We've been married one whole month!

Things have been so busy for us lately. I will tell all the details of the wedding in another post (we don't have internet so I don't know when that will be). Life has just been so much fun lately! The wedding was so much fun and everything I hoped it would be and more! The sealing was just amazing and the luncheon, reception, and later Sonora reception all turned out perfectly. It is so much fun being married to my best friend. Yesterday we celebrated our one month mark. I made Spencer a sign that said "Happy One Month...I love you!" and then we ate pizza and watched a movie. One of my favorite things about being married is I go to bed earlier and I wake up earlier. I'm much more productive and I don't eat out as much! We spent a week in St. George on our honeymoon and then we went snowmobiling on Christmas Eve. We took another trip to Sonora for our reception there, and then came back a week before work and school started to get everything situated and together.

We love our house/basement. It is just perfect! It is two bedrooms and plenty of space for the both of us. With all of our gift cards we got we went shopping for all of the things we didn't get as gifts. It took us at least 4 days to shop, unpack, clean, and de-box all the empty boxes we had! I bet Spencer took 6-8 loads out to the garbage in just four days! It was so much fun unpacking everything together and deciding which things to use, where to put things, how to decorate this and that, etc. Once we had all of THAT done, we still had to register Spencer for his classes and get me ready for work. Still a lot more left to be done, but it has all worked out!

We have been so blessed lately. Spencer was able to get a pell grant for school, which helps out SO much! Spencer is loving UVU and all of his classes seem to be very enjoyable for him. He is working 20 hours a week in the food preparation department. He is becoming an expert chef and has been very excited to try out new recipes for our meals at home. Hey, I'm not complaining! As for me, I have been extremely busy with my work. I quit Applebee's so I could spend more time at home and also to pick up some extra hours at Timpanogos Elementary in Provo. Instead of 20 I know have 30 hours (which feels more like 40). I am teaching all the physical education classes to grades k-4, teaching arts and crafts and health science twice a week for the 4H after school program, and I also teach reading, writing, and math everyday after school for an hour to the 6th graders. It is a lot of work but I'm learning a lot! On top of that I've been getting ready and preparing myself to teach 9 (nine) R.A.D.kids classes (Personal Empowerment Safety Education). I teach all the 1st and 3rd graders this class at my school during the week. It is an excellent class and the kids really enjoy it! I'm getting better everyday at teaching but it's also a challenge and I learn something new everyday. I love my students and I love teaching elementary. My professor at BYU said I was an elementary teacher but I never believed her until I got this job. If only it paid a little bit more and was more full time then I would never leave! It is so fulfilling knowing that I'm teaching skills and behaviors that will influence and help their lives forever. I really enjoy the faculty here and I feel like I'm actually getting to know people better.

As for our ward, we love it. Everyone has been so friendly and nice. I already received a calling: Relief Society chorister. Apparently they think I have a good voice, which means I have musical talent. I suppose I have some practice. It will be good for me to get into music again. I have kind of not put very much focus on that talent/hobby of mine for a while now. Spencer is still anxiously waiting to hear what HIS calling will be. Hmmmm.

Last weekend we went up to Richmond, Utah for some good grandparent quality time, a few games of RISK, and we also went shooting up in the mountains. We took some old pickle jars with two year old pickles and blasted them! I shot a 22, and a rifle. It was so cool! Spencer and his brothers are really good friends and it's so nice seeing them get along. I love his family and I'm so excited to get to know them even better. They are all really fun to be around and I feel so welcomed and at home.

It is so neat being married. I really do enjoy it, and Spencer helps me want to be a better person. I love that I married in the temple and have those blessings forever. We went back to the temple for the first time last weekend and it really helped strengthen our relationship. I encourage all of you to go back regularly if you can!

Up next...wedding, honeymoon, California reception, and anything else in between.

Adios!

10 more days!

