Friday, December 30, 2011

Witches Tea 2011

My friend Charelle and I decided to host our first witches tea! We had an impromptu photoshoot as girls arrived, an amazing spread of food and desserts, a dangerously competitive candy bar game, and we finished it off with a cat walk! These girls came dressed to impress!
Above (left to right): Heather, Amber, Bron, Charelle, Jentrie, and Me!
Classic Asian Persuasion picture for Bron;)
Amanda strutin' her witchy stuff on the cat walk!

Jentrie had us rolling with her cat walk and full on splits! Love you girl!
Dynamic duo coming down the cat walk!
We even had one witch do the worm!
Heather...look at how luscious her lips are?!



Bron look gorgeous as ever!
Amber giving us her sexy "smise"! this picture makes me laugh everytime!
Love girls nights, but especially when we are all dressed up like witches!


These were the most amazing cupcakes ever! So delicious! Three layers of cupcake and frosting in little mason jars!
Impromptu photo shoot pics!
Lions and Tigers and Bear...Oh My!
Witchy Divas!
All Smiles! We aren't scary witches;)
Jentrie and I!
Jump!
Sarai and Charelle...the two witch hostesses!





This years Witches Tea was so much fun we have decided to make this an annual event! Can't wait to see you girls next year! XoXo

Miss Dorff came to visit!

This year has been a year of curve balls in my life! Some have been amazing, while others have been well not so amazing! This summer while I was visiting my home town in Washington I received a phone call from my good friend Brook saying she was moving to Arizona to start her Masters Program at ASU! I'm so proud of this girl and all that she has accomplished in life...and I'm expecting many more great things to come! When October rolled around it brought a gust of warm air and Miss Dorff to my house for a few days! Loved the few short days I got to spend with you Brookie!
Left side: Sarai(bottom) and Bron(top) Right side: Heather(bottom) and Brook(top)

Good Friends + Crepes = Good Times

I am way behind on my blogging, due to being too busy, and well procrastinating! You are going to witness a huge photo overload in the next few posts! This is how I'm spending my Christmas break...catching up on my blog!
In early October (don't worry I am even farther behind than this, but it seemed like a good place to start) my good friend Tate Matta had a crepe party at his house! Was so delicious, and way good company! Loved this night with everyone!


My friend Ian and I...um don't ask;)

Nice Tate!
Tate and Kigan...they got engaged a few days after this photo...so darling aren't they?!
Two of my best friends Heather and Bronwyn! Love these girls! XOXO

Girl photo shoot! Love all of these girls! Never complete without a funny face picture!


Good friends + Crepes = Good Times! Love you all so much!

Saturday, December 24, 2011

The more you sweat in practice, the less you bleed in battle.
- Anonymous

Tuesday, December 20, 2011

Don’t ask what the world needs. Ask what makes you come alive, and go do it.Because what the world needs is people who have come alive.
- Howard Thurman

SELF-CONTROL

THINK ON CHRIST - Ezra Taft Benson

Dr. Karl G. Maeser one day stood up and said, ‘Not only will you be held accountable for the things you do, but you will be held responsible for the very thoughts you think.’

I realize that when my life is over I will be the product of my thoughts.

Thoughts lead to acts, acts lead to habits, habits lead to character—and our character will determine our eternal destiny.

“As he thinketh in his heart, so is he.” (Prov. 23:7.)

You will be what you think about—what you consistently allow to occupy the stage of your mind.

Sometimes you may have difficulty driving off the stage of your mind a certain evil thought. To drive it off, Elder Boyd K. Packer suggests that you sing an inspirational song of Zion or just think of its words. The late Elder Bruce R. McConkie recommended that, after having an opening song in your mind, you might preach a sermon to yourself. In fact, he said the finest sermons he ever preached were preached to himself.

Our accountability begins with how we handle the evil thought immediately after it is presented. Like Jesus, we should positively and promptly terminate the temptation.

It is our privilege to fill our memories with good and great thoughts and bring them out on the stage of our minds at will.

The Lord said, “Look unto me in every thought.” (D&C 6:36.) Looking unto the Lord in every thought is the only possible way we can be the kind of men and women we ought to be.

If our thoughts make us what we are, and we are to be like Christ, then we must think Christlike thoughts.

