An Eye Opener

This week was kinda an eye opener for me.

I worked Monday morning and got time and a half for the holiday! YEAH!!! I love extra money :) I got home and showered and then spent the night with the fam. We had dinner, relaxed, and did sparklers to celebrate the 24th! It was grand :)

Tuesday morning I worked and then came home to get ready to hang out with Carlee. When I called my mom to tell her I was headed to Carlee's, she told me that my Grandpa Blackburn was rushed to the hospital and that we might be going down to SLC later if we hadn't heard anything. We didn't know how critical his condition was. I headed to Carlee's and was there for about an hour before my mom called and said the family was on their way to pick me up and we were driving to SLC because we hadn't heard anything and if we were needed, we'd be that much closer. At that moment, I wasn't sure that I would see him alive ever again. That caused me to contemplate. I was so grateful for the knowledge of the Gospel. In that moment, I just knew that if I didn't see him alive again, that I would in the next life! It was a great comfort to me. On our way to SLC, we got a call that he was okay and his sugar had bottomed out. We were pretty close to being to SLC, so we went and visited with him for a few hours before heading back home. It was good to see family again and know he was okay. Time really does fly by in this life, and you have to live life to the fullest or you're just wasting time.

Tuesday also made me realize how grateful I am to have a father that is a worthy priesthood holder. As soon as my uncle found out that my dad was coming down, he was happy that he didn't have to hunt for a worthy priesthood holder to help him give Grandpa a blessing! I was so grateful that my dad has been living his life worthy to hold the power of God and be able to touch my life and my family's lives with that blessing. I realized how important that is to me to have in my future husband. I have to have a worthy priesthood holder, no questions asked. :) I'm so grateful for this Gospel, this good news!

After we got home, I watched the Bachelorette with my sisters. I definitely want Ashley to marry Ben. :) he's a sweetie. Ha ha. I love that show!

Wednesday I took Marissa to voice lessons and then we went swimming at Grassli's! It was great :) After we went swimming, I went boating with my home ward! It was a blast! My sister and cousin went with me and I just loved it! I love being out in the water :)

I slept in Thursday morning and then went to work. The night went by pretty fast cuz I didn't have to close and I worked with Marcy! She's one of my coworkers that I just get along with so well! :) I look up to her a lot!

Friday I went out with Debbi and she taught me how to drive Rhonda, my stick shift car!!! :) I'd been out a few times, but it just hadn't clicked yet. We went everywhere around town. Up and down hills, up and down Washington Blvd., on the freeway..... we went to my parking garage by my work and made sure I could park and also get out of the parking lot okay, we covered just about everything. It was great fun :) She took me out and we decked out Rhonda too! We got new seat covers, a steering wheel cover, CD holder and a smelly good hanging decoration :) It was a lot of fun! When I got home, I had a letter from Joseph Ditton! I was so excited to hear from him! I drove my car to work that night and we closed fast! It was a great day :)

Saturday, we drove up to Paris, Idaho to the Budge Family Reunion! That was a fun day :) They had a thing set up where the kids could make rockets and launch them and the kids made swords out of noodles and PVC pipe :) It was a fun day! We came home and my sisters and I went on a drive in Rhonda :) it was a good day!

 Bear Lake! :)

 Family Reunion!

 Rocket Launcher!

Brigham City Temple on the way home :)

I went to church with my family today and I work later in the day. :)

I only have a few weeks before I move back to Logan! It's crazy how fast this summer has gone by! It's been a good summer. I miss my friends and Latter Day Voices! I can't believe I'll be back in Logan so fast! I'm hoping to find a job this year, so if anyone hears of anything up there that's part time, let me know! :)

I realized this week that unexpected things can happen super fast. Your best friend, a family member, a boyfriend, can be taken from you in a flash. You need to appreciate the people in your life and treat them like you would if you knew that today was their last day, or your last day. I'm grateful for the knowledge that I have of the Gospel and I know The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints is the only true church on earth. I know that Joseph Smith was the prophet of the Restoration. I know that we have a living prophet today that leads and guides us in the right direction. I'm grateful for the missionaries who are serving the Lord and bringing our brothers and sisters back to the Gospel. I leave you with my testimony in the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.

