Post 21 No Junk-food Challenge

So I just finished my 21 day No junk-food challenge and... I LOVED it! The first couple days were hard because one, I realized all my snack stuff was on the list and two, I think I was having sugar withdrawals. I don't eat a lot of sugar anyway but since it was Halloween time and there were loads of candy everywhere! So after the first few days of getting used to the idea of not eating pretty much any sweets I really started to enjoy it. I could tell I felt better when I didn't eat all the junk and you know what? I actually noticed that after about a week and a half or two weeks I was losing weight! My exercise regimen hadn't changed. It mostly consists of yoga and a run or two a week. So without any change in that and just a slight change in diet I was definitely losing weight! I was pleased with that and I was feeling even better and could focus more! So in all the only thing I would change would be to get healthy snacks to replace my habit of bad ones. I liked how I felt so much that I decided that I want to do this for 21 days out of every month. I think it is a little unrealistic to do it every single day, especially the white bread part. (I think the hardest time I had during the whole thing was going to Texas Roadhouse and not being able to eat the dinner rolls, it was moderate torture!) So I am going to start every month and if I need to take a day off here and there it is okay as long as I get my 21 days in somewhere during the month. And if I get them all done early I will have a whole chunk of days at the end. Hopefully how good I feel during the first part of the month will help me stay away from the junk the rest of the month. So Beka and I won the costume contest at the party we went to on Halloween so at midnight of the last day of our challenge we stayed up until midnight so we could eat our Snickers bar! Enjoy our midnight pictures with the candy bar!


*Disclaimer: These pictures were taken at midnight and we were just excited to be finished and not concerned about looking great!

Birthday Number Twenty-two!

I can't believe I am 22! I had a pretty great day. Being in school the third week of November seems to be a midterm week as well. It is the week before Thanksgiving so it seems to always be filled with school work. This day was no different. I woke up at 4:30 in the morning to get up and work on a paper. It was due that afternoon and I had been so busy with other school assignments I just started on it. I worked all morning and took a little break to go to lunch with Beka at the Skyroom. It's the nicest place to eat on campus and you get a free meal for your birthday!

Then I went back to work and finished it as quickly as I could so I could go shopping for a new outfit! I got done and Beka and I went to the mall and spent a while there and then picked up some things at the grocery store for the fondue party later. Beka was kind enough to make me a cake and we decided we should just use all the candles I had in the drawer. It made quite the flames!

It has been a year full of wonderful times and better than I could possibly have imagined! Thank you to all my wonderful friends who joined me for the party and all of those who have made this last year better than I could have ever imagined!
The whole day ended perfectly, 22 hours later! :)

21st Year in Review

The last year has been an incredible year! I have been so blessed with so many opportunities and experiences I couldn't possibly cover them all. So in celebrations of being 22 tomorrow I will list the top 22 things that happened in the last year:
1. Women's Conference (I just realized I haven't blogged about it so I will be doing that soon!)
2. Becoming an aunt to Traygen James
3. My best friend leaving on his mission.
4.Two of my best friends getting married.
5. Moving to Washington D.C.!
6. Interning at Children's National Medical Center
7. Outer Banks, North Carolina
8. Seeing Wicked at the Kennedy Center
9. Starting my final year of college!
10. Seeing Les Miserables at the Kennedy Center
11. Fun Halloween Costumes!
12. My sister visiting me out in D.C.
13. Traygen's baby blessing.
14. Talking to my brother via Skype on Mother's Day
15. Speaking at Women's Conference
16. Meeting various general authorities
17. Learning lessons and loving my patients at Children's.
18. Meeting my nephew for the first time.
19. Having lunch with the government relations director of Occidental Petroleum at the Oval Room.
20. First trip day trip to Denver (Hopefully it will be the next place I call home.)
21. Jimmer!
22. Living the best year full of countless opportunities and blessings. Some days I think I could not be more blessed and each day brings more

Looking Down to Look Up

Sometimes life is hard. Sometimes life is hard a lot of the time. Things happen in life and we do not know the reason or why it happens. Sometimes there is absolutely nothing we can do about it and it is hard to be chipper and perky and pretend like everything is okay and that is okay. Sometimes it takes looking down to look up.
It was raining the other day and I didn’t have my umbrella. So I had my hood on and was looking down so my face wouldn’t get soaked and to look out for puddles. I was think about how rain makes us look down and is a little gloomy. Being born and rained on a farm rain was always a blessing but I do love the sun and light, which brings life to everything. But today the rain was gloomy. As I looked down I saw these leaves on the ground.

