Wednesday Wisdom

This video was released last week (I think?) and I can't stop watching it.  It's fantastic. 
If you've ever been through anything hard, (so... all of us...) this will hit you. 
I can't make it through this without crying, consider that you're warning. 

If the foundation of faith is not embedded in our hearts, 

the power to endure will crumble.

 We never need feel unloved or alone, because we never are.

His love is unfailing.

The talk is an excerpt from Pres. Henry B. Eyring's talk from last April, called Mountains to Climb.  As always, that was such a great Conference, but this was definitely a talk that stood out to me.  It made me really excited when they made a Mormon Messages of it. 

A Beautiful Thing

You know what's great?
Having a new car.

First of all, I LOVE having a stick shift again.
Even in just a little Scion, I feel like a racecar driver, which is the greatest thing.

The night I drove it back from Logan was one of the most glorious things.
I got on the freeway and, being used to it taking 500 years to get to freeway speed, it blew my mind when all of a sudden there I was at 80 miles an hour!
You guys, cruise control. Let's just talk about how great that makes a three-hour drive.
My old car had it, but it (naturally) didn't work.

By the time I hit the canyon, I was in Heaven.
I had accepted my role as the person everyone gets mad at for going so slow up the hills.
But guess what? This little baby just goes up them like it's nothing!
It's not even hard!

The turn signals work.
The stereo turns on and off with. the. car.
I have a clicker thing to lock and unlock with. No more frozen locks!
It gets warm inside before I reach my destination.

The gas mileage. Oh, the gas mileage.
On average, around town type of driving, my Montero got about 10 miles per gallon.
(yes, I realize how terrible that is.)
It used to take me almost a full tank of gas to get to my parents' house.
Well the trip with this one didn't even take half a tank. It's been a week and I still haven't hit the quarter mark.

In case you can't tell, my old car was... special.

I'm in love!

Now, we're still stuck in the predicament of a name for my car.
I've spent a week with her now, and these are the few I've narrowed it down to.
Vote! What do we think?

Viola - you know, from She's the Man and Twelth Night

Nike - the Greek goddess of victory

Hera - queen of the heavens, wife of Zeus

Sasha - i.e. 'Sasha the Scion' alliteration is always good...

This isn't a conclusive list, so if you have other ideas shoot them my way!

Growing Up

I'm sitting in a gym in Denver, waiting for a meet to start.

Yesterday came with a strange realization.
I'm like, a real grown-up now.
(Did you have to read that twice? Because I sure did.)

Yesterday, I bought a car.
Would you like to meet her?

Isn't she pretty? 

Naturally, she had to be Aggie-fied... 

Now all she needs is a name!

I can't imagine having to name a child, where the name actually matters and stuff. 

Such a stressful decision! 

Let me know if you have any suggestions please!

I've had her since Monday, but went and signed my life away at the credit union yesterday. 

Afterward, I booked it to the parking lot where we were meeting to leave for the airport. 

I went from buying a car to going on another "business trip."

(because supposedly this is work, but it's also the greatest thing ever.)

Only real grown-ups do those sort of things, right? 

When did that happen?

The scary (err... exciting?) thing is all the things that must be coming up next. 

A Cock-Eyed Optimist

This song pretty much sums up how I feel about this life.


The way I see it, the energy it takes to be miserable and negative isn't worth it.

I'm the one who looks at a situation and sees how it can improve.
I look at the positive side of things, see what I can learn and how I can grow from it.
Generally, I see people and see the good they have to offer.

I'm not saying I'm perfect in that regard, not by any means.
I'm just as quick to talk about someone or vent my frustrations about them,
(though rarely to their face because that terrifies me)
But overall, I like people.
It takes a lot for me to really not like them.

Some people may call it naive or ignorant, but oh well.
Life is better when you're happy and optimistic, I promise.

Two Neuroses Knowing that they are a Perfect Match

"You make a million decisions that mean nothing and then one day
you order take-out and it changes your life."

25 years ago today, two people made a decision. 

At the time, they had no idea what they were getting themselves into. 

For all they knew, it was going to be a regular Saturday night. 

These two people left that night for a dance in this building. 

These two people should have known each other already. 

They knew the same people and were a part of the same groups. 

Yet, for some reason, their paths had never crossed. 

Within just a few hours, these people's lives, and the lives of so many others were changed. 

25 years ago today, these two met. 

I go back and forth between if I believe in the idea of soul mates/destiny/etc. 

I know life isn't like the stories we see in movies.
Sure, there is probably more than one person I could be ok spending forever with,
(if that's the case though, you'd think I'd have found one... haha)

But what if one of them hadn't gone to this dance? 

What if she showed up an hour later? 

What if he'd left before they talked?

One thing's for sure, these three people wouldn't be around. 

It makes me wonder. 

With all of the tiny decisions I make every day, what effect will they have later on? 

How are all these pieces fitting together to lead me to my Mr. Right? 

What if I make the wrong decisions?

I know my parents' marriage isn't perfect. 

But I don't know anyone whose is. 

They've been through a lot and have been able to make it work. 

I'm so grateful they each made the choice to go that dance 25 years ago. 

They are my idols, my rocks, my everything. 

Technically, I wouldn't be here without them, but really, I wouldn't be who I am without them.
I want to be like them when I grow up and look forward to them helping me through the phases of life they've already conquered. 

Wednesday Wisdom

I happened upon this on Pinterest the other day, and I really, really loved it.
I mean, who doesn't love some Peanuts in their life right? But Snoopy really has it all figured out.

(source)

Boys vs. Girls

There are a few universal truths in this life.
One of them being that dating is pretty miserable.
Now, I'm not claiming to be a pro, by any means.
I have very minimal experience, and if I'm being completely honest, it terrifies me.

Each gender spends so much time complaining about the gender they may be pursuing, but NONE OF US have it right.
Girls are crazy, guys are stupid.
That's all there is to it.

Here's the thing about us women.
We overthink, overreact and over analyze.
After any interaction with a guy we're interested in - be it in person, on the phone, over text or Facebook chat - we will sit there (probably call our best friend) and go over every. excruciating. detail. trying to decide

but what does this MEAN??

It's just how we work. 

I can't tell you why we do it.
I wish I could explain to you why our brains/hearts work this way.

I can tell you that it makes us frustrated.

I can tell you it makes us crazy. 

We hate that we do it.

But not so fast, because it's not like you people aren't at fault too.

While women think way too much, men don't think enough about it. 

They don't realize how much every little thing means. 

Everything you say, everything you do, and the ways in which you do or say it, mean something to us. 

It's just the way it is. 

And for the love, if you're interested at all, just ask a girl on a date. 

A date is not a commitment to marriage. 

A date doesn't necessarily have to develop into anything. 

They are simply opportunities to have fun. Get to know people. Enjoy each other. 

Girls. 

Don't lead these poor suckers on. 

If you're not interested, don't act it. 

Find the balance between friendly and flirty.

Boys, if we are making a consistent effort - finding excuses to talk to you, invite you to do things, touch you or play with our hair when we're around you?
Odds are we're interested.
Do something about it. 

My biggest thing is that I don't want to be THAT girl.

That girl who throws herself at every guy. 

That girl who will do anything with any guy who shows up.

I'm picky and I plan to stay that way. 

Looking and acting ridiculous isn't worth it to me. 

The way I see it, the guy I'm going to end up with will show up no matter what. 

You have to try, but it doesn't have to be difficult. 

Ok, vent over. 

I'm curious to hear your thoughts though!