Unexpected Pleasant Surprise!

Yesterday Eric had a final at 1. I had assumed that he would leave work early and go straight to his final. That is not what he did, instead he left work early and came home and had lunch with me. It made my whole day. I couldn't stop smiling I just couldn't believe that he was home for lunch on a weekday.

The first thing I said when he came home was "What are you doing here?" I don't think that was the greeting he expected because he said "Fine, I'll just leave." I quickly got up and hugged and made sure that came inside before he could leave.

It was so nice to spend half and hour in the middle of the day with my husband.

Eric's Talk

This is Eric's Talk that he gave. I think that he did a wonderful job. He started with a poem about Thanksgiving since it was the Sunday after Thanksgiving.

T’was the night of Thanksgiving,

But I just couldn’t sleep.

I tried counting backwards,

I tried counting sheep.

The leftovers beckoned,

The dark meat and white.

But I fought the temptation,

With all of my might.

Tossing and turning,

with anticipation.

The thought of a snack

became infatuation.

So I raced to the kitchen,

Flung open the door,

And gazed at the fridge,

Full of goodies galore.

I gobbled up turkey,

And buttered potatoes,

Pickles and carrots,

Beans and tomatoes.

I felt myself swelling,

So plump and so round.

‘til all of a sudden,

I rose off the ground.

I crashed through the ceiling,

Floating into the sky,

With a mouthful of pudding,

And a handful of pie.

But I managed to yell

As I soared past the trees

Happy eating to all,

Pass the cranberries, please!!

May your stuffing be tasty

May your turkey be plump.

May your potatoes and gravy

Have nary a lump.

May your yams be delicious,

May your pies take the prize

And May your Thanksgiving dinner

Stay off of your thighs!

by Lauren

Every week when we come to church and partake of the sacrament we promise with God that we will “always remember him.”  This promise is so important that it is specifically written in both the sacrament prayers.  It is clearly stated in the prayers that in order for us to “have his spirit to be with us” we must first “always remember him.” In essence it is a commandment from God to “Always remember him.”  Why would God have us promise each week to always remember him?  How is that connected with us obtaining the Spirit?  Remembrance is the seed of Gratitude.  Gratitude brings Humility and Charity.  Humility and Charity bring the Spirit.

I don’t know if I would be to far of by stating that remembering God and all that he has done for us will lead us to guidance by the spirit. Remembrance of Jesus Christ always  brings about gratitude.

What is Gratitude?

Gratitude is a feeling of thankfulness for blessings or benefits we have received. Grateful people are quick to acknowledge the kindness and help they receive from our Heavenly Father and others around them.

To have gratitude we must first recognize the blessings that God gives us.  To recognize the blessings we must 

How will developing a deeper level of gratitude effect my life?

A grateful heart is the beginning of greatness. Gratitude builds humility as we recognize an act of kindness, service, or caring from someone else. True gratitude is a foundation for faith, courage, contentment, happiness, love, and well-being. Being grateful leads us to look outside ourselves and turn to the bestower of the blessings.

“Gratitude is an uplifting, exalting attitude.” (True to the Faith)

Gratitude is not something we DO, it is something we BECOME.  I can’t just do gratitude like I can pay my tithing or go to church.  Gratitude is who I am.  I have to be grateful not do grateful.  

Being grateful is so much more that just words.  Gratitude is a feeling, or an attitude within us.  In True to the Faith we learn that we need to “Work at being grateful.” It is an attribute that we develop and work at just like faith and humility.  Gratitude is not something that we can be just once a year around thanksgiving time.  

Get into a habit of expressing gratitude. (Alms 34:38) To be truly grateful we must be grateful daily and not yearly. 

How can we daily develop a habit of Gratitude?  I think that the best way for us to develop gratitude is to recognize the hand of God in our lives or ALWAYS REMEMBER HIM. We need to recognize the Hand of God in our daily lives and then thank God for what he has done for us. But how can we recognize God’s hand in our lives?  President Eyring found a way that worked for him to recognize for yourself. Write them down.”