Ahhh I'm so excited. I finished registering today, went tanning for the second time (free!), and finally cleaned up the basement where I live (folks--it was a disaster). I don't know about you, but when I get super busy with things my room is the last priority. It should be the first, but no one is expecting my room to be clean like they are expecting me to show up to work everyday. Make sense? Spencer will finish his last final tomorrow and then he'll be all mine on Friday for the rest of my life! Yes! I am so excited I can't stand it. The only bummer thing is is I have to work Mon-Wed next week. All I will be thinking about is getting married...but I'm sure it will still be a fun week teaching P.E. I think we'll do a lesson on jumprope. The music teacher said the kids need to work on it. I have lunch detention duty the last hour of school and I made the detention kids untangle all my jumpropes today. They were in a big ball so it really helped. Thanks kids!

My family comes into town on Thursday, and I have a girlfriend bridal shower next Wed. night...which I'm SO EXCITED ABOUT! It's going to be so awesome because my best friends are throwing it for me. My maid of honor is Chelsea Phillips and my bridesmaids are Laura Brown (sis-in-law), Katie Brown (sis-in-law), Christie Bagley (future sis-in-law), and Jamie Relei (lifetime best friend). I wish I could have had more, but oh well. I will have some very close friends with me at the sealing that I have a special surprise for. If any of you that are reading this did NOT get an announcement please let me know. I will e-mail you a copy of it so you have it at least! Well I guess it's time for bed. Until next time!

13 more days!

13 days left and we're ready to roll! Luckily Spencer's mom is taking over the food portion of the reception. She is so great and so helpful! We are moving our stuff into our new apartment this weekend! I'm so excited. I am a little sad moving from Salt Lake and the home I've been living in for almost a year now. Change is always a little weird for me. But it's definitely going to be so fun to start a family of my own and not live with roommates anymore! I died my hair brown but it wasn't on purpose. I like the color but I really want to put more blonde in it for the wedding. I can't believe that I'll be married by next Saturday. The time has gone so incredibly fast I can't believe it! Spencer made his last trip up to Logan last night. I'm really glad because that canyon is so scary to drive in during the winter. I know because I used to drive through it when my brother Dustin lived in Logan a few years ago. GOOD NEWS! Spencer is going to school at Utah Valley University now. So much closer to American Fork and he won't have to commute to Salt Lake everyday. I'm so excited for him to be going to a University instead of a community college just so he won't have to worry about transferring later on. We have a lot of furniture to start things off for us from his parents house and his grandparents house. It's not necessarily matching furniture, but hey, we'll take what we can get. Last night I had another wedding shower given by the Bagley family. It was a grocery shower so we were given lots of food and cool recipes to start things off (which I'm sure will be really nice since when we get back from our honeymoon and the Sonora reception we won't have very much food).

I took my bridal pictures last week and they turned out really nice! It was SO COLD though. I felt like my hands were going to fall off from frost bite. I'm NOT looking forward to taking pictures on my wedding day. Hopefully it will be a little warmer. Spencer's mom gave me some white long gloves to wear so hopefully that will help! Hmmm what else...I get my endowment next Thursday! I'm so excited! My family will be flying out that day and they'll get to see me go through the temple. I will be receiving my endowment at the Salt Lake Temple and then the Oquirrh Mountain temple is where we're getting married. This is my last week as the enrichment counselor. I wonder what our new ward will be like in American Fork??

Well that's the latest update for now. Not sure if I'll post until after the wedding! Hope to see you all there!!

Thanksgiving!!!

There are only 18 days left until I'm officially Mrs. Bagley. Weird! I will have to change my name at school. But I'm soooo excited! I can't wait until all the wedding planning and long distance relationship stuff is over. We found a cute little 2 bedroom basement apt. in American Fork. As of right now that is where we will be living! We are really so excited and can't wait to move all our stuff in. I have been so blessed lately with a lot of things that I am grateful for.