They are beautiful! And for a moment I looked up and saw the even more beautiful tree they came from. When the rain falls and we don’t have an umbrella and life is hard and we do not know why or we are not in control of the circumstances that make things difficult sometimes it is okay to look down. As long as when and while we look down we see the little beautiful things in our lives that then make us look up to our Father in Heaven and see an even more beautiful sight. I love the Lord and I am grateful for the times the Lord allows me to look down and then in turn I see the little beautiful blessings in my life that make me look up to Him and be thankful.

No Junk-food Challenge

So I don’t really like cookies, cake, ice cream or other things like that. I don’t even really like chocolate that much. I know that is supposed to be a girl thing to love chocolate but my dad doesn’t like it either and I contribute my not liking it to him. Anyway but somehow because Mormons always have food and often times it is desserts or treats I become a social sweet eater. I eat these things even though I don’t really like them. My friend decided to go on a 21 day No Junk Food Challenge and I saw this as a good reason to stop eating food I don’t like. Besides none of the food is doing you any good anyway. So on November 1st we started our no junk food challenge. I wasn’t about to do this without putting a whole team together! So my roommate, my mom and dad, (Dad was a little sad knowing he couldn’t have ice cream for 21 days but he’s done a really good job!) and of course my friend who had the idea all embarked on this journey 15 days ago. Fifteen days in and we are doing great! I feel great. I really feel good and the only hard part is when you are traveling not to justify. So I had to settle for a fruit smoothie in the Denver airport. My friend and I like how we feel and doing this so much I think it is going to make a come back in January for another 21 days. Here is the list of things that are off limits.

I am going to have to say the white bread is probably the hardest for me just because so many things have white flour or are just white bread. For instance, I was at the mall the other day thinking a pretzel was not too unhealthy then I got there and realized it is white bread. I asked them if they had anything made with whole wheat and the look was hilarious. Sadly, no whole wheat and no pretzel for me. I already feel slimmer, though I think that is all psychological!

A Cougars Independence

I am not sure how to adequately describe how much I love watching college football. I loved high school football and watching my brother play and one of the greatest things about college and possibly fall semester is football. I am not a fair weather fan I will stay to the end of the game no matter how cold it gets! This weekend is the last home game and it starts at 8:15pm. But don’t you fret I have been prepared for a really cold weather game for years. In the past four years there has never actually be a game where it has been snowing during the game. I secretly wish it would snow on Saturday night just so I can experience it. Last weekend it was a night game as well and started at 7:15pm. My friend and I made sure we dressed very warm and headed out! Thankfully we weren’t cold at all the whole game. Even our fingers were warm thanks to Santa for bringing me hand warmers last year! I love to bundle up and watch the Cougars play their way to victory!

And for the first time EVER I got a picture with Cosmo!

Day trip to Denver

Today I am looking for a future. I have always been a planner and the Lord is definitely testing my faith when I can’t really plan too much of my life right now but I have complete trust in Him and His timing in my life. I flew to Denver today for the day. I felt really cool flying with only a purse because I was coming home only a few hours later. Children’s Hospital Colorado in Denver, Colorado is the only place in the country to offer a dual certification internship for recreational therapy and child life. My plan has always been to double major because I wanted both degrees. I want to work in a hospital with children. This has been the plan since I have come to college. This is pretty impressive when the average college student changes their major many times. So I went to Denver to check out the hospital there because they have one of the VERY few dual internships in the country. (The others are in Philadelphia, New Jersey, and Baltimore) I am really excited and hopeful one of these internships will be granted my way!

We've been waiting for you..

I try to attend the temple on a pretty regular basis. My friend and I were at the temple today and as we met the man at the front desk. He said, "We're so glad you are here! We've been waiting for you." We've been waiting for you.. The whole time I sat in the temple today that line ran through my mind over and over. I try to make sure I pray for those I am doing temple work for that they may accept the work that is being done for them. Today as I listened to the names and saw where they were from and the year they were born they were particularly real to me. There were some sisters who were born in the 1750's. Over 250 years they have been waiting for this day. This day the ordinance that will help these individuals enter into the kingdom of God (John 3:5). They were waiting for me to do something they cannot do for themselves. They were waiting for me. I love the temple and am so glad I can be there today for them as well as for me.

Halloween!