I testify to you that there is no greater and no more thrilling challenge than to try to learn of Christ and walk in His steps.

“What would Jesus do?” or “What would He have me do?” are paramount personal questions of this life. Walking in His way is the greatest achievement of life. That man or woman is most truly successful whose life most closely parallels that of the Master.

I know the Lord lives. I know that He loves us. I know that apart from Him no one can succeed, but as a partner with Him, no one can fail.

PERSONAL PURITY AND SELF-DISCIPLINE

Thunderous applause filled the concert hall. One of the world’s greatest violinists had just completed his final selection of the evening’s program. Eagerly, a woman made her way to the stage in hopes of expressing her admiration to this great artist. Threading her way through the crowd, she finally reached him. Shaking his hand, she said exuberantly, “Oh, I’d give my life if I could play like that!” He promptly responded, “Madam, I have!”

much of what we do or do not do in life is determined by our ability to discipline ourselves. This discipline includes doing things that are hard or difficult as well as not doing other things.

one part of us seems to want to “let go” and express our emotions or appetites; another part wants to exert control over our emotions and appetites. The controlling, restraining influence is exerted by our spirit.

“One of the false notions of our society is that we are victims of our appetites and passions. But the truth is that the body is controlled by the spirit which inhabits it” - Terrance D. Olson

“Some become enslaved with compulsive habits or yield to appetites or to improper actions, and plead that they are helpless before their habit—that they are compelled, persuaded; that temptation was stronger than their will to resist. But we can choose. … We can break bad habits; we can acquire good habits; we can choose what we think by the sheer determination to do so” - Richard L. Evans

Our Father in Heaven has told us to keep our thoughts, appetites, and emotions within certain bounds.

I started to try to control myself for just one day.That night I prayed very hard and asked for strength. I had no idea that it would be so hard. I was so excited but knew that each day I would have to be very careful. It would be too easy to slip and get back into my old habits. I kept praying all through this time for strength.

whether we are learning to play a musical instrument, trying to control our temper, or making ourselves get up when we would rather sleep longer, our efforts to discipline ourselves in any aspect of our lives can help us in our efforts to live a virtuous life.

‘It is not that I am abnormal; it is that I know I am responsible and in charge of mind and body. You think you are helpless in the face of your desires. You think you are a victim of them. I have proven to myself that I am the master of those feelings’

being morally clean and virtuous requires physical restraint and self-control. Help the young women understand that as we exercise self-discipline, we strengthen our spirit’s control over our body. Our capacity to control ourselves increases every time we make a choice to do it.

Monday, December 19, 2011

I don't believe you have to be better than everybody else. I believe you have to be better than you ever thought you could be.
- Ken Venturi

Friday, December 16, 2011

We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, therefore,is not an act but a habit.
- Aristotle
Remember that everyone you meet is afraid of something, loves something, and has lost something.
- H. Jackson Brown Jr

Wednesday, December 14, 2011

You might expect that in a group like this, there would be fierce competition, maybe even a little jealousy. But instead of jealousy there is support; instead of competition, encouragement. The girls say that when there are only four of you in a school of 1,000 students, there’s just no room for anything but good feelings and a lot of help from each other.

“Your perspective really changes after something like this,” she says. “Having good friends, good family, and the gospel is really what’s important.”

No one ever told these girls that in order to win, everyone else would have to lose. Instead, they help each other, pushing and pulling until everybody reaches the top. And, not surprisingly, they not only make room for the four of them, but they always leave a little extra space, just in case someone else would like to join them.

And then there were five

Where Self-Esteem Starts BY C. KAY ALLEN

Our present feelings about ourselves were born in our intimate relationships with family and friends. But most of us face disappointment or hostility at one time or another and develop fears and self-protective reactions. And what has happened seems beyond our control.

It is true that we can’t change the past, but we can deal with the present. The question is, how do I deal with my life in a healthy and productive way now? If I don’t deal with life adequately my self-esteem is low. So my capacity to change, to bring my life under my control, becomes the key issue. That’s where self-esteem begins: with change, with the conviction that I have control over my attitudes and actions toward others.