#1: I'm getting married. That is a HUGE blessing in itself. I don't have to be alone anymore and I have a best friend to spend all my time with.
#2: I receive my endowments in like 16 days! I've been so anxious to do this lately. What a wonderful experience it will be. And I get to share this with my whole family! Spencer's brother Brandon who is going on a mission is going to get his the same day, too. We'll be doing it at the Salt Lake Temple on the 17th.
#3: I was able to see my family over Thanksgiving break. I really needed that time with my mom to connect with her about wedding plans. Everyone in my family was able to meet Spencer and get to know him better. He played with my nieces and nephew the ENTIRE time and they just ADORE him! We were able to visit a lot of his mission families and even spend some time with his mission president. He was a fantastic missionary...The Gonzalez's fell in love with him and it was really neat seeing how many people Spencer influenced while on his mission. I am jealous he had that opportunity. Being a missionary is a once in a life time opportunity! I hope to serve someday when we're older :)
#4: I have two great jobs that will help us stay on our feet. I enjoy them too, which is hard to come by!
#5: It's Christmas season and we'll get 2 and a half weeks off just to BE TOGETHER!!!
#6: I will have 3 bridal showers by the time I'm married. I feel SO INCREDIBLY BLESSED to have such a wonderful new extended family, and also to my best friends who are throwing me a shower that I know is going to be so much fun and full of LOTS of surprises haha.

I'm sure there is much, much more, but that is what I can come up with for now. I'm so grateful Spencer and I are getting married in the temple. What a blessing it is that we made it. It has not been easy, but it is TOTALLY WORTH it!!!

SO our Thanksgiving trip was such a blast. We left on Wednesday morning at 9am and drove straight through to Sonora. We only stopped twice for gas. It only cost $60 for gas the way there. Dirt cheap! We listened to a book on CD Where the Red Fern Grows. It is such a great book! Spencer joked around telling my family I cried the whole time. BUT I didn't cry at all. It was sad, but like not that sad. I cried the first time I read the book, but this time I already knew what was going to happen. Haha. It was so fun driving to CA with him. We had the best time and had some great conversations!

When we got into town we first stopped by my mom and Smokey's house to say hello. IT was really great seeing her and I really wish she knew Spencer better but hey it is a start. He and Smokey get along really great because Spencer taught him the gospel while he was on his mission. Spencer served for a total of 10 and a half months in Sonora. He got to know my brother Dustin really well because he was the ward mission leader. They are like bosom buddies already. Same senses of humor and similar sarcasm (which I don't always like haha). It's really neat to see Spencer connect so well with my family. That night we slept at my brother's house and the next morning awoke early to help set up for Thanksgiving. My whole mom's side of the family was there. We have the BEST food and I especially love the or derves (however you spell that). I'm a big fan of pickles and olives :) I was able to spend a lot of time discussing the Sonora reception with my aunts who are helping out a lot. Spencer played with my niece Kate like ALL DAY. It was really fun!! After the crowd died down we went for a drive down this old road called Wards Ferry. Spencer used to drive on this road on his way to Groveland where he would serve every Thursday on his mission. The road leads to Tuolumne river and also to a huge bridge that has graffiti ALL OVER IT! Pictures to follow. We rented Where the Red Fern Grows but fell asleep due to sheer exhaustion. The next morning we went on that same road up to Groveland and drove around for a while. We ate some really good pizza and attempted to visit some families but no one was home. Bummer! It was fun for me too because I grew up around that area and when I was a little girl I would play little league baseball and volleyball at the schools and fields up there. It's neat that we both have such great memories of Sonora :) On our way back I visited my mother and Spencer hung out with Smokey. We went through some old memory books and I realized just how much stuff I had left at my mom's house. ALL my childhood memories are there. I need to take it all and bring it to my NEW house. I'm sure I'll have to go through some of it and throw it away since we just don't have the space for it all. My mom and I talked wedding stuff for about 3 hours and it was really great!

That night we visited a family Spencer loves (The Glaves) in Ponderosa Hills. They were Spencer's biggest fan on the mission. They grew to love each other and they even went to his farewell in Fresno. I'm so lucky to be marrying someone who is such a great missionary! That night we hung out with my brother and sister-in-law and watched Mall Cop which is SUCH A FUNNY MOVIE! We all talked and laughed and before we knew it, it was time for bed. The next morning was our turn to say goodbye and get back on the long LONG LONG LONG LONG LONG road back to UTAH. You'll know why it was long in just a minute.