For Halloween this year my friend and I were GOLDFISH!

I got the idea from a friend last year and just loved it! It is really easy and cheap! The whole costume including: 2XL t-shirt, leggings, orange shoelace, ping pong balls, coffee filters, and spray paint all for less than $15. We stopped by a couple parties and we even won a costume contest at one of them! Everyone was so impressed it was a really fun costume!

Weekend in the City

A couple weeks ago I was lucky enough to be able to fly to Washington D.C. for the weekend. It was in the middle of my month of midterms so before and after the trip were pretty stressful with school but the weekend was perfect! It is my favorite city and I didn't know it was possible but it is even more charming in the fall! I flew in Thursday night. It was a direct flight which was really nice. It's not a bad flight unless you along with every other Delta flight is grounded for over an hour before you leave. But it's okay, I can be patient! My cousin's husband works right next to the airport and picked me up, it was really nice of him especially since I got in an hour later than my original 11pm. The next morning I went to work. I got to use my metro card again and I remembered how much I love that city and everything about it. I made it to work and was so excited I could hardly stand it. It was so great to see all my friends I worked with and especially my patients! All three of the patients I wanted to see most were all there. It probably is bad to hope they are in the hospital but I was glad I got to see them. I spent my day with them buying pizza, getting updates on happenings, and comforting them while they were sick. A piece of my heart is still with them. I love them and will never forget the impact they made on my life.
After work this lucky girl got to go to the Kennedy Center for my new favorite thing, the theatre! We saw Les Miserables and it was so good! I am still listening to the soundtrack and I love every song. It is such a great story and the cast was great! We had tickets in the orchestra seating and they were amazing. They are very firm about not taking pictures while in the theatre so no luck there but this was outside.

I am so glad I have someone who enjoys going to the theatre as much as I do and is willing to go with me!

I also got to see the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial that was opened right after I left in August.

Asher, my cousin's cute baby, and me. He was pretty tired!!

Alpine Loop

This is one of the top reasons why I love living in Utah, specifically Provo. Driving up the canyon is BEAUTIFUL in the fall. My friend and I drove up the canyon and stopped at Cascade Springs. There were a lot of people and sometimes the road gets a little small for two cars. But we did get some beautiful pictures!







This was the only picture we got together. It was the last picture from my dying camera. Next time I'll be sure to charge my other battery.

The View From Heaven

I was so lucky to be able to fly to Washington D.C. this weekend and I love to view from an airplane. I can see why President Uchtdorf loves to fly. It is a beautiful view! In Utah it was a cold day and the first gloomy day of fall. Just two days ago I was wearing shorts to school. My flight, along with every other Delta flight in the country was grounded for an hour or so due to communication problems. But once we got into the air it was about 6pm. We rose above the clouds and the sunlight came. There is an incredible beauty when the sunlight hits the clouds! What a view above the clouds away from the business of the day to day. Whenever I see it I cannot help but feel of the great love from heaven and the beauty our Heavenly Father created for us. It is so beautiful. Flying over Nebraska we ran into a huge lightening storm. I have love lightening but I have never seen it like this before. The lightening was almost constant and magnificent. The moon is shining and bright. I can only see the view from the sky but I think about what the view from heaven must be like. The insurmountable love Heavenly Father has for us and what a beautiful place he has created for us is incredible. I cannot thank Him enough for all the beautiful things He has put into our lives on a daily basis that we might have joy (scripture). I am excited for the day when I can see the view from heaven and the universe in all its glory.

General Relief Society Meeting

For the second year in a row I got to go to the General Relief Society Meeting in Salt Lake. I didn’t have as good of seats as I did last year but it was still wonderful! I got to go with two of my roommates and it was fun to spend time with them and enjoy the meeting. President gave a wonderful talk called the Forget Me Not. I highly recommend reading it! I love the time of year when we have the opportunity to listen to a living prophet and apostles.