I went inside. I didn’t go to bed. Although I was tired, I took out some paper and began to write. And as I did, I understood the message I had heard in my mind. I was supposed to record for my children to read, someday in the future, how I had seen the hand of God blessing our family. Grandpa didn’t have to do what he was doing for us. He could have had someone else do it or not have done it at all. But he was serving us, his family, in the way covenant disciples of Jesus Christ always do. I knew that was true. And so I wrote it down, so that my children could have the memory someday when they would need it.

I wrote down a few lines every day for years. I never missed a day no matter how tired I was or how early I would have to start the next day. Before I would write, I would ponder this question: “Have I seen the hand of God reaching out to touch us or our children or our family today?” As I kept at it, something began to happen. As I would cast my mind over the day, I would see evidence of what God had done for one of us that I had not recognized in the busy moments of the day. As that happened, and it happened often, I realized that trying to remember had allowed God to show me what He had done.

More than gratitude began to grow in my heart. Testimony grew. I became ever more certain that our Heavenly Father hears and answers prayers. I felt more gratitude for the softening and refining that come because of the Atonement of the Savior Jesus Christ. And I grew more confident that the Holy Ghost can bring all things to our remembrance—even things we did not notice or pay attention to when they happened.the blessings of God in his life. From this he learned to develop gratitude and testimony.

“When our children were very small, I started to write down a few things about what happened every day. Let me tell you how that got started. I came home late from a Church assignment. It was after dark. My father-in-law, who lived near us, surprised me as I walked toward the front door of my house. He was carrying a load of pipes over his shoulder, walking very fast and dressed in his work clothes. I knew that he had been building a system to pump water from a stream below us up to our property.

He smiled, spoke softly, and then rushed past me into the darkness to go on with his work. I took a few steps toward the house, thinking of what he was doing for us, and just as I got to the door, I heard in my mind—not in my own voice—these words: “I’m not giving you these experiences

The years have gone by. My boys are grown men. And now and then one of them will surprise me by saying, “Dad, I was reading in my copy of the journal about when …” and then he will tell me about how reading of what happened long ago helped him notice something God had done in his day.

My point is to urge you to find ways to recognize and remember God’s kindness. It will build our testimonies. You may not keep a journal. You may not share whatever record you keep with those you love and serve. But you and they will be blessed as you remember what the Lord has done. You remember that song we sometimes sing: “Count your many blessings; name them one by one, And it will surprise you what the Lord has done.” 2

“You could have an experience with the gift of the Holy Ghost today. You could begin a private prayer with thanks. You could start to count your blessings, and then pause for a moment. If you exercise faith, and with the gift of the Holy Ghost, you will find that memories of other blessings will flood into your mind. If you begin to express gratitude for each of them, your prayer may take a little longer than usual. Remembrance will come. And so will gratitude.”

Recognizing the blessings of God in our life help us develop gratitude.  Gratitude leads to Humility and Charity. Humility and Charity lead to Guidance of the Spirit.  

Recognizing the hand of God has helped me in my life to understand how the spirit works.  By recognizing the hand of God in my life my testimony of the Holy Ghost grew.  I began to see specific things - very specific things - that God helped me with in my day. I recognized when the spirit guided me, which other wise I would not have recognized.

Gratitude

Last Sunday Eric and I were asked to speak in our ward. We were asked to speak on Gratitude. I thought I would post our talk's for you to read, but you don't have to. This is my talk. I will post Eric's later.

 

We were asked to speak on gratitude. I looked up gratitude in the dictionary and it said "Gratitude: the state of being grateful." I then looked up grateful and it said "Grateful: expressing gratitude or appreciative of benefits received." That was not much help. So I turned to the church website where it said “Gratitude is a feeling of appreciation and thankfulness for blessings or benefits we have received. As we cultivate a grateful attitude, we are more likely to be happy and spiritually strong. We should regularly express our gratitude to God for the blessings He gives us and to others for the kind acts they do for us.

Grateful people are quick to acknowledge the kindness and help they receive from our Heavenly Father and others around them.