One of the hard facts of life is that self-esteem comes from your ability to solve problems, not from sympathy, not from realizing that life has handed you a raw deal, and not from blaming your parents or teachers or employer. If you can’t solve problems and deal with conflict, your self-esteem is going to stay low. When we operate out of control, we have the awful feeling that circumstances control us, rather than that we control ourselves.

The retraining process is too long to discuss in detail, but here are some highlights:

1. Both people in the relationship need to know what will happen if they continue as they are now.

2. They need to know what success experiences they both want. (For example, do we want to trust each other more? Do we want to feel safer with each other?)

3. They need to disregard those judgments that erode the relationship: who is right and who is wrong only leads to blame and alienation.

4. They need to apply new standards, such as what weakens our marriage or what strengthens it; or what divides us and what unites us.

5. They need to take responsibility for their own behavior.

6. They need to learn better interaction skills: how to listen, how to accept, how to control put-downs, how to break the cycle of hostility, how to build trust, how to make commitments.

But what if you can’t control the problems? I remember being in a bad working situation some years ago where on-the-job conversations consisted mostly of put-downs, dirty jokes, sexual exploits, and unsubtle innuendoes. I realized that the atmosphere was polluting my interior environment in ways that were destroying my spirituality. And when I heard myself laugh at the jokes or join in the put-downs, then I knew something had to change. I liked the work, so first I went to some key people, told them how I felt, and made what efforts I could to change the situation. But it was clear that no change was going to occur. Either I had to isolate myself while at work or I had to leave. I left. And I stopped feeling guilty and felt better about myself.

I’ve tried this approach sometimes: “Yes, it’s tough and I can see that it’s hard for you, but let me ask you a question. What can you do today that will make you feel better tomorrow? What will make you feel worse?”

Those questions identify pretty quickly what parts of the problem are genuinely within the individual’s control and what he wants to feel. Self-esteem soars as the problems go down, one by one, before a determined, disciplined approach.

The fear-anxiety level is the lowest level; the duty-justice level is higher; and the love, trust, and care level involves the healthiest and deepest motivations. Such families come closer to living the celestial law.

Those at the fear level have low self-esteem, often hidden or disguised, but do not care for themselves or others. Those who can freely love and trust have high self-esteem, feel valuable, and are most capable of truly believing they are sons or daughters of God.

In this atmosphere of mature love and respect—not pity, not manipulation, not sentimentality—the kind of self-esteem our Father wants us all to have will thrive.

Ways to be more optimistic

1. Count your blessings.
2. Learn the power of laughter.
3. Enjoy beautiful music and literature. They can lift your spirits.
4. Look for beauty everywhere you go. Look for it in nature, in art, and in the faces of loved ones.
5. Strive to improve yourself each day.
6. Look for the good in everything.
7. Understand and live the gospel, “for in right living there can be no remorse of conscience” (Bruce R. McConkie, Mormon Doctrine, 2nd ed. [Salt Lake City: Bookcraft, 1966], p. 124).

Know Thyself, Control Thyself, Give Thyself PRESIDENT PAUL H. DUNN Of the First Council of the Seventy

I think if I could give a whole sermon in just six words it would be these: Socrates said many years ago, “Know thyself,” Cicero said, “Control thyself,” and the Savior said, “Give thyself.” Now will you write that down, young brethren; contemplate the meaning while I just share a thought concerning each one.

To know thyself is to come to know that you and I as priesthood bearers are literally the offspring of Deity; and that means, young men, that you and I were born to succeed; that in the preexistence you and I earned a right by our faithfulness and by our commitment to worthy principles to come into mortality in order that we might learn through the priesthood how to become like our Father.

That means, if I understand the gospel correctly, that there isn’t one single failure among us. The word can’t is false doctrine in the Mormon Church. When a young man says to me, “I can’t do it,” I become concerned because in a sense he is saying, “I don’t understand the gospel.” He may not be motivated; he may have discouragements; there may be barriers in his life; but you can succeed.

I promise you young priesthood bearers that if you really come to know who you are through the scriptures and through the revealed doctrine of this church, you can accomplish anything you want in this life.

I don’t mean to suggest by this that you won’t stumble a time or two. That is a part of the growing process. The lives of many great men will testify to you that ofttimes they have many failures, and there is no disgrace in falling down; the disgrace is lying there. To get up one more time than you fall is to be a winner. To stay down is to be a loser.

