Goodbye Arizona

Eating yummy Greek food at an open air restaurant.
Wearing flip flops at Thanksgiving.
Having a mother-in-law that will humor me with her cellophane for my camera.
Four hour zoo trips watching elephants eat grass.
Seeing sibling rivalry via board games.
A forgotten Amish friendship bread starter kit...whoops.
Not forgotten, but procrastinated homework...bummer which lasted the 10 hour trip home.
Reading ridiculous catalogs on the floor for hours.
Palm trees and the smell of fresh oranges.
Planning for our "As Seen On TV" Christmas exchange.
The first time since August I've really relaxed.
Returning freckles and SPF 50.
Not thinking about work.
Small reminders of the type of person I want to be.
A big reminder that I love my husband.



I could continue with poorly punctuated sentences and fragments (but you can peruse the rest of my blog for that), but honestly I love my in-laws and the whole extended family.  I love that visiting them reminds me of many things I am thankful for in my life opposed to the other way around.

I came home feeling happy with where we are in life right now and although I know I have many things to change, work on, and do- the little voice in my head said them constructively instead of critically.  For the first time in a while, I received the all present reminder that God is mindful of me.

I am loved.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Today I am over at Daryl's blog sharing some of my unsaid Thanksgiving thoughts from last year.  Isn't it nice to know things work out?

They always do.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Oh Utah...

Although many may think this lovely....

it only makes me remember how walks around Utah lake in the summer fill my happy thoughts.

my favorite books

A few people asked me my top book list and I was a little surprised at how hard that was for me to answer.  I love reading, but admittedly most of my time in college hasn't been dedicated to leisure books and it is recently something I am just now doing again.

I currently carpool with the school librarian and worked in a library my senior year of high school.  Now that I'm a teacher I'm trying to read a lot more young adult-themed books and I am interested in other books people are reading. 

So, I decided I want to share anything book-related on Friday.

Atlas Shrugged

I devoured this book in high school.  Ayn Rand is really a genius at plot weaving, character development, and personifying her philosophies through her characters.  After I got past the first 100 pages I was hooked.  Although I do not agree with all of her philosophies I learned a lot about capitalism and it helped develop a lot of my political views.  The book was really ahead of its era.  There were some paragraphs I skipped because of sex, but I do remember thinking they at least weren't detailed.

Dune (and most of the series until the fourth book)
This book didn't make me think differently, but it made me fall in love with sci-fi.  I love characters and the nasty politics of it all.  I have a crush on one of the characters Duncan Idaho because of subsequent books in the series.  The plot development is really great, but there really is no introduction into the series because I was just really thrown in...I recommend to read the first 100 pages and then you will be fine.  There are some sex paragraphs, but they are easy to skip and I don't remember them being detailed.

Ella Enchanted
I have read this book several times and still fall in love with the characters every time.  It's a wonderful remake of the fairytale Cinderella...and I fall in love with the Prince every time I read the book.

Frankenstein

I have a lot of adoption issues I am still working through, but growing up I often felt isolated from other people and ashamed of not knowing more of where I came from.  Then I read this book and  I really empathized with Prometheus and his struggle to feel loved and accepted when I felt very rejected from my siblings.  I bawled through this book as Prometheus became a creature without affection to one of torment- this book taught me that everyone has talents and abilities worth appreciating regardless of origin.

Le Petit Prince

I have read this book in French and in English.  It is a book for children...but there are so many gems that really I think adults should read it.  A strong theme of the book is that adults forget what it is like to be a child and what important qualities this teaches us.  It weaves this message through many different stories explained by the Prince.

Quest for a Maid

I have read this book several times since middle school.  It's just a great fantasy book set in Scotland with a romance that is really clean and appropriate for all ages.

Happy birthday husband!

You are now a quarter of a century old.

My Dad told you the next 25 would be better than these.  Last night we were talking and we realized we don't even know what to expect in the next five.  I can't help but to think how this is our first married year together and its going by so fast.  We are going to have our own children someday and wishing their spouses happy birthday on the phone (not that I am being sentimental or anything).

Thanks for being born so we can have tummy aches from sweets ...and so you could be mine.

 *I am drinking horchata and he is drinking strawberry lemonade.

I'm over here today...

with my very first fashion post ever.
Click here to visit Emma's cute blog to see it.

words worth repeating

 

"Do not let your fire go out, spark by irreplaceable spark. In the hopeless swamps of the not quite, the not yet, and the not at all, do not let the hero in your soul perish and leave only frustration for the life you deserved, but never have been able to reach. The world you desire can be won, it exists, it is real, it is possible, it is yours."

- in Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand (one of my favorite books)

Today I'm over here...

Kylie let me share a few things that make me thankful all year round.

Check it out here and take a look around her cute blog :)

my ebenezer

Ebenezer- a memorial established in remembrance of what God has done for a person

In my mind, I create a list of moments when I realize something was so right.  When things are hard, I feel my task is purposeless, and when I feel like I can't go anymore...I think of these times.  These thoughts make me remember times when I recognized God weaving my life, when heaven and my mission on earth felt so close and obtainable, and when I felt so confident about my ability to carry out the task.

I keep these mementos close to my heart;  I have them for my marriage, for teaching, and for an array of attributes I try to maintain or develop in my life.

On those days where I need to conjure up these thoughts for more than simple memories... I often drop to my knees and God reminds me to be grateful for these moments when I had confirmation and to be patient with His plan with my limited perspective.

I ask myself often: why would God want me to do that?

I usually find myself answering my question with almost the same question...why would God want you to progress in anyway?

*summer, I miss you.

Dear November, (and giveaway winner)

October was so good.  You have big shoes to fill.

I also could run around barefoot for the majority of October...and that slightly puts you at a disadvantage.  I spend most of my school day wearing a coat over three layers of shirts feeling frozen and rubbing my fingers because they have begun their winter aching.

The joke is on you though because this is our last Utah winter- our next one will be in Georgia.

Giveaway winner!

Kaycie from Redhead Memories