I have become the queen of catching bouquets and seem to have become quite the beast in the process!

5th bouquet: Nicole's Wedding 2012

Why do people cry?
Some people cry over most anything and almost every week, if not more than that.... a sentimental note, a scraped knee, a broken heart, a rude remark, not getting their way, being insecure, a flat tire, they get in trouble at work, they don't feel well, they hurt somebody's feelings, they got rejected, someone is hurt they love, they miss someone, they're going through a tough trial, they've been touched by the spirit. I don't know what it is that makes you cry, but I think I've cried over every single one of these things at one point in my life!
For several years I cried about once or twice a year. Tears were very hard for me to come by.
Well this past year I think I've shed more tears than I've ever shed in my life. I have found that crying doesn't show weakness, but it shows compassion, love and a symbol that you care. I am thankful for the tears that have been put into my life because it helps me to feel more alive than ever!

(OK, I still cry less than the average person... BUT crying is fantastic)
This past Sunday I found myself shedding tears for the first ten minutes of church. SO many mixed emotions were running through me. The experience was so bitter sweet, and through those tears I found comfort from one sweet missionary as he bore his testimony of our Savior!

Nothing in the world brings more peace to me than the moments when I am able to reflect on our Savior's life and reassure myself of how blessed I am to have a Savior who cared enough about me that he gave his life for me! Moments in my life that I feel empty, confused, insecure, lost or upset I can always ALWAYS turn to my Savior and find the meaning of the life that I am leading.

Come unto Christ and find everlasting joy in this life and the life that is yet to come! I am so so so Blessed that I was born into a family that taught me about Christ and who shows the pure love of Christ through their examples. I hope that at this Christmas time I can help other's remember how loved they are by our Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ!
Celebrate his birth, but more so Celebrate his life and Celebrate what he does for us every single day!
I BELIEVE

I was sitting at the Mall with Ashley Kay Sant doing our weekly people watching in the food court. I started off on people in a joking matter and tried to find everything wrong with each person that walked by! (OK OK so it was just to be silly) BUT with that I realized the harm in finding fault. We can literally choose to look at the good or bad in every single person. Take a pick. Pick someone apart and find fault with them. You'll end up despising that person or find yourself having terrible thoughts about them. Well I discovered one of the quickest ways to have the spirit leave is by putting down one of God's children. With that being said I told Ash that I literally want to look for the good and only the good in everyone! I don't think I'm a big time hater or accuser of other's faults, but why notice them at all? When you look for the good in others you find the gooooods that they have to offer you! That is truly where charity begins. Look for the good, love others and when you do find fault you are right there to support the person and help them change for the better!
Charity isn't always easy to come by, but I do believe that it is possible with the help of God. And when we have charity "pure love of Christ" We have more peach and joy in our lives!

Laugh it up. That's what I like to do more than anything in the world. I have found that one of the biggest cures in life is laughing! I love the goofy little things that people do. I absolutely admire people who are not afraid to be silly and be a complete dork. Hello mr. macho. Do you ever have fun? WHY NOT? What are we trying to protect? All of us have a silly side. FOR some it's deep down inside... others it's right on the surface... BUT why not share our silliness with the world? I don't mean be annoying, but I really do admire those people who are so willing to just be a dork and be ok with it! EVEN more so... I admire those people who can find humor in the funny things people do daily!
WHY not laugh a little more? If you seek laughter, you will find! And you will find it to be one of the biggest joys in life! :)

SO I know that we're not suppose to live for the future, and are suppose to enjoy the here and now! Don't get me wrong, life is just fine... BUT I am SO excited for summer and to leave Provo! (NO I do not hate Provo) I am just so excited to see what the next step is for me outside of the bubble I've been living in! Scary? Potentially. Change is always scary and a little hard to go through! But something that I've learned in college is that life doesn't stay the same for very long! Change is huge at this point in life and sometimes I quite frankly get sick of it! It seems that you find something that suits you and is just perfect in your life... THEN.... Whabam. Everything changes. Your direction takes a right turn when you were planning for a left! Sometimes you even slip down a little hill or approach a mountain you couldn't see through all the fog and foliage! You never know what to expect and you never know when the next trial is coming... It's hard man! It can be real hard no matter what those trials may be. maybe just a small stumbling block or a huge river that you have to cross... No matter what the trial is that you're going through they are never fun! It's really interesting to see what trials each person is placed with. I look at another person and see that they never had to go through my trials, but am I looking at theirs? BLAAAAAAAAAA... BUT thank heavens for what trials I've gone through and what I am currently going through! At the end of the tunnel I know that my understanding will be clear and I will be ever so thankful for what I am experiencing! I know that in times of need I do draw closer to the Lord and that in and of itself is one reason why trials become a blessing!
I could probably go on forever about this topic, but I will end here and just say that IT is the way we handle our trials that will show the growth that we make! Each trial offers and opportunity to learn, grow and discover... but it's up to the individual to get what they want from their trials! HOW BOUT getting the most out of life?... and life is full of up and downs so find the most out of the WHOLE entire journey!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=Kt4zzhcDqfg

Well it's the most wonderful time of the year and everywhere you look things are so so magical! Unfortunately finals sucked out a good 2 weeks of Christmas Spirit and now There are 2 more weeks til Christmas. I have been thinking a lot lately about how I'm always waiting for the next step in life to come, but here I am standing and another door opened. I am now done with college and yet I am sad... This helped me to open my eyes and say HEY stop waiting for the next big act in life and love the small acts along the way! Each moment of our lives are so short lived, so why not make the most out of every minute we have?
SO there you have it. Christmas only has 2 weeks left, but that's 2 weeks of making the most out of the Christmas season and allowing myself to really experience the best Christmas ever by spending my time thinking about others!
Deck the Halls, Eat some treats, look forward to those gifts, but most of all find someone that you can uplift!

White Chocolate topped Gingerbread Cookies

THESE LOOK AMAZING... I've seriously been craving gingerbread cookies, so I hope these do the trick