Draper Temple Celebration

When my sis, Feather, asked if I wanted tix to the Draper Temple Youth Celebration, my first question was, "Is my nephew, Dosh, going to be dancing in it?" When she replied that he was. I answered with a responding, "YES!!" I couldn't pass up the chance to see that. I had no idea what I was in for, but it was an amazing event. I am so glad that I got to attend. They had about 7,000 youth from the Draper District singing and dancing. That was amazing to me. There may have been lots of those kids that were signed up by their parents, like my nephew was, but I was still impressed with their enthusiasm to do so. Dosh's group was about the train coming to Utah. So, he danced and danced his little heart out. Honestly, I had a hard time finding him, but I can only imagine that he was good...especially if he got any of my dancing genes! His group was really fun to watch, as they all were. President Monson was there, along with Elder Eyring and some other General Authorities. It was Elder Eyring's birthday, so the crowd sang to him. That was pretty cool. Probably my favorite part of the evening, next to Dosh's dancing, was when they played the songs from the different branches of Military. They asked people to stand when their song was being played. So, President Monson stood for his and Elder Eyring stood for his, too. On the screen, they had the pictures of them while they were serving in the military and what they look like now. They put several of the other General Authorites pictures up, as well. It was just so amazingly cool.
The whole evening was just wonderful. The message was plain and simple..."Come to the Mountain of the Lord" It made me want to be better about my temple attendance. I left with a renewed spirit and a greater appreciation for the sacrifices made so that I can worship. How blessed are we that we have some many beautiful temples in this valley? Also, I left the event thinking about how great my nephew is. He is such a good kid (who just happens to tower over me) with a kind heart and a desire to be good. I thought about how much I adore and love him. So, maybe I went to the event wanting to see Dosh dance, but I left leaving with a greater love for him, my faith, and the faith of others.

R.I.P Miss Olivia

( This isn't the best pic of her, but I thought it was super cute! And, you can see how much the dog wanted to be friends with her)

I think that I could end up being one of those creepy cat ladies. I wouldn't mind it one bit. I have been wanting a cat for a while now, but I can't have one at my current place of residence (boo!) But, my older sis told me that I could have one at their place. Hooray! So, I went to the Humane Society and did some good old cat shopping. It was fun. I found one that was beautiful(Siamese/Himalayan mix) and that I really liked. I took my sister's dog, Looo (yep, 3 o's) to get his approval on the cat. He loved her and the cat was pretty tolerant of Looo. Hooray again! I was super excited. My niece, Henna, and I decided to name her Olivia. It fit her perfectly. Well, the cat had some infected teeth, so I took her back to the Humane Society to have their on-site vet have a look. He opened her mouth and noticed the infected teeth, but upon further inspection said, "You don't want this cat!" (uh, yea I do, that's why I adopted her) He went on to explain that she had some really bad infection in her mouth called stomachitis (or something like that) and that it was super expensive to treat and that she would eventually starve to death. He just said that it was too bad that I had adopted this cat. When I asked what was going to happen to her, he said, "She will be put down." Oh man. I felt so bad. So, a staff member walked me over to the receiving side, so I could turn Olivia back in and get a refund. All the while, I was feeling so sad for this poor unsuspecting cat. They reassurred me that the procedure was painless and that it would only take a second. But, still.....


I had looked at Olivia one last time and as she looked up at me with her big blue eyes, I lost it! I totally started crying. One of the staff members told that it was ok, but it really wasn't. I gave Miss Olivia one last pet and then they took her away. I got my paperwork together, walked to my car, and then bawled my eyes out. It totally sucked! What a way to end a perfectly good day.

Does this really work??

My 12 -year old nephew asked for a girl's number by using the line, "I lost my number, can I have yours?" And she gave it to him. What a ladies man!

Straight from the Doctor.....

I was given an assessment to fill out on one of my students. This note was on top of it. It came from our school psychologist. It totally made me laugh, even if it wasn't intentional. Now the question is, how are you going to pay attention to me? Flowers? Chocolates? Sending Dwayne or Zac to serenade me? The options really are endless.

p.s I am being a total blogging slacker. I have yet to blog about Race for the Cure, my new cat, and the wonderful Aunt's Day card. I will. I promise.

Reason # 239 Why I Love Springtime!

For the little girls selling lemonade in their front yard. Robert Fulghum (one of my most favorite authors and should be either my grandpa or a cool next door neighbor) said to never pass up a lemonade stand. So, for Mr. Fulghum, I didn't! It made my day and reminded me that life really is just a simple as little kids selling watered down lemonade in their front yard...we just sometimes make it harder!

So, next time you see a lemonade stand, pull over. Not only will the kiddos be thrilled beyond thrilled, but you will drive away just that much happier. I promise.

I never thought that Factory 4 U in West Valley would be a place where I would feel a bond to several people, but I did. Wierd eh? I was there to make some shirts for Race for the Cure. There had to be, at least, 6 other people waiting, as well. I looked around at the shirts being made and noticed that they were all regarding breast cancer. One group had bright pink shirts with two lemons (where breast would be) and it said," Squeeze a lemon, Save a life!" A man standing in front of me wearing a white tank top and a bandana around his head was making a shirt for his mom, that had passed away. Several Hispanic girls lined up behind me and they were making shirts for their mom, too. They are running tomorrow. I chatted with them, while I waited for the others to get their shirts made and then while I waited for mine. I felt like cancer doesn't care what your skin color is, how much money you make, or what religion you are. It just attacks. But, I felt an odd kinship with this line of people. People that I may never have met before and may never see again, but we have all been affected by something so mean and hurtful. And, while I silently waited to get my shirt made, I pondered on the beauty of this moment. There were no angry words, no judgements of lifestyles...just a silent appreciation for a battle fought by so many loved ones. And, it all happened at Factory 4 U!

How is it?

How is it that I have wonderful friends? AND, how is it that my wonderful friends have wonderful moms? I feel so blessed to have great replacement moms in my life. I feel like "Thank You" is so overused, but it's the best I've got! So, Thank you! You may never know the kind of impact you have had on my life. I only hope that Heaven will drench you will showers of blessings.

(This especially goes out to my big sis, Heather, because she is just a beautiful person inside and out!) xoxox