The Summer That Changed My Life

I have wanted to write for a long time about my summer working at Children's National Medical Center but I feel like words could not do it justice.
Children's National Medical Center, the place I spend most of my days and I love every single minute I am there. I am not sure someone could love their job more than I do. I love my job but I love the patients even more. I have always loved cancer kids and every day I am with them they really inspire me to be better, to be stronger, and to love more. I have fallen love with them and will always remember them. Each one of them has changed my life. They truly have inspired me to live my life as if each day were my last because every day very well could be their last. They are fighters. Some do not fully understand what is happening to them and others know full well what is going on. Some have been through it before and some are venturing through this journey for the first time. Each story starts out in a similar way but every child has a story of their own.
May 11th, my first day at Children’s National Medical Center, I was so excited I could barely sleep the night before. I set out my clothes the night before and was up earlier than the sun to leave an hour earlier than necessary to arrive at work on time. The day before I had done a practice run and the metro so I would know when to get off and exactly how long it would take to get there. I was ready. I showed up at the hospital and ready to go. I was early so I grabbed a juice and checked the mirror to make sure I looked just right for my first day of work. I walked up to the front desk and asked for my supervisor. She looked at me with a blank stare and told me to ask the office down the hall. When the lady down the hall did not know whom I was talking about she took pity on me and made sure all of my information was correct. It was then I found out I was at the wrong hospital and Children’s was across the parking lot. It is easy to get confused on which hospital you are supposed to be at when there are five different hospitals in the same area. I finally made it to my correct place in the correct hospital right on time, at that moment I sure was glad I left early!
It is hard to talk about a lot of what I did because of confidentiality but I'll do my best. I worked with children ranging from 6 months to 17 years. They have all types of cancer and blood disorders. Some of my days consisted of blowing bubbles, playing cards or video games, playing peek-a-boo for hours, or movie afternoons. Some of the patients just needed company and it was always fun to be with them but there we some who were in desperate need of someone to talk to or to care about them. I have ample love and a little education to give and was ready to take on anything. Highs came when I made a terrified patient smile and feel comfortable in this new strange place, when I cried with a patient and we talked about the frustrations of their cancer relapsing and then we talked , held someone for hours who just faced death and was alone and scared, becoming one of the few people they could depend on in their lives, gave opportunities to talk about death and how to accept and live with it, when I became a dragon in the hallway to bring a much needed smile and laugh to a patient, and trying my hardest to win a video game but never succeeding. There also were also times that made me think deeply about life like when my first patient died. Spending that Friday night in the PICU with family and almost constant ups and downs and finally passing away or a baby with down syndrome as well as cancer. What an incredible spirit that baby had. I was so grateful for the time I was able to spend with them and feel of their spirit and know how special they were to come to this earth and be here only the receive a body and return much sooner than most of us.
Each and every one of my patients were so special to me and I almost feel selfish for how much they benefited me and how much I grew from knowing them. They are inspiring and wonderful. Those patients whose lives were abridged and I am so thankful I was able to be a part of their lives and feel of their special spirits. I know Heavenly Father wanted them home sooner and their mission in this life was over.
I will always remember them and the wonderful people I worked with. The friends I made there gave me confidence and hope. They inspired me even more to work harder to be the best I can to help the children I work with in the future.

Fall Semester 2011

It's a new semester with new classes, new teachers, new schedules, and new...books. Books I think are the worst thing about started school again.

$457.96 and this isn't even all of them. The last two semesters combined I haven't even payed that much for books. But I guess it was my time. I am so excited to someday get paid for all the work I do instead of paying someone to allow me to work my butt off reading and doing more assignments than I ever thought possible!
Here's to a new semester and hopefully never having to pay that much for books again!

Ten Years Later

It was early in the morning. We were getting ready for school, just like any other day. My dad had been working in the shop that working. He turned on the radio and heard the news. He rushed in and turned in the TV. I sat there with him and we were shocked at what we saw. And then I witnessed the second plane fly into the second tower.
It's hard to believe it has been ten years since that day. I will forever be grateful for my 6th grade teachers who left the TV on that day so we could watch the news. I am thankful for Mrs. Laughlin my reading teacher who talked to us about what was happening and helped us understand. I talk to other people who were about my age and how they didn't really understand what happened that day but because of her I did, at least as much as an 11 year old could.
I was scared. I didn't know if there were more attacks planned or if something might happen in my little town. I remember coming home and watching everything I could and wrote down on a little notepad everything they knew about what had happened that morning.
Ten years later I am a whole decade older, almost twice the age I was, and much has happened since that day. But my memories of that day haven't faded and I don't think they ever will. I do not know anyone personally who died that day but I come together with them as a nation under God who still turns to him. I am thankful for all of those who serve this country and are willing to lay down their lives for the freedom I enjoy. It is ten years later and I will never forget 9/11/01.