I don’t mean to suggest by this that you won’t stumble a time or two. That is a part of the growing process. The lives of many great men will testify to you that ofttimes they have many failures, and there is no disgrace in falling down; the disgrace is lying there. To get up one more time than you fall is to be a winner. To stay down is to be a loser.

His attitude of taking both good and bad in stride made him one of the game’s greatest heroes.

Why is it, when we read about great athletes or men in other professions, we are seldom told about their failures? For example, we now read of the amazing record of the immortal Babe Ruth, with his total of 714 home runs; but another unapproached world’s record of his is carefully buried, and that is that he struck out more times than any other player in history—1,330 times!

Someone has said that success consists not in never falling, but in rising every time you fall. Get up one more time than you go down, young people, and you will win. Stay down, and you lose.

My father used to say, “Paul, there are dozens of rules for success, but none of them work unless you do.”

Bob Feller at age sixteen had a problem. He lacked control. He was a great athlete. He had tremendous capacity. He was born to succeed. He knew himself, but he hadn’t disciplined his great talent of speed, so that it was questionable as to whether he would stick in the majors.

But Bob Feller became the great athlete he was because he listened to wise counsel. He had great coaches, and one of them took him aside one day and said, “Bob, it really doesn’t matter whether you throw 105 miles an hour or 95. If you will take a little speed off your pitch and put the ball where it belongs, you will succeed!”

You don’t know Jim Rusick, I think, unless you are related to him. I played ball with Jim. Jim Rusick was a sixteen-year-old boy on the Hollywood High School baseball team. He could throw a 9 1/2-inch baseball 105 miles an hour, but he wouldn’t listen to counsel. He didn’t learn to control the talent that he had, and Jim has never been heard of since.

It’s one thing to be born with ability to succeed; it’s another thing to harness it and to control it.

My young brethren, this is the purpose of the gospel of Jesus Christ, to control that which we have been born with. That is the purpose of the Church and its programs. We need to learn how to control that which God has given us.

Finally, the Savior said, Take all that I have given you, harness it, discipline it, and then give it to the world. Give thyself.

And I learned as President Tanner has taught us. Don’t judge! “Within the oyster shell uncouth, the purest pearl may hide, but oft you’ll find a heart of truth within a rough outside.”
It is a man's own mind, not his enemy or foe, that lures him to evil ways.
- Gautama Buddha

Tuesday, December 13, 2011

Who invented hot cocoa?

Seeing as how I am absolutely obsessed with hot chocolate (I get this from my mom who drinks a cup every morning, every season of the year) I have always wanted to know who invented this cup of goodness! I know...it's not like it's very hard to google "who invented hot cocoa", but you know how things go....you think about it, but then you get busy with life, and the next time I'm by a computer I'm either editing photos, or watching an episode of the bachelor, etc, etc, you get the picture. Anyway, I have found out the history...Aztecs were the "first" to have invented the cup of cocoa...though they spiced it with chili peppers. The spaniards discovered this aztec drink and took it back to Spain where they improved upon the drink. However, it wasn't until the drink made it's way to London that the drink really become good! They added milk and sugar to the drink and the amazing hot cocoa that we drink today was born! Hmmm....so amazingly yummy! Also, on a side note, the Aztecs helped this drink precious to them as it contained 'healing powers'! ;)

Preparing our hearts for Christmas

“Christmas is what we make of it. Despite all the distractions, we can see to it that Christ is at the center of our celebration. If we have not already done so, we can establish Christmas traditions for ourselves and for our families which will help us capture and keep the spirit of Christ.”
-President Monson

The lesson is not that we can have such marvelous experiences whenever we wish for them, nor that they will come even when we feel great need for them. The lesson is that God knows our every need, that He loves us, and that He watches over us.”
-President Eyring

Heavenly Father Gave Us a Gift: The Savior

“You can give a great and wonderful Christmas if you remember the gifts God has given you and, as best you can, offer them to others as He would.”
-President Eyring

“We have in our minds a picture of how everything should be—the perfect tree, the perfect lights, the perfect gifts, and the perfect family events. … [But] sooner or later, something unpleasant occurs … and the picture-perfect Christmas we had imagined, the magic we had intended to create, shatters around us.”
-President Uchtdorf