I hadn't seen my dad at all yet so we made sure to visit him. We met him at an IHOP in Ceres where Spencer also spent four months on his mission. It was so wonderful seeing my dad. He is getting over a sickness that has lasted way too long. I'm grateful he is starting to heal up because we were all getting very worried. After we visited my dad we went and visited some families Spencer knew really well on his mission. The Marshall's are two very old nice and lovely people that Spencer spent some time getting to know. We also met Sister Cash, a lady who Spencer helped to reactivate and who went to the temple to receive her endowments. She is such a fun, loving, talented woman. She takes care of her mom and is remodeling her entire house. I hope she is able to come to the reception. After her visit we made our way down to Fresno where we had a SPECIAL treat of visiting Chelsea and Jed and her family. We immediately played Catch Phrase and the boys killed us. They fed us a nice leftover Thanksgiving meal and then we were on our merry way. Our last and final visit was to President and Sister Gonzales's home (the Fresno mission President). They were so excited to hear our story of how we met. Spencer was SURE to make sure that President knew we did not have interest in each other on his mission. I met Spencer one time over Christmas break and didn't think anything of it. It wasn't until AFTER he got home that we went on a date. And that's only because my brother Dustin made him promise to call me. Haha.

The visit with his mission President was nothing less than fulfilling and uplifting. They showed us pictures, talked about mission opportunities and growth, and the President even sang us the LUCY IS JUICY song on the piano. It was so awesome I can't believe how much fun they are. They loved Spencer and told me he was such an amazing missionary. By the time we left it was 9pm and we still had a 7 hour drive to St. George where we were staying at his grandparent's house for the night. Little did we know we took a wrong way and it ended up taking over 9 hours to get there. Instead of following the I-15 we took the 195 through DEATH VALLEY. I was so confused as to WHY no one was on the road to LAS VEGAS. The directions from Google MAPS were totally wrong! We didn't arrive in St. George until 6:30a.m! We were so exhausted. Spencer kept hitting himself to stay awake. He asked if I wanted to drive but I was too tired so he had to pull over. I'm so grateful we didn't get into a wreck!! Spencer had never seen the lights at Vegas. He was like "are those the lights?" and I said "you'll KNOW when you see Las Vegas lights." I was right. They are gorgeous! The drive through AZ to St. George was so long. I DO love Southern Utah though. It is such a magical place and I have so many memories down there. We are staying in St. George for our honeymoon so we got some great ideas of things we want to do while we're there.

We got 5 hours sleep and then made our way to Salt Lake which took about 4 hours. By the time we got home we were so exhausted and hungry! Spencer's mom fed us some leftover turkey and stuffing and it was definitely to both of our liking. We had a wonderful trip. I forgot to mention that we had some really great conversations in the car. It's nice to know I'm marrying someone who I connect with really well and we can understand one another. Life is going to be so wonderful and I'm so excited to face the new adventures and challenges!

Marriage here we come!

This is for you mom...

Missionary Moments

I am in need of a good missionary moment. I haven't had one for a while. I work around so many people that aren't LDS. I think mostly I am a missionary by my good example. But sometimes I wonder if that is enough. Do any of you have suggestions on how to be a better missionary when you work with people? Anything will help!

Relief Society

I feel so blessed to be the enrichment counselor in my ward. When I first received the calling I was shocked because I thought I would be moving up to Logan. When I realized I needed to stay in Salt Lake, it all made sense to me. The Lord really is mindful of our needs. I think I will really need this calling this semester. Even though I'm going to be super busy with working two jobs, planning two wedding receptions, and being engaged, I know the Lord will help me to make time for it. I already have noticed blessings come into my life. One, I have become better friends with the sisters in my ward. Two, by serving others I become stronger and feel like I'm actually making a big difference. Relief Society really is such an inspired program. I am going to recommit myself today to work harder and be more dilligent in my calling. Spencer is now in my singles ward (well almost but he will be) so that will make it easier to go to my ward every Sunday for church. I love this gospel! I'm so excited to learn more and be taught by the Savior each day. I love him so much!

Life is just so good!

Life is so good and I'm having so much fun. I love being engaged! It's such a different experience for me this time. Spencer and I are busy busy busy getting wedding plans going! We only see each other like 2-3 days a week and when we do we're wedding planning. We are planning on getting married at 1pm on the 19th of December. We'll have a small luncheon afterwards and then a reception that night. We'll spend Christmas with the Bagley family snowmobiling at their family cabin up at Monte Cristo and then a couple days later we'll be in California for the Sonora reception!