The Future Always Has Potential :)

This week, I had a really bad day and I was complaining that night to my dear friend, Carlee. She told me, "Tomorrow has potential." and that made me think. In reality, we aren't always going to have good days and we aren't always going to be happy, but what is ahead of us has potential. :) That was a lesson I learned this week.

Another thing I realized this week is how much time changes things. A month isn't really that much time, but in reality.... so much can change in a month. So much can change in a day! It's CRAZY how that works. How even the littlest things can change you for a lifetime. Looking at experiences I've had in the past and the people that have been in my life, my religion, my standards..... That's really what has made me who I am today. I can only keep pressing forward and try my hardest to not fall backwards! :) I'll stumble and fall sometimes, that's a fact of life. But what really matters is how I handle it and what I learn from those bumps in the road. Life really is a test. But you need to have fun and be positive :)

My weekly recap:

Monday wasn't a great day overall. It wasn't all bad... but I felt like one thing after another came up. I got some stuff done and worked though. Right after work, I called Skylar and talked to him for the last time before his mission! Pretty crazy! Another good friend gone! He is exactly where he needs to be though! :) I'm so happy for him! He's up for quite the adventure!

Tuesday I worked and then got some new jeans for school! YAY! I hung out with Carlee that night too :) We talked and watched Vampire Diaries. I got to gaze at Ian Somerhalder and some other attractive men for a few hours while I caught up on the episodes I missed. I was totally okay with that. HA! I can enter dreamland every once in awhile, right? ;)

Wednesday I worked all day and then went on a drive to learn stick again! :) I did pretty well! I still have a lot to improve on though. But I got on the road and even drove on the highway! Yay me!!! :) I can't wait for the day that it's just natural. I'm grateful to be picking up this skill now.

Thursday was a fun day with the family! My mom and sisters and I helped a lady move in our ward. Afterwards, we went to the neighbor's to swim and I got some sun :) YAY! We all got cleaned up and then went to my grandparent's house and had a family night! My Aunt Kelcie was there and cut our hair. I just got my bangs trimmed, but Brittany got a new style! She looks super cute :) Her hair cut is basically the same as mine. It looks adorable :) It was fun to spend time with the family.

I also got my first letter from Joseph on Thursday! I was so excited! My mom got the mail right before we went to my grandparent's house and handed me the letter. He's doing really well! He says that he's already starting to think in Spanish! I laughed super hard when he told me that everyone but one sister in his district is as loud as him :) Ha ha! He loves the MTC! I'm so glad to hear it. I can't wait for more letters! I've already written him back and wrote Skylar for the first time! :)

Friday I did some job hunting for the fall, cleaned my room, put in USU dates for my mom on the calendar, and got my fishy all set up in his new(ish) home! :)  Don't worry, the rocks now match my hot pink decor! ha ha ha ;) I went to work that night and got ready for our family bbq on Saturday!

Saturday we had a Blackburn Family barbecue and day in the mountains! It was so nice :) We ate, visited and played, laughed, and just relaxed. We got to watch some squirrels play, that was entertaining :) They were cute! It was a good day with the family! Then I came home and went on another drive to learn stick.

 Cami and I :)

 Allyson, Isabelle, and Kaden :) Aww!

 Isabelle and Kaden :) two peas in a pod! 

Grandparents :)

Today, I'm pampering myself before I go to church, aka doing a facial mask and maybe doing my nails, going to church, and then going to work. That's the plan!

I can't believe there's only a little over a month until I move back to Logan. I feel like time has flown by! Last summer seemed to drag on, but this summer moved fast! I've had a pretty awesome summer! I'm hoping that I'll be able to find a job in Logan and start anew again! I realized that even though I know a lot of people up in Logan now, it's still a fresh start. I'll have a whole new apartment, a new ward, a new roommate, new classes, new people in LDV (that is, if I make it in again) new people in general, and new experiences! If I make LDV again, I'll get to go on the retreat at the beginning of the year, which will be so fun! I'm excited to hopefully be in Latter Day Voices again and this time, for the full year. I have such an adventure waiting for me, and I'm excited to jump right into it! :)