However, if we focus our hearts and minds on the true spirit of Christmas, “we will recognize wonderful things happening around us.”
-President Uchtdorf

“like the Wise Men of old, should seek the Christ and lay before Him the most precious of gifts: a broken heart and a contrite spirit. We should offer Him our love. We should give Him our willingness to take upon ourselves His name and walk in the path of discipleship. We should promise to remember Him always, to emulate His example, and to go about doing good.”
-President Uchtdorf

“The Savior’s gifts to us are breathtaking,” President Uchtdorf said. He explained that through the Atonement, the Savior offers us immortality, forgiveness, and eternal life.
Though some of Christ’s gifts to us will be given only when our time on earth ends, President Uchtdorf emphasized the many gifts that the Savior gives every day. “He promises to be with us, to come to us when we need comfort, to lift us when we stumble, to carry us if need be, to cry, laugh, mourn, and rejoice with us. Every day He offers to take us by the hand and help transform ordinary life into extraordinary spiritual experiences.”

Scripture Study

ALMA 26
27 Now when our hearts were depressed, and we were about to aturn back, behold, the Lord bcomforted us, and said: Go amongst thy brethren, the Lamanites, and bear with cpatience thine dafflictions, and I will give unto you success.

ALMA 27
17 Now the ajoy of Ammon was so great even that he was full; yea, he was swallowed up in the joy of his God, even to the bexhausting of his strength; and he fell cagain to the earth.
18 Now was not this aexceeding joy? Behold, this is joy which none receiveth save it be the truly penitent and humble seeker of bhappiness.

27 And they were among the people of Nephi, and also numbered among the people who were of the church of God. And they were also distinguished for their azeal towards God, and also towards men; for they were perfectly bhonest and upright in all things; and they were cfirm in the faith of Christ, even unto the end.

ALMA 28
6 And now surely this was a sorrowful day; yea, a time of solemnity, and a time of much afasting and prayer.

12 While many thousands of others truly amourn for the loss of their kindred, yet they rejoice and exult in the hope, and even know, according to the bpromises of the Lord, that they are raised to dwell at the right hand of God, in a state of never-ending chappiness.

13 And thus we see how great the ainequality of man is because of sin and btransgression, and the power of the devil, which comes by the cunning cplans which he hath devised to ensnare the hearts of men.
14 And thus we see the great call of adiligence of men to labor in the vineyards of the Lord; and thus we see the great reason of sorrow, and also of rejoicing—sorrow because of death and destruction among men, and joy because of the blight of Christ unto life.

Monday, December 12, 2011

love doesn't hurt

"Everyone says love hurts, but that is not true. Loneliness hurts. Rejection hurts. Losing someone hurts. Envy hurts. Everyone gets these things confused with love. But in reality love is the only thing in this world that covers up all pain and makes someone feel wonderful again. I love LOVE."
-Kimberly Oaks

Sunday, December 11, 2011

We are disturbed not by what happens to us, but by our thoughts about what happens to us.
- Epictetus

Saturday, December 10, 2011

If you want to succeed you should strike out on new paths, rather than travel the worn paths of accepted success.
- John D. Rockefeller

Friday, December 9, 2011

The Real Christmas - Howard W. Hunter

Christmas is not a day or a season, but a condition of heart and mind. If we love our neighbors as ourselves; if in our riches we are poor in spirit and in our poverty we are rich in grace; if our charity vaunteth not itself, but suffereth long and is kind; if when our brother asks for a loaf, we give ourselves instead;if each day dawns in opportunity and sets in achievement, however small— then every day is Christ’s day and Christmas is always near.


James Wallinford


If you desire to find the true spirit of Christmas and partake of the sweetness of it, let me make this suggestion to you. During the hurry of the festive occasion of this Christmas season, find time to turn your heart to God. Perhaps in the quiet hours, and in a quiet place, and on your knees—alone or with loved ones—give thanks for the good things that have come to you, and ask that His Spirit might dwell in you as you earnestly strive to serve Him and keep His commandments. He will take you by the hand and His promises will be kept.
Too may people overvalue what they are not and undervalue what they are.
- Malcolm Forbes

Thursday, December 8, 2011

The best way to predict the future is to create it.
- Dr. Forrest C. Shaklee