Spencer and I went registering on Tuesday and it got me really excited to have our own things and our own lives together. I feel so blessed to be marrying him in the temple. It makes everything so much more meaningful and eternal for me. I am so excited to go through the temple and be sealed for ever to my best friend! Such a wonderful blessing to have in our lives. Anyway, we are still deciding where to live. We have a few options. Provo, Salt Lake, Ogden, and Logan. We could live for free in Ogden and Logan due to family houses that aren't being used right now. The only down side is that I have my two jobs in Salt Lake and Provo. Right now I am working hard to find a job in Logan or Ogden area. A full time teaching job that is. I love my job at Timpanogos Elementary, but it is only part time. I still am working at Applebee's at night. So lots of options to think about! I know if we are prayerful everything will work out :)

I decided to recieve my endowment in the Salt Lake Temple. It's so neat because my two brothers and their wives will be able to come. My mom, Travis, and I will all be married within 6 months of each other. Isn't that so weird (and cool?!). I never knew what the Lord had in mind for me when I moved up to Murray in January. He has blessed me so much (tremendously)...I have always had a job, a nice place to live, and now he has blessed me with the wonderful opportunity of marriage. I am so anxious to see what marriage will be like. Most people say it's just like dating except now you live together. I'm sure it will be so fun and sometimes hard just like life always is. It's so nice to know that I am marrying the right person at the right time and in the right place. I love Spencer and I am so lucky! His family is so amazing too. They are all active memers of the church and have such a great spirit about them. I have always felt so comfortable around them. It will be neat to have 3 new brothers and 1 new sister!

So yeah...life is so good right now. I'm so excited for December...but I need to remember to "find joy in the journey...now." Just like President Monson says. There is so much to do, but if I take things one day at a time I know I'll be just fine. How do you folks like this new weather? It's kind of fun...but I don't look forward to it getting much colder. Spencer LOVES THE COLD and is so excited for snowboarding and snowmobiling. I'm more of a summer/fall kind of girl, but the winter definitely has its benefits. Our honeymoon is going to be in St. George, Utah. Lots of different things we can do there every day like hiking, snowboarding, and we might take a drive to the grand canyon or Vegas!

On a side note I was able to see David Archuleta last night!!!!!! He and two of his friends, and later his mom, came into Applebee's. As soon as I saw him I said "Cody, you HAVE to seat him in my section! I was so nervous at first but they were really cool and easy to talk to. I guess he has a new CD coming out next week. I haven't kept too close of tabs on him since he was on American Idol, but I think he has such an amazing voice. I love it when I see famous people because it doesn't happen very often!

I'll try and blog more often...Until next time, ciao!

Love, Julie Lorinda

ENGAGED!!!

Spencer Bagley and I are getting married December 19, 2009 in the Oquirrh Mountain Utah Temple. We are so happy and so in love! He is my best friend and I couldn't ask for anyone more perfect for me. He proposed where we had our first date (Ensign Peak) on September 21st. We will be having a reception in West Jordan and an open house in Sonora a week later. Here is a picture we are probably going to use for our announcement :) Hurray for us!!

JOB HUNTING COMPLETE!

After months and months of seeking for a teaching job, I finally succeeded! OK, so I did get three offers (2 in AZ and 1 in Duschesne), but I didn't really want to move--for a few different reasons. However, today I interviewed at Timpanogos Elementary School in Provo, Utah and I felt like it went pretty well, but uncertain still. I received a call a few hours later and they offered me the position! I said I would gladly accept. It's only about 14 hours a week (M-Th) but I might also have the opportunity to teach some 5th-6th grade choir classes if they let me. I am the physical education specialist for grades k-4. How fun! Now I just need to remember what I learned during my elementary unit of my major. I remember it being a lot of fun and there are so many different ways to teach physical activity to kids that age. I'm so excited!

It is just the perfect job for me.I can still work at Applebee's at night and on the weekends, plus earn some money during the day! I knew the Lord was looking out for me. Thank you! Here is the website if you want to take a look at the school. http://www.timpanogos.provo.edu/my-home/home.htm

Anyone alive out there?

So I've been kind of slacking lately updating this thing. I'm so excited for this semester! I had a great summer and I am sad to see it go...although it is still pretty warm here in Utah.