Accio Summa Fun! ;)

Like my Harry Potter Reference in the title? Yeah, I know it's cheesy, and I'm proud of it :)

Monday I drove home from Logan and went to work that night. :)

Tuesday, I had work in the morning and then called my best friend, Joseph after work to talk to him for the last time on the phone before his mission. I talked with him for about five or ten minutes before he had to go. I'm looking forward to writing him and keeping in touch :) He's such a great example to me and I'm grateful to have him as a friend! Later that night, I went with my mom to the Relief Society pool party. It was a BLAST. Oh my goodness! I played Colors with grown women. It was amazing! Probably the most fun game of Colors I've ever played! It was great to spend time with these wonderful women that I've associated with in the ward while growing up. :) After the pool party, I went to Linda's house and we sat in her hot tub for awhile and talked :)

Joseph and I :)

Wednesday, I went and laid out next to Debbi Spilker's pool for a few hours with my mommy and sister and then I hung out with Carlee for the rest of the night. We went shopping for new work pants since both of ours were worn out and chilled until we went to the work screening for Harry Potter! It was a nice, relaxing day.

Carlee and I :)

Thursday, I worked until 5 and then my mom, Marissa, her friend, Nicki, and I went and saw Harry Potter at 7:00 in Perry :) They're first time, my second. So great!

Friday, I called my land lady to find out who our roommate was going to be in the fall and "Facebook friended" her. I'm so excited to meet her in person! We're going to have a great year! That night, my sisters and I had a girls night and did facial masks and painted our nails! It was fun!

Brittany, Marissa and I :)

Marissa and I :)

My newly painted toes!

Saturday was a long day. I had a nine hour shift at work! It started at 8:15 and didn't end until 5:00. Harry Potter.... Harry Potter... ;) That night I drove with Marcy and her boyfriend to Logan to visit Shaun and Michael for awhile. It was a blast! Made me realize that by the end of the summer, most of my pre-missionary friends will all be gone. :P I'm looking forward to the letters and the stories I hopefully be getting and a fresh start in the fall!

Shaun and I :)

Sunday I went to my Singles Ward for the first time in a long time :) it was great! That night I went to a fireside where Elder Holland spoke for Pioneer Day and then came home and relaxed. Really great week!

Every Day Is A Gift :)

Forewarning! This post is long, but well.... I'm not going to condense it :)

I've been contemplating the concept of change for the past while. Recently, I've been looking at "old" pictures and seeing how much my appearance has changed just in the last two years. My hair went from an accidental few inches cut off, (I wanted a trim, but the lady didn't seem to get that term...) to me getting bangs, to chemically straigthening my hair, to me chopping my hair off! I'm also starting to look more like an adult, apparently! I was talking to a coworker and she told me that I'm actually look like an adult now. It was funny to hear that from someone other than family or close friends. Not only did I change physically, but I grew in other ways as well. I graduated high school and moved out of the house for the first time. Went to my first year of college. Met a whole new set of friends :) so many changes! I haven't even covered them all! It just gets worse from here too! Friends and family getting married, sisters getting older! Friends and family leaving on missions, some out on missions, and some soon coming back! I never believed the grown-ups when they'd say that time flies by fast when you're older, but I sure do believe it now! Blown away at how fast things happen!

Monday was the 4th of July! Happy birthday, America! I slept in and cleaned the cars. :) Later, my dad took me to the church parking lot to learn stick on my Rhonda the Honda. UGH. It'll take some getting used to, but I'll get it :) We had a very yummy dinner and then I went to Carlee's house and did fireworks with her family. We were going to go to Weber to watch theirs, but instead we watched them from Carlee's house and got to watch Marriott-Slaterville's fireworks as well! We finished the night chillaxing in her room watching Jeopardy and Vampire Diaries. What a wonderful 4th!! :)

Tuesday, I woke up, ate breakfast, and picked weeds for awhile with the family :) It was so nice outside. Perfect temperature and it even sprinkled rain. I showered and then went over to Jessica Jenkins's house :) We had such a fun girls day! We sat and talked and had pizza together and then put in a movie... that we didn't watch. No worries ;) make that two movies we didn't watch. We took pictures, painted nails, Facebook stalked, laughed and giggled and just had so much fun! We had delicious homemade strawberry ice cream too! YAY! Jessica is such a beautiful daughter of God. She always seems to have the perfect advice for me and is always in tune with the Spirit. Super talented and beautiful daughter of God :) I'm so grateful that I have her as a friend!