Where there is gratitude, there is courtesy; there is a concern for the happiness and well-being of others.” 

The part that stuck out to me the most is the part that says “We should regularly express our gratitude to God for the blessings He gives us and to others for the kind acts they do for us.” This sentence brought up two questions the first was why should we regularly express gratitude and the second was how to we regularly express gratitude. 

I will start by answering why we should express gratitude. At first the answer seems obvious we should express our gratitude because it helps us realize all the blessings that we have, but I found a better reason. In D&C 59:7 it says “Thou shalt thank the Lord thy God in all things.” We should express our gratitude because the Lord commanded us to. 

The Lord always gives us commandments for a reason and they are always for our benefit. How will being grateful benefit our lives? 

In the True to the Faith it says “The Lord has promised, ‘He who receiveth all things with thankfulness shall be made glorious’ (D&C 78:19). Gratitude is an uplifting exalting attitude. … You cannot be bitter, resentful, or mean-spirited when you are grateful.”  

James E Faust said “It seems as though there is a tug-of-war between opposing character traits that leaves no voids in our souls. As gratitude is absent or disappears, rebellion often enters and fills the vacuum. I do not speak of rebellion against civil oppression. I refer to rebellion against moral cleanliness, beauty, decency, honesty, reverence, and respect for parental authority. A grateful heart is a beginning of greatness. It is an expression of humility. It is a foundation for the development of such virtues as prayer, faith, courage, contentment, happiness, love, and well-being.” 

To me these say that being grateful helps us to be more Christ like. Humility, faith, courage, and love are all characteristics of the savior that we strive to have. These characteristics are gained through gratitude and will help us return to our Heavenly Father.  

                While studying for this talk one story kept coming up. I know that you have all heard it before, but I thought I would share it with you again. It is found in Luke 17:11-19. “And it came to pass, as he went to Jerusalem that he passed through the midst of Samaria and Galilee.

And as he entered into a certain village, there met him ten men that were lepers, which stood afar off:

 And they lifted up their voices and said, Jesus, Master, have mercy on us.

And when he saw them he said unto, them, Go shew yourselves unto the priests. And it came to pass, that, as they went they were cleansed.

And one of them, when he saw that he was healed, turned back, and with a loud voice glorified god,

And fell down on his face at his feet, giving him thanks: and he was a Samaritan.

And Jesus answering said, Were there not ten cleansed? But where are the nine?

There are not found that returned to give glory to God, save this stranger.

And he said unto him, Arise go thy way: thy faith hath made thee whole.” 

                This shows how we should express our gratitude. The one that opening gave thanks for being cleansed was the one that was praised, and the one that received extra blessings. It is entirely possible that the other nine were grateful for being cleansed but because they did not express their gratitude they were seen as ungrateful and missed out on the blessing of being made whole. It is not enough just to be grateful we need to express it.               

                There are many ways to express our gratitude. The most common way is to say “Thank you.” How many times throughout our day do we have the opportunity to say thanks but don’t? I know that I am guilty of not saying thank you enough. So many things are done for us and we take them granite. When we take things for granite we come to expect them and we no longer see them as blessings in our lives. Sister Hinckley illustrated this when she said, “A grateful heart will give you a touch of refinement that can come in no other way.

I went to high school during the days of the famous depression. It was a miserable experience. But, in a way, I wish you could have been there with us. Somehow it helped me to appreciate much more the prosperity we now enjoy. I know some of you think you are on a tight budget, and you are. I am glad if you are. But it is a tight budget because you have nothing else to compare with it. It isn’t your fault that you have had three square meals a day, most every day of your life. It isn’t your fault that somehow or other you have always been able to get a new pair of shoes, whether you needed them or not. It isn’t your fault that you have at least five or six changes of clothing in your crowded closets. But all of this makes doubly hard for you to be truly grateful.

Has the feat of not being able to get an education ever struck terror into your heart: Probably not, for you knew that somehow or other you would get here and that somehow or other you will stay as long as you so desire, for this is America, where only you own indolence can keep you from the good things in life.