My Eternal Family

Several of my classes this semester have begun with talking about The Family: A Proclamation to the World. When this declaration was released in 1995 it was given to every world leader because of its importance. I have read this one page document before but in the past couple days I have read over 20 pages on it and spend about 5 hours in class talking about it so far. In just one page it teaches us so many important truths and principles of the family. As I have been reading it brings to mind my family, my eternal family. I am so grateful for the choice my parents made to be married in the temple and be sealed for time and all eternity. I am grateful to be born in the covenant and if we all live worthy of the blessings and covenants we make we can live together again forever. I love my family and cannot imagine my life without each one of them. I am so glad I have the knowledge that we will be together again after this life. My professors have promised there is much more to come on this document and I am glad I am at an institution where I can learn about it. I hope all this learning will benefit my future family one day!

Wedding..Weddings..oh and Weddings!

When people say June is the month of weddings it may be true but August is not far behind! I have been to so many weddings and receptions this month even I am worn out from them, and I LOVE weddings. My best friend also got married this month and she was a beautiful bride. The day was perfect! Though I did get the responsibility of holding the baby while our old roommate went to the sealing. Unfortunately he didn't see the need to be reverent in the temple waiting room. As soon as he realized I was not mom he started screaming. Not just a little whimper but screams loud enough to let everyone know he had a very healthy set of lungs. Women who were also in the waiting room came over and asked if they could help and I gladly let them try. None of them were successful and so we held a screaming baby the whole time. It wasn't too bad though, as soon as mom came back everything was just fine again.

The luncheon was in the Joseph Smith Memorial Building and we had a wonderful reunion of all of our freshman roommates together, and significant others if they applied.
My cute freshman roommate and her now Canadian husband!
My long time roommate and the first of us to get married with her goofy husband.
Me, someday I'll have someone to take wonderful pictures with!
The perfect couple! Congratulations! You both are wonderful and fit together perfectly! I could not imagine anyone other man better for my best friend!
We will forever be best friends!

Farewell Washington D.C.

All things must come to the end including the perfect summer. My last few days in Washington I didn't go to work. A lot of my time was spent packing. I spend my whole summer living out of three suit cases, which I think is pretty impressive. I had to pack them all efficiently so they were not overweight. One night we went to a Nats game which was really fun! I enjoy watching baseball a lot. Probably because you can watch it and still be social at the same time. Here we are at the game!

I finally packed everything just right and was out to spend one last night in the city. My friends had a fun good-bye party for me with some really good food!

This isn't everyone but a fun picture. I miss them all! Then we went to a candy store that had all kinds of old candies that are hard to find. We found out you get a discount if you have a military ID. So...we had one girl ID and one boy ID and so all of us got a discount! Except for one..one of my friends was standing behind me and asked if he could use "my" ID as well and I said, "You know we are practically family" The cashier took this as we were engaged and so the fun began. We confirmed that we were and I answered most of the wedding questions. Then she asked us how long we had been dating and luckily we were on the same wave length and both said a year and a half at exactly the same time! We were so giggly and happy and she thought it was because "we were so cute and in love" when it really was because we can only tell a lie for so long before we start laughing. That lady still thinks we are getting married in October and we're the cutest couple she's ever seen! It was pretty fun!
After that we talked about army bases and I had said I have never been to one and I brought my passport just in case I ever needed to get in to a place or prove I was a US citizen. Then we got talking about Church's fried chicken and how amazing it was. I am not particularly fond of fried chicken but my friends convinced me it was the best fried chicken they had ever had. So we decided we were going to beat the clock and go to Fort Belvoir so I could say I've been on an army base and to get this famous fried chicken. According to the GPS it said we would get there just a few minutes before they closed. We raced against the clock and made it on to the base and were there 4 minutes before closing. Just in time to find out they had already closed. Well I have worked fast food and I know if you stare at the employees though the drive through window they will come tell you they are closed. So there we sat. Soon enough they came to tell us they were closed but not before I could tell them that we just drove over an hour to get here and we had heard about how amazing their chicken was and we were moving the next day and this was our only chance to experience their chicken. This was enough to get the manager. I relayed the story again and...

Walah! We had our own FRESH Church's friend chicken! And....it was AMAZING! If friend chicken always tasted that good I would be hooked! Good think I don't live in the south where they are more Church's fried chicken else I might be twice the size I am now! It was a great night! Thanks to all my dear friends I made over the summer and making it such a great experience! I can't wait until we all meet again!

Wicked!