Summer in Preview

Started dating Spencer Bagley in April: Me, Spencer, and his two brothers at Monte Cristo where they have a cabin. They grew up going here every year for dirt biking and snow mobiling.

A hike we went on up past Richmond, Utah. It is called High Creek. So pretty!

Went on lots of hikes: Lake Blanche trail up Little Cottonwood Canyon. Spencer and I love to do things outdoors! Come winter we'll be snowmobiling and (unfortunately) snowboarding (which I'm terrible at!). Haha.

I went home, visited family, and saw Katelyn and Trevor tie the knot!

Above: my nieces Lily and Kate. They are my world! Below, Chelsea and Jed. Haven't seen them all summer :( They live in Colorado until January. I miss my best friends!

Trevor looking so happy. And that old guy in the back is just awesome.

My beautiful mother and best friend got married!: I was her maid of honor. The ceremony took place in the Sonora chapel by our Bishop. She is so happy and I'm so glad she took this important step in her life. I love you mom!

We went to the Stadium of Fire in Provo: Jonas Brothers and SheDaisy performed. It was really an awesome show!

Did a week of EFY Counseling: This is a picture of me and my counselor, Kelson with some of our group members. They were doing a service project.

This is something I've always had a goal of doing some time in my life. I loved it! The girls in Tacoma, Washington are just amazing!


My grandmother passed away: At the age 0f 88. This woman is incredible. Her funeral was beautiful. She lived a long, serviceable, and amazing life. I miss her.

I turned 24: We spent a day at Raging Waters park and then had a lovely dinner at the Bagley home with cake and a birthday balloon that flew out of my car on the way home :(

Coached a week at the BYU Volleyball Camp: I don't have any pictures of this! I lost my camera unfortunately. It was really neat getting back into the gym and coaching again. I had a great group of 11-12 year old girls.

Began teaching clarinet lessons: Well almost. I did one lesson with a 10 year old but then they decided to put them off for a while because of their busy schedule. Hopefully it will pick up again soon!

Continued working at Applebee's: Again, no pictures. You know what it's like though. Things are going great there! I'm a trainer and got a raise...so go me. haha

I have a job interview today in Provo at Timpanogos Elementary. Hopefully it will work out!
My brother Travis is getting married to Katie Novak on September 19th! They are just perfect for each other. They've been together 2 years! I hope you are all doing very well. I enjoy reading all your fun blog posts. I'm hoping to become more skilled at this blogging thing. Keep in touch and comment please!

This and That

So much has happened over the past month. I don't even know where to start! My mama got married on July 27th to Smokey Watson. They've been together for almost 9 years now, so it was about time! They were married in the Sonora Chapel and will live happily ever after :) I was privileged to be my mother's maid of honor. I never had this honor before and I loved it! I was able to give a toast and I'm so thankful to have a mom that is so wonderful and is such a great example to me. Spencer and I drove out there to California. Spencer and I met because he served a mission in my home ward (Sonora). When he got off his mission we went on a "blind date" in Utah that was pre-determined as "destiny" by my older brother Dustin (who set us up). Anyway, we were able to go back to CA and visit his mission and many of the people that he taught and became close with as a missionary.

I will post some more pictures of Stadium of Fire, a weekend at a cabin in Ogden, and much, much more as I get more pics from my experience as an efy counselor and volleyball coach. Life is going well! I hope you are all happy and safe, and God bless!

Rescue Mission-Salt Lake

Late last night I decided I wanted to do some service around the community. I decided to look on line and I found this website: http://www.rescuesaltlake.org/. It is called Rescue Mission, a non-profit organization which provides food and shelter for the homeless. My roommate Stacey and I went at 5:45 this morning to volunteer with breakfast in the kitchen. We accidentally first arrived at the women's shelter. A woman answered the door and I said we were there to serve breakfast. She said "at 6 o'clock in the morning?" We then found out we had the wrong location. It all worked out though. We were a little nervous at first but once we got inside the actual building we were welcomed and put to work. We were the only volunteers that morning. I met a lot of really nice people who spend everyday volunteering to help the homeless. As we served the men the oatmeal I was welcomed with many smiles and "thank yous." I felt very blessed and privileged to be there and meet those people. They taught me a lot today that you can be happy and kind, no matter what your circumstances. It reminds me of the quote that says "You are a child of God with great strength. You have the ability to choose righteousness and happiness no matter what the circumstance." After we served breakfast they allowed us to eat with them. Stacey and I then left and told each other how blessed we are in our lives. We have been given so much and I know that I take it for granted all the time. I am grateful for opportunities to serve because it takes me away from my own life and allows me to draw closer to others, which in turn draws me closer to the Lord. We decided to go back once a week and help out. I'm excited!