And when you finally develop a little gratitude in your heart, make up your mind to express it. 'Appreciation unexpressed is not appreciation.' If you can’t find someone to say thank you to for something, just take a look at you toothbrush and say, 'Thank you for being. You are a wonderful little gadget.'

'Thank you' is a wonderful phrase. Use it. It will add stature to your soul. Never let a day go by without saying thank you to someone for something- and especially to your Heavenly Father.”

Saying “thank you” is a simple and easy way for us to show our gratitude.  

                Gratitude can also be shown through our actions. The phrase “actions speak louder than words” applies very well when showing gratitude. If you appreciate something that someone has done for you, do something nice for them in return.  You can also show your gratitude by doing the same act of kindness for someone else. Very recently I was talking to my mom and thanking her for the things she had done for me. When I got done she said “All that I ask is that you pay it forward to your children.” She didn’t want anything from me. She did these things for me out of love; all that she asked is that I show that same love to my children. Sometimes all we can do to express our gratitude is to show that same kindness to those around us. This can be applied in many different circumstances from passing the love of your parents onto your children to holding the door open for a stranger. 

                Not only do we need to express gratitude to the people in our lives we need to express gratitude to our Heavenly Father. We express gratitude to our Heavenly Father through our words and action also. In the True to the faith it says “We should thank our Heavenly Father for His goodness to us by acknowledging His hand in all things, thanking Him for all that He gives us, keeping His commandments, and serving others.” 

                We need to tell our Heavenly Father every day the things that we are thankful for through prayer. We should not skip straight to the blessing that we need. We have to take the time to sincerely tell our Heavenly Father that we are thankful for the many blessing in our lives. Our Heavenly Father has given us everything we have and we need to take the time to tell him that we are grateful. By showing gratitude is our prayers we can acknowledge Gods hand in all things. 

We also express gratitude to our heavenly Father through keeping his commandments in Mosiah 2: 19-22 it says “And Behold also, if I, whom ye call your king, who has spent his days in your service, and yet has been in the service of God, do merit any thanks from you, O how you ought to thanks your heavenly King!

I say unto you, my brethren, that if you should render all the thanks and praise which your whole soul has power to possess, to that God who has created you, and has kept and preserved you, and has kept and preserved you, and has caused that ye should rejoice, and has granted that ye should live in peace one with another-

I say unto you if ye should serve him who has created you from the beginning, and is preserving you from day to day, by lending you breath, that ye may live and move and do according to your own will, and even supporting you from one moment to another-I say, if ye should serve him with all your whole souls yet ye would be unprofitable servants.

And behold, all that he requires of you is to keep his commandments . . .” 

Our Heavenly Father has given us so much the least we can do is keep his commandments.

I know that expressing gratitude to our Heavenly father and those around us will benefit our lives. I know the being grateful for the blessing in our lives makes us happier and that our Heavenly Father blesses us when express our gratitude. I know that our Heavenly Father loves me and that I can show my love for him by being grateful for everything that he gives me.

One Year Ago...

One year ago yesterday was the day when Eric asked for my phone number. That was the start of our relationship. We both liked each other but didn't know it. Eric asked for my number planning on asking me on a date that Friday. He never called, but he actually had a pretty good reason. He had told his friend that when he wanted to go on a date he would go with him. His friend found him a date for that Friday.

At first I was very disappointed but decided that if he had asked for my number it meant that he liked me too. So the next Monday I asked him on a date. I was so scared, partly because I wasn't completely sure that he did like me and partly because I was asking him to my sorority barn dance and didn't know if was the sort of thing he would enjoy. I called him that night and got his answering machine. I left a message. Later that night he called me back. I asked him to the Barn Dance and he said yes. I was so excited.

Over the past year year Eric and I have talked about that phone call a lot. Eric will tell you that he got the call while he was at work and wanted to answer right then but couldn't. He could tell from the message that that I was scared when I called him. He knew that I liked him because I sounded so nervous. From that point on he didn't worry about whether or not I liked him because I had called him even though I was scared. He was so excited about my call that he called me as soon he was off of work.