I since my freshman year my roommates got me hooked in the music from the musical Wicked. I love the music and listen to it often. If we were ever I the car together would find us blaring Defying Gravity and all of us singing at the top of our lungs. Since then I have always dreamed of going. It came to Boise earlier this summer but unfortunately I moved to D.C. before it came and I was never in a city big enough for it to be at for anymore than a one night visit. Lucky for me, I moved to Washington D.C. where they do have musicals often and this summer Wicked happened to be the main event at the Kennedy Center. I decided I was going to go but things came up and with tickets being expensive I could not find anyone who was not already going to go with me. I mentioned to a very good friend of mine, whom I met at work, I had wanted to go but just as a side note. The next day at work he came up and said he had looked up tickets and we wondered if I wanted to go that weekend. OF COURSE I DID!!! He was so kind to call it an early birthday present and treat me to a night at the theatre. All week I was so excited. The tickets came and he even let me open the package. I danced around the room and told him over and over again how excited I was to be going. He said he had never seen anyone so excited and if this was how excited I got he would buy me things more often. I think he just thought it was funny to watch me dance around the room to my own little tune.
The night finally came and I was so excited! I got all dressed up, he picked me up in his nice car, and I had wonderful company. The night could not have been more perfect! The Kennedy Center is a beautiful building and the theatre was incredible. The lighting was beautiful chandeliers and the stage was perfect for Wicked with a large dragon at the top of the stage. We took a really quick picture of the ceiling and we got an evil eye from one of the members.

We snapped a little picture of us really quickly before the lady came over and told us to put the camera away.

The play was so beautiful! It is a lovely story of good versus evil and sometimes things are not what they appear to be. It is the prequel to The Wizard of Oz, which I have not seen, but the only references to it were obvious enough I know what they were talking about. The cast was phenomenal. The set was amazing. The atmosphere of the whole night was magical. I could not possible ask for a better night for one of my dreams to come true!

As we were leaving we saw Les Miserables was coming in October. If only I was still in DC then you know where you could find me!

A Window to His Love

One of the best things that has come from moving to Washington D.C. it the amazing missionary experiences I have had since I have been here. In June I had a friend who was meeting with the missionaries and asked me to come to the discussions with him. I had never actually been a part of the missionaries teaching an investigator. I was pretty nervous but really excited. If you want to read about it click HERE.
Meeting with the missionaries and being a part of the discussion was really a great experience for me. It was nice to return to the simplest doctrine of our religion. We talked about the concept of God and how he is our loving heavenly father. This simple truth I have known all my life and have never doubted and it was a brand new concept for him. As we talked more about principles and the gospel the spirit testified to me the things I know are true and I know more than I realized. I have grown up in the church and I went to primary and Young Womens every Sunday and was taught at home but I have never been a great scriptorian. I would love to have scriptures memorized and remember the exact references to things. But I'm not there yet. It was a sweet comfort to me to be know I do know things about the gospel and I not only believe the doctrines of the gospel but I know them to be true. I know, I have prayed and received an answer. I know the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is Christ's church restored wholely and perfectly. Knowing this even in its simplicity makes life beautiful.
Being outside of Utah where even if you are not a member of the church you probably still know plenty about the church, there are plenty of people to share the gospel with. Here, there are opportunities to plant seeds and share the gospel everywhere! From people at work to people you meet on the metro to anywhere! I love sharing the gospel and am so grateful for the opportunities that are so ample they almost fall into your lap. My goal is to begin studying Preach My Gospel so I can be better prepared to be a missionary and share the gospel. I hope we all are a window to the Lord's love and utilize the opportunities to share the gospel that are presented to us.

Date Night in the PICU

Friday night is usually date night for most, or at least the night to take a break from work and socialize a little bit. Last Friday I had plans with with one of my coworkers. Right about the end of the day one of our patients was in the PICU. Things took a turn for the worse and both of us ended up staying with the family. The ICU is never the place you want to be and after a long night of ups and downs the patient finally passed away.

This was a new experience for me and one that I am sure will happen again. This was my first patient who I had spent time with and talked with who passed away. I have prepared myself for this and knew it was part of the job. Though sometimes it is hard not being able to talk about what's going on a work. This is where the Lord blessed my life with a little thing that meant so much to me.