Sonora Trip

After 6 long months of not being able to see my family, I was able to go for a visit to California to see my family and some close friends get hitched. I was FINALLY caught up on my finances so I could purchase a plane ticket. Hurray! I had a WONDERFUL time--one of the best trips home that I've had in a really long time. Here is an excerpt from my journal about the trip home:


So I just had the BEST time while I was in SONORA! I was so blessed to be with my family for so long. I was able to spend some quality time with my nieces and nephew and pretty much everyone I care about the most! I was able to see/visit the following individuals: my mom, smokey, dustin, laura, the kids, nat, jamie, grandma and grandpa, dad, danny, floyd, ali price, all the people from church, judy, eric, and grandma kimball. I played and laughed and loved every minute I was with Kate and Lily. Bryan and I even had so much fun talking at night, playing chess, and just hanging out and watching movies during the day. He is such a neat little guy. Katsie is just adorable and so much fun to talk to. Lily is like my best friend and pretty much the sweetest girl ever. I crashed a date and went to the movies and saw Star Trek with Dustin and Laura, as well as going to dinner with my dad at Applebee's. Oh! And guess what? Travis and Katie are getting marrried! They are getting married September 19th in the Portland Temple :) The ring is just beautiful!

My mom and I had a special day together. We drove up to Strawberry where we ordered some sandwiches and walked down to a beautiful river. We ate lunch, talked, laughed, played pool, and took some cool pictures. I went to Pinecrest with Laura and the kids. That lake is just beautiful. On Friday I had the opportunity to see Trevor and Katelyn get married :) They looked so great together! I was able to see Chelsea, Jed, Ashley, and Jes. I went to the luncheon as well and then I stayed the night at Danny (my cousin's) house. He is so grown up now! I'm amazed at how focused he is with school and work and everything else. I spent a couple hours with my grandparents and that was REALLY fun. I just love them. We talked, watched the horse races on tv, ate quiznos, and then I was on my merry way. My dad and I had a good time together. We listened to some SWEET music. He let me borrow his car to drive to Oakland. I had to spend so much money in order to use the blue tooth freakin' head set.

Jamie Relei and I got together and went shopping at ROSS. She's living in San Diego now and is going to start a new life :) We had fun girl time and I was able to visit with her and her family for a few hours.

I was able to spend some great quality time visiting my grandmother Kimball at the nursing facility she is staying at now. I went and bought her a pink rose, a plant, and some yummy ice cream while we laughed and talked, and just had so much fun being together (perhaphs for the last time). I asked her what her greatest accomplishment in her life was-aside from having 5 girls-she said "getting her master's degree." I hope to accomplish that same goal and be like my grandma. I just held her hand, laughed and talked. I told her how much I loved her and gave her my bracelet. When I left she said "I love you very, very much."

I was able to visit with Aunt Nat at the Diamonback grill. We ate SO MUCH FOOD and felt sick afterward but I had a lot of fun :) I just love her. She's so amazing and wonderful to be with. She has such a neat life and a strong testimony of GOD. I wish I could be more like Aunt Nat. I also saw my Aunt Sandy for a little while at Avalon with grandma. I was able to see Ali LaVanway and visit with her two kids and Ayon, her husband. You should ask me about the crazy neighbor next door. Good times.

So that pretty much sums up my trip. It was a great time and I LOVE LOVE LOVE CALIFORNIA!!!

California!!!!!!!!!!!

Going to California to

See my nieces and nephew

Spend time with my mom and dad (family)

Attend Trevor and Katelyn's wedding

Spend time with grandparents

See my dad

Visit friends

And go fishing