 Just havin' fun with the camera :)

 Homemade Strawberry Ice Cream :) SO delicious.

 We painted our toes :)

 Painted our fingernails :)

I just love this beautiful daughter of God :) 

Wednesday, I got up and took my sister, Marissa, to voice lessons :) that was fun! A few hours later, I took my sister, Brittany, to Cars 2. It was a cute show! We came home and I chilled for awhile before I ran a few errands for my mommy. Then I just hung out for the rest of the day! 

Thursday was Marissa's birthday! I got up and Brittany and I played Mario Kart with her and then got ready for the day. We picked two of her friends up and saw Monte Carlo! It was the cutest movie! I love it! There were so many great quotes from that movie. Later that night, we had a barbeque dinner and visited with my grandparents for awhile. After they left, we watched Tangled later that night. Ahh... so many college memories flooded back by watching that movie! I was happy I was going to be heading to Logan the next day, because the movie made me Logan-sick. 

Friday, I got up, packed for Logan, and then went to the dentist. NO CAVITIES!!! YAY!!!!!!! :) It was a beautiful drive to Logan! There was a bit of a wait in the canyon though, cuz there was an the accident. I went to Amanda's and we hung out all day. We got dinner at Panda and Matt Robinson came over to chill for awhile. Shortly after he left, Joseph came over :) Amanda, Joseph and I hung out for the last time as the trio before Joseph leaves on his mission. It was a great night! Never gets boring when it's the three of us! I'm gonna miss my brother. Amanda had to work early in the morning, so she "kicked" us out and I went to Kaylie's house! Kaylie's fiance, Alex was over and I visited with them for awhile. They are THE cutest couple ever! Just love them to pieces :) I want a relationship like theirs. They get married on August 11th. Can't wait! After Alex left, Kaylie, Kaylie's roommate Misty, and I stayed up way late just talking. It was a fun day!!!!

The three of us on our "trio" night :)

A picture of the adorable couple :)

Saturday was quite the random day. I woke up, got ready, and went job hunting for a few hours. I grabbed some Jamba Juice for lunch and then went with some of Misty's friends to the Sidewalk Sale on Main Street. After that, I got myself some dinner from Panda (yes.... I realize I ate at Panda two nights in a row.... I love Chinese :) and decided I was going to go look at Walmart for some things and then I saw my LDV friend Sarah Knudson walking outside. I stopped to say hi and we talked for a minute. I ended up chilling at her house for awhile instead and then her and her friend Lauraly came to Joseph's last Hurrah before his mission. It was quite a wonderful evening. I'm going to miss him so much!

Sunday, I woke up in a panic. I thought that I had slept through my alarm to go to Joseph's farewell talk because it was so light outside. I grabbed my phone and realized.... it was 7:30 in the morning and I didn't need to be up for another half hour. Thankfully. I rode with Madison and Amanda to his farewell :) He did such a wonderful job! He's going to be a great missionary! He will be missed by his friends and family, for sure. Skylar's farewell was an hour after Joseph's ended at the same church house, so we just stayed and chilled there. Skylar also did a great job on his talk. :) After Skylar's talk we headed over to Skylar's house for his family's luncheon. It was so good to mingle and chat with all the LDV people that I've been missing! I can't wait for this next year! Brother Salmond told me there's quite a few RM's that are coming back from previous years... I JUST CAN'T WAIT!!!!!!

I can't believe Joseph leaves this Wednesday. I feel like it was just yesterday that he was complaining that he had two long months before he was going to leave. Well.... those two months that were definitely not long are now over and he's leaving! He's going to be such a wonderful missionary and I can't wait for all of his mission stories! He's quite the character, that one, and I'm sure that he'll have quite hilarious stories for me to repeat to my friends, HA!