That Friday night was our first, and it was the best first date ever. We spent the night talking and laughing. We were able to be ourselves around each other. We stayed the whole time and didn't want the night to end. At one point he put his arm around me. It was only for a second but I enjoyed it.

When I drove him home I walked him to his door. He gave me a hug and told me that he had fun tonight. I told him that I had fun too. He also asked me if I would like to do this again. I said yes. He will tell you that my yes was very enthusiastic.

One year ago yesterday was the day that changed my life. I didn't know at that time that I was going to marry Eric. All I knew is that I really liked him. I'm so happy that Eric asked for my number and it eventually led to us getting married.

Yesterday was also our 2 month anniversary. These past 2 months have been the best of my life. I love being married.

Engaged!

Just in case you couldn't guess from the title I'm engaged! I'm so very excited for the next couple of months, but I'm even more excited for September 2, 2011, which is when we will be married!

Eric proposed on May 5, 2011 (yes I know that was a while ago). I knew that he was going to propose but I thought he was going to do it the next week for 3 reasons. First, he had been really sick the three days before. I knew that we were going to go on a date that day but I thought that our plans might get changed If he still wasn't feeling well. Second, it was suppose to be group date with two other couples. He kept saying that his sister Brittany didn't want to go on this date by herself and really wanted us to come with her. I really didn't think that he would propose in front of other people. Third since we were going with his sister he kept saying that everything was her idea. He would also say things like, "only if you want to" and "do you think that would be fun". These things threw me off and I was completely surprised by the entire thing.

Eric brought his camera and started taking pictures. After a while he decided that we should set the timer on the camera and get a picture of us and the valley in the back ground. So he went and set the camera up on a rock. Of course he didn't want his camera to fall and break so he started to mess with stuff in his back pack to keep if up. This is when he got the ring out without me noticing. Once it was ready he started to run down towards me. Then he started to get on the ground. I was really confused. We couldn't take a picture together if he was on the ground, and I didn't want to be in the picture by myself. I was going to say so when I realized that we was on one knee and had a box in his hand. He opened the box, smiled and said "Will you marry me?" I, of course, said "Yes!"

Eric said it was fun to watch my face because it went from confusion, to surprise, to pure happiness in about five seconds. I believe him.

After a while he handed me his phone and said do you want to call anyone, I called my parents and told them that I was engaged. My mom shrieked and my dad laughed.

While we hiked down we talked about things like when and where, what we needed to do, wedding traditions that we like, wedding traditions that we didn't like, and stuff like that.

I'm so excited to be married to Eric for time and all eternity. I couldn't ask for a better husband. I just hope I don't go crazy before September 2.

Here are a couple pictures from that day

Just before he proposed and I still had no idea.

I had  to hold the ring in the box because it was to big.

Right after he proposed.



My ring after we got it sized.

The Best Ever!

You might be wondering what I am referring to. Many things actually. I have the best boyfriend ever. The best mom ever! I just had the best birthday ever and I just had the best weekend ever.

For the weekend I went to Lund, NV for my cousins homecoming (she just got home from Uruguay). At first I was incredibly bummed about going. Don't get me wrong I love my cousin, and I missed her a lot, but I really didn't want to spend my birthday traveling in a car and away from my boyfriend. The idea of being away from him on birthday was made even worst when we figured out that it would be the third weekend in a row that we wouldn't be able to see each other. Eventually the whole thing just made me grumpy. My mom noticed and suggested that Eric come with us. That shocked me in a good way and made me feel instantly better. Eric said that he would come and was even excited. All of the sudden by birthday was seeming a lot better. This is why my mom is the best ever!

