Adventures in Park City.

Wolves.

The Jordan.

I got a purple bikeinabox.

Sidelining BYU women's soccer.

Career Paths

My freshman year of college I found out there was a major called Family Life, and I thought, "Cool, I like family, I like life, maybe I should check it out." Or something along those lines. So I took the basic Family Studies class, Strengthening Marriage and Family. Aaaaand since BYU is an LDS college the entire class was based on The Family: A Proclamation to the World. Like, literally everything. I even had to memorize the whole thing for a project.

And I totally fell in love with the major. I loved what I was learning, I loved how applicable it was to my current family, my future family, and I loved that if I wanted to I could turn this knowledge into a career and help families other than my own be more successful. I loved learning about my own religion, and I loved family life even more.

If there's one thing that I've learned from these past 3 years at school, it's that the institution of the family needs to be protected. I honestly believe that if everyone came from a functional and loving family, there would be a lot less problems in this world. The proclamation says that, "the disintegration of the family will bring upon individuals, communities, and nations the calamities foretold by ancient and modern prophets." Which sounds crazy dark and scary, but honestly it's true. It's so sad to see all the heartbreak and sadness in the world that could have been prevented if people protected and sanctified their marriages and families.

I want to express my gratitude that I was born to the family and religion that I have. I got real lucky.

It's been a couple years since I've taken that beginning class, but there's a class that I'm currently in that has had a huge impact on how I think and on what I want to do with my life. It's called Family Life in World Religions. It's all about day to day life of Jewish, Catholic, Orthodox Christian, and Muslim families. And I realized that yeah, I love learning about my own religion and how to strengthen marriage and families, but I also love learning about OTHER religions and their views on marriage and the family. 

Seriously, after learning about day-to-day life of each religion, I wanted to join their religions. (But not really cause I love being Mormon.) But honestly, there is so much to learn from people of other faiths, and I'm definitely going to implement some of the things I've been learning about in my own daily life.

So I get to be a TA for this class until I graduate, and be a research assistant for my professor's national research project, American Families of Faith! I'm so excited. I have no idea what kind of career I would go into being interested in the combination of religion and family, but I'll hopefully figure that out as I go along. I just know that I want to help strengthen families!

Nice notes are nice I guess.

This is my happy journal.

I tape happy things into it.

Some of the happiest things are nice notes.

Every Sunday night around here people write "nice notes" to each other, which get delivered to your door.

And they're very nice.

I'm surrounded by some of the kindest, most genuine people here at school and I feel so lucky!
If you've ever written me a nice note, it's in here!
Creepy? Maybe.

I'm grateful for these silly little slips of paper that make me happy.

Even when I don't know I need them.

First Day

I went to the wrong class.

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.

.

I still can't find the right one.

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Yes, I'm a junior, not a freshman.

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But guess what! Sooooo I was walking out of my apartment complex really early this morning, and I was NOT looking forward to work cause it is crizazy right now at the beginning of the new semester and there's a bunch of new people that don't quite have the hang of things yet. 

Anyways, I was walking, and this guy comes up on a little motor bike and is like, "Wanna ride up to campus??" And I was likeeee hmmmm, "I don't want to get kidnapped, but you're really cute, and your bike is so ghetto I'm pretty sure you wouldn't be able to do a very good job of kidnapping me anyways. So yeah I'll get on your bike and let you drive me around." (I didn't actually say that.) So I did! (And his bike was so weird he had to pedal it around and then a motor would kick on.) And he was really nice, and turns out he grew up like an hour away from my hometown and played against my high school in soccer. And he played soccer for BYU.

Picture of me right after the blessed event.

So that was cool. And the rest of my horrible day didn't seem so bad.

Nice people are the nicest!

sheri dew

going to school at BYU I have had quite a few unique opportunities to listen to some pretty influential LDS leaders speak in person. today i had one of those opportunities. thanks to someone with cool connections, sheri dew came and spoke to the relief societies in my stake alone. so like, 400 single women, the stake presidency, and sheri dew. mind blown. i felt pretty special. i talked to my mom later and she was like "whaaaaa? she's my favorite church writer of all time!" i'm guilty of not having read any of her books yet, but if i ever find time, i will.



i know that each woman listening to her speak learned something a little bit different from what i did, and that we all heard something that we really needed.

No one can ever take my place. I can't compare my weaknesses to others' strengths. I've been sent here with specific things to accomplish. The Lord knows me, my mission, and exactly what I need to accomplish my mission. I am a child of God. Obedience brings blessings. Exact obedience brings miracles.

Becoming a Real Adult: Goals for 2013

With 2013 here I've been thinking back on the past year.

It seems that the theme of 2012 for me was 

"Becoming a Real Adult".

I was awarded a full tuition scholarship. I drove from Utah to Washington without any parents. I held my first full time job. I paid my own way through a semester of school. I got a credit card. I got kicked off my parents' health insurance. I'm living in my own apartment and cooking for myself. I chose a career path. I changed my major from a fake major to a REAL major (which is very intimidating). I got in a major car accident and learned how to talk to lawyers and insurance companies. I'm being assigned actual callings to do work for church.

2012 was also a year of "learning how to make decisions". I made A LOT of important decisions that will determine what direction my life takes, I can't lie, it's been extremely nerve-wracking. I have a lot of options, and the majority of them are all great. It's just a matter of choosing the better of two goods. Actually in some cases, it's just choosing what I want. Which I've discovered is really really hard when you don't know what you want!

This past October my church held a worldwide conference. One of my favorite apostles, President Uchtdorf, gave a talk titled Of Regrets and Resolutions. You should read it, but part of what he said encompassed three main regrets that people have in life. 

1. I wish I had spent more time with the people I love.

2. I wish I had lived up to my potential.

3. I wish I had let myself be happier.

Based on the decisions I have made over the past year, President Uchtdorf's talk, and where I want to be in the future - I have come up with a list of goals that cover most of the important areas in my life.

Academic

Goal: Apply and be accepted into the Business Management program in the Marriott School of Management at BYU.

I've slid by at BYU so far as a Family Life major. It's fun, it's great, it teaches me how to be a good wife and mom, but I wouldn't be able to get the kind of job I want without going to grad school. Which I'm not cool with. I've always been interested in business, but have been intimidated by how competitive the program is. But, I've come to realize that it's stupid for me to not do something I want to do just because it's hard. So I'm taking a leap of faith. Taking into account the 2nd regret most people have in life, I don't want to kick myself for not going for it.

Physical

Goal: Exercise 6/7 days a week, make healthy eating choices, and get a good amount of sleep every night.

Now that I've got the hang of cooking every meal for myself, I'm going to he healthy about it. Which might be hard on a college student budget, but I'll figure it out. Mainly I want to cut out white flour, white sugar, bad fats, and eat more fruits and veggies. For exercise, I set aside specific times in my comprehensive schedule. It's just a matter of getting out and doing it. Getting a healthy amount of sleep has been pretty difficult in the past. There is SO MUCH to do, and not enough time in the day. I can constantly be studying or be having fun with my friends. I want to get at least 7 hours a night and so I've given myself a bedtime that I'm going to stick to, except for on Friday and Saturday nights.

Emotional

Goal: Be happy. 

Sometimes this is really really hard. This whole school, money, lawyer, future, adult thing is really stressful. But attitude is everything. I wish I knew this in high school. I'll make time to have fun, and I'm not going to worry so much. I choose to be happy, and so I will.