Skylar leaves next Wednesday, and I can't believe that either! I feel like he just barely announced his mission call in LDV yesterday! He's also going to be a wonderful missionary. I'm so glad I got to become closer friends with Skylar towards the end of the semester and during the summer. He's an amazing man! I'm looking forward to his mission stories as well!

This is a random thought of mine that I wanted to share. Have you ever had a moment in life when you look at a picture of yourself or you look in the mirror and just feel pretty? One of those "aha" moments where everything clicks and you realize who you truly are and what your potential is? I had a few of those this week, where I truly felt beautiful. I knew despite my many flaws, that Heavenly Father still loves me and will always love me,  no matter what happens. That He will always be there for me :) That I have friends and family that love me unconditionally, and how lucky I am to have all of it. I realized how incredibly lucky I was to have spectacular support from friends and family, and to be blessed with material things as well, such as my electronics, a car, my bed, etc. Yeah, you have hard times and heartaches and life isn't perfect, but it's perfectly imperfect, as Jess says. :) If you haven't had an experience like this in awhile, I advise you to pray for one. It strengthens your testimony and your self image. Keeps Satan farther away. :)

I had such a fun week. Emotional and a bit random, but so fun :) 

Life Is A Roller Coaster Ride!

Monday was great :) I got up around nine but just chilled in bed for a few hours on the computer getting random things done and just playing. Then I got up and got ready for the day and packed up to go home. I called Amanda and she came and got me! I hadn't seen her in a month and really missed her. We hung out for about an hour or so and then my mommy came and got me and drove me home :) Marissa and I went to see X-Men that night. Not the best movie ever, I must say, but a fun night out with my sister!

Tuesday we drove down and visited the Romney clan before they headed back to North Carolina. We had to leave early though so that I could be back for work at 5:00. :P Work was pretty good though! I worked the midnight shift for Transformers and didn't get home until 1:30 in the morning. It was pretty crazy, but not bad! :)

Wednesday I took Marissa to voice lessons in the morning and visited Leigh for awhile. I came home and talked with my mom and had some fun on the computer before heading to work. Work was fun! I had a blast and it went by fast! I love having good movies out so that the theater isn't dead all day. :)


My cousin, Rachelle Romney, also was dropped off at the MTC on Wednesday. She's serving a mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints and is going to Chile. We got her first email already! She seems to be doing well! She's going to be such an amazing missionary! I just love her :)

Thursday I slept in :) it felt SOOO good. I got ready and then went down to get my hair cut. I'd been talking with Brenna about it and asked a few other people their opinion on whether or not I should chop my hair. I didn't know how short to go, or if I should go short, because I know that I have a round face shape and I didn't want to look chubby. All I knew is that I wanted a change. So..... I did it. I chopped it. I think I went about four or five inches shorter. It feels so nice! I've never had my hair this short before. It was so fast to do when I got home! Yipee! So great :) Later that night, James Marriott picked me up and we went to Super 8. He drove me home and we sat and talked in his car for awhile. It was so nice to catch up with him. He's such an awesome boy! I'm really bummed that he's going to BYU instead of USU, but I guess I'll forgive him ;)

The new 'do! :D

Friday I ran some errands and then hung out with Carlee for a few hours before work. That was fun :) It was nice to relax with one of my besties. My day didn't really end well though. I was robbed... my iPod and some cash. Lovely. I was so mad. I really hope they catch who it is.

Saturday, I slept in and took my time getting ready and doing stuff. Then I went to work. Not too eventful today. Ha! Except for my bestie, Carlee was so nice to give me one of her old iPod's so I wasn't music device-less. I'm so happy! She saved me! 

Sunday, I worked all day and came home to a nice shower :) shortly after I got home... my parents brought home... Rhonda the Honda! That's right.... I now have a car. It's the family's car, but I'll be able to take it to school with me! I love it! I get to learn how to drive stick now! WAHOO! :) We watched Harry Potter 7 Part 1 too cuz my dad hadn't seen it yet, surprisingly. It was good to see that again before Part 2 comes out.... in 9 days!

That was my.... interesting week. So many random things happened to me! Tomorrow, well technically, today... is the 4th of July! YEAH! Happy birthday, America!