Eric is amazing. I'm not he hears this enough from me but he is. We drove to Lund in the car so every seat was occupied. I wanted to sit next to him and for him to be comfortable so I decided I would sit in the middle. That would give him more leg room. As I was putting his stuff in the back he got in the car and sat in the middle. I couldn't convince him that he could sit in the more comfortable seat. He sat there all cramped up just so that I would be comfortable. Then later that day after we got to Lund, he said that he had brought a birthday present for me. I knew that he was going to and I assumed that it would be kind of small and I was okay with that.It's that thought that counts right? Well he got me some chocolate covered cinnamon bears, a sudoku puzzle book, and a brand new 8 gig ipod nano. I was completely surprised. I had been wanting a new ipod but couldn't bring myself to spend the money on it. My old one can't hold all my music and the battery doesn't even last a whole day anymore. I am truly lucky to have found such an amazing guy. I am convinced that I have the best boy friend ever.

 My birthday was amazing! I got to spend the entire day with people I love. I felt loved, appreciated, and special. I got a special phone call from my Grandma because she wanted to wish me happy birthday on my actual birthday. I got a supper nice card from my friend in the MTC with 22 reasons of why I am amazing. I was told happy birthday over and over again. It was definitely the best birthday ever.

I got to hear my cousin give an amazing talk about the holy ghost. I built a snowman. I spent time with some family that I haven't seen in a while. Those plus the previously mentioned thing help make the best weekend ever.

Fall Semester vs. Spring Semester

I love the fall semester of school. The spring semester is okay, but fall is always better let me give you some reasons why.

1. The fall semester starts out warm and sunny.
2. There are football games in the fall.
3. The break before the fall semester is longer so I am actually excited to go back to school and learn.
4. I have more ambition in the fall.
5. There is more room in the library. I love studying in the library and in the fall more people will study outside but when it is cold they all come inside the library.

The funny thing about the last thing that I like is that I actually saw someone study outside the other day. It was warmer then it has been but it was still way to good for my taste, and there they were studying on the grass.

Waiting

I don't particularly like that word. Especially when I am the one doing it. You may ask what am I waiting for now. I will tell you. I'm waiting to watch the season premier of White Collar.

White Collar is one of the BEST shows on TV right now. I've been waiting to find out what happened to the characters. One is being framed and the other was shot at the end of the last episode. Finally last night White Collar was back on, but I didn't watch it. Do you know why? It didn't start until Eleven and I'm trying to be good and go to bed early(ish) so that I can wake up for school.

So even though the season premier has already come out I'm still waiting to watch and I will be for a while. Want to know why? I will be in Salt Lake until at least 10 tonight. That means tomorrow at best and even that doesn't look good. For sure I will be able to watch by Friday night.

Normally this wouldn't be so bad, but I'm a fan of White Collar on Facebook and they keep posting stuff about the episode last night. Now call me weird but I really just want to watch the episode to find out.  So Facebook, please stop torturing me.

It's Back

"What's back?" you may ask. Well a lot of things actually.

The first thing that is back is school. I just started my 8th semester of school and by this time next year I will either be in a master's program or I will be preparing to graduate. Weird right.

Part of me is really excited to be back in school. I've always loved school. I love learning. I especially love learning about things that I am already interested in. The other part of me is really sad. I just finished the most amazing break of my life. I spent a lot of time with this guy that I really like. With school back in I have to spend less time with him. Between school, work, and sorority I really don't have a lot of time left over, but we will make it work.

That brings up another thing that is back. The second thing is . . . Sorority! I love Zeta. It is such an amazing program. I've been in it for four years now. I've made some amazing friends, had some incredible experiences and learned things that I will never forget. We had Rush last week and got 7 brand new amazing girls. I'm excited to get to know them. Plus we have some amazing activities planned.

The Third things is yoga. I'm taking a yoga class again. The last time I took one was about a year and a half ago. It's part of the reason I'm excited for school to start again. I love yoga classes. It gives me a chance to exercise. Which I don't get to do a lot of during the school year. The added bonus is that, at least for me, exercise is an amazing stress reliever. I always feel better after I exercise.

The fourth and final thing that is back is me blogging. Do you realize that I haven't blogged in over a month. I was doing so well for a while. So hopefully I will start blogging more. I really do enjoy it.