After leaving work, my coworker and I went home and just sat on the couch and ate a little dinner. It was not what we had planned on doing that night or what we had expected to eat for dinner but it was just what I needed and what he needed too. It was nice to have someone around who understood what we were going through. He has had more experience with patients and how to deal with losing one. We talked about death and we talked about life and how grateful we are to have every precious breath we breathe. I am so grateful I had him that night to talk to and find comfort in. I know the Lord is aware of us and our need and He sends people to be in our lives at the moments we need it most.

I was lucky my date was with my coworker and there was no need to break plans with someone. Though, I do hope that is my last date in the PICU.

No More 'Some Day's

I have always tried to live my life in an attempt to never regret a moment. I try not to put off things for tomorrow, because tomorrow might not come. I guess when I work this close to death it always reminds you how quickly life can end. I am not afraid of death. The Lord has a plan for each of us and sometimes we don't realize the plan is shorter for some than others. Sometimes we think one is harder than the other but Heavenly Father really knows what is best for each one of His children and He has shaped our plans accordingly. I have complete faith in our Heavenly Father's plan and I am so grateful for the time I get to spend with the special spirits that do not require an extended stay on this earth. The spirit of a baby who is so freshly sent from heaven is unlike any other. To be with a wonderful spirit who will quickly return to Heavenly Father after only a short time here on this earth inspires me to be better, to be prepared to meet my maker for what ever day that might be. It might be tomorrow, it might be next year, it might be 50 years from now. But today is the day I am preparing to stand worthy before God and tell him I tried my very best to serve Him and to be a window to His love for those who know me.
I try to always let people know how I feel about them. Let them know when they inspire me with the little things they do each day. So many times I think about how grateful I am for the people in my life and think I'll tell them 'some day' when the time is right. The time is right now, tell people you love them and how much they mean to you. You never know when the things you say will be just what someone has been searching for. You never know if there will be a tomorrow. You never know if you will have just one more day.

Livin' the Dream

I can really say at this very moment I am living the dream. I live in a beautiful city, my job is everything I could possibly ever dream of; and it’s summer! I love Washington D.C.. I am living in Virginia and it has a cute little Main Street with little shops and boutiques. I go running and love to see the little places to eat and fun stores. The only problem is I have to run later in the evening because of the humidity makes it way to hot during the day so I can never go in. But they are beautiful to see. I have wonderful friends who are happy and love to do things. I have a family, though they are 2000+ miles away, who loves me and supports me in my adventures. I do not think I could possibly be happier!

The sister visit

My wonderful little sister got to come out and make a visit in May. It was fun to have someone out here to do the tourist thing with. We went to the National Mall, some Smithsonian museums, Mount Vernon, and the beach! It was so much fun! I love having her around and I think she had a good time too!


Of course we had to stop at all the monuments and take a picture and all the cliche' ones as well!

We thought it would be fun to tickle the elephant at the Smithsonian.

She thought it would be funny to pick his nose.

We tried to fit in with some of the exhibits.
This picture has a story. I thought it would be a clever picture to have one of the first light bulbs above my head like in the cartoons when they have a bright idea because, naturally, I full of bright ideas! So I made my sister take this picture until we got just the right one. I was so pleased with the picture and what a great idea it was. She put this one along with all the others up on Facebook and our brother commented on it, noticing the light bulb was not on, hence as in the cartoons, no good idea. I think this picture may be more factual to me than any of us thought it would be. I asked my sister if she notice the irony of the picture and the light not being on but she said she didn't want to say anything because I thought it was such a great idea for a picture..

One of our favorite places to visit was the National Archives. It is the home of the Declaration of Independence, Bill of Rights, the Constitution, and other really cool documents. We went and watch a little video on the Declaration of Independence and we were the only ones in the whole theater. It was really fun! I highly recommend visiting!

We also made a stop at Mt. Vernon which is George Washington's estate. It was also a lot of fun and it was in a beautiful stop looking over the Patomic River. The house was beautiful and fun to see the colorful walls that was one way they would show their wealth.

It was a beautiful estate.

Pretty arches, pretty river, pretty girls.
Over Memorial Day weekend we headed down to Duck Beach in Outer Banks, North Carolina. I never had any desire to live or even visit North Carolina. All that changed, I would love to live on the beach in North Carolina, even during hurricane season just to be there the rest of the year! This was our amazing beach house! Some day I'll live next to a beach.
These were our awesome roommates! That weekend I made some wonderful friends.
But the best sister in the world made the weekend great! I am four years older than her but everyone thought she was the older one. That's okay I guess that means when we're both older wishing we looked young I'll at least look younger than her! :)