I need to learn how to study...

So, with finals upon us, I have found myself doing anything and everything possible to avoid studying. Well, I try to be productive during the day so that I can play in the evenings.

Take this video, for example. I discovered that my Mac can act as a video camera...so my roommates and I decided to carry it around our apartment and make a video of us being...I don't know...ourselves? Anyway, don't expect anything wonderfully deep or meaningful, but sit in wonder and amazement at the number of coats my roommate Brooke has. Sarah is not in this because she was out with her boyfriend, though they are sitting in the kitchen in the last shot. And Emily, well she is just a lot taller than Brooke and I.

So here we are, in all our glory. Other than that, there is no point to this. Enjoy!


P.S. Please pray for me on my finals...otherwise more of these videos might be forthcoming...

One year ago today...

This evening, I was sitting in my apartment and I said to my roommates, "I wish I could go somewhere really cool and exotic and far away so that I could have something interesting to write about in my blog." And then they reminded me that I went to China. While I am not there currently, I decided to look back at my pictures and remember what I was doing one year ago today...

We took our last trip away from our home city of Hefei, way down south to an area called Guilin/Yangshuo. It was the best trip I went on the whole time I was in China. The trip lasted 4 days and on December 8, 2007, I was riding a bamboo raft down the Li River while eating sugar cane, shopping on West Street, riding water buffalo, and holding birds that go fishing. Here are some pics:


I can't believe it's been almost a year already since I got home. I LOVE CHINA!

Oh, and here's a video of those birds.

Elder Wirthlin, you're inspiring me

With Elder Joseph B. Wirthlin's passing, I was brought back to look at and reflect on his last words to us as a church: "Come what may, and love it" (For full article, click here). I find it interesting that this is the time of my year where I usually find myself the most stressed and the most likely to forget or ignore Elder Wirthlin's wisdom. However, now is the time when I need it the most. School is getting stressful (well, it's been stressful, but now more than ever) and I have finals coming up. I am hoping that this semester's GPA will be my best yet but who knows. On top of school, I have to perform 2 days worth of concerts for Women's Chorus, finish getting things ready for one of my best friend's weddings, pack for Arizona, pack up my apartment to move, go Christmas shopping, work a couple of photography jobs, work my regular job, doctor appointments...the list just goes on and on. It's going to be tough, no doubt, but I am so grateful for the simple reminders in Elder Wirthlin's talk that will get me through. He said, "If we approach adversities wisely, our hardest times can be times of greatest growth, which in turn can lead toward times of greatest happiness." I think I need to put this on my binder so that when I am overburdened with homework, I'll see it, and remember the words of an apostle of the Lord to me. To come what may, and LOVE it!

Elder Wirthlin, you were one of my favorite. Thank you for inspiring me to always strive to be better than I am.

Attitude of Gratitude

I have so much to be thankful for this Thanksgiving. The blessings that have come to me and my family this last year have been plentiful and I know that the Lord knows me personally and is aware of my needs. Here's a list of just a few things I am grateful for on this day of thanks:

1. My wonderful family that grew by 2 members this year, Victoria and Ethan. Also the amazing strength with which my parents have led our family through this last year and a half since moving to Utah. It hasn't been easy, but they have kept it together and they do what's right with all their heart and trust the Lord with the rest.
   
2. The gospel and my Savior's atonement. I know that whatever I go through, He has been through it too and can help me along.
   
3. The opportunity I have to go to BYU and combine my spiritual with my temporal knowledge to be able to serve throughout my life.
4. Angels among me that I come in contact with every day, namely my friends who are an amazing strength and support to me.
5. The Holy Ghost, His promptings that keep me making the right decisions to get me where I need to be.
6. My health - yes I pass out frequently, but I am grateful it is nothing more serious than that.
7. Music...everything about music...especially being able to be in the BYU Women's Chorus for my third year. The friendships I have made are amazing and the spirit I feel on a daily basis strengthens me more than I can probably ever know.

Engagements photo shoot :)

One of my best friends, Amy, gave me the wonderful opportunity of taking her engagement pictures. She and Trent are 2 of the neatest people in the world and I wish them the best. I'm so glad I got to spend an afternoon with them doing this shoot.

Photography taking flight...

Some girls in my ward I did a roommate photo shoot for down on Provo Center Street. Such fun girls...loved it!

The glass is half full

I think I have finally figured something out: I like me for me. Does that sound conceited? It's not intended to. I spent so much of my teenage years trying to conform to what people thought I should be like; what they would accept me as. Unfortunately, the only thing I got out of that was a dislike for myself, unhappiness, and stress. But over this last couple of years, and especially weeks, I have discovered who I really am, my goods and my bads, my strengths and my weaknesses, and I can embrace them and let them fuel my actions (maybe because I'm a psych major). I've noticed a big change this semester as I've accepted myself...I'm happier, more confident, and more approachable. So here are a couple of things about my innate self that, unless you have interacted with me in the last several months, you might not know. But this is me, and I'm happy.

I love life and people in it. I can handle conflict situations unless it is a conflict between people. I much prefer play over work...I'm way more likely to work harder at job I'm volunteering for than if I'm getting paid. Large groups energize me but I prefer small group discussion. I like doing short-term things where I can see an end in sight. I have a low tolerance for stress and scatter myself in too many directions. I love hugs and I love little kids (hugs from kids are especially special). I eventually want to work with high school kids because I think most people blow them off too quickly waiting for them to come out of their know-it-all phase when they need help getting through that phase first. I like to smile; sometimes I have a really big smile on my face and my friends think that I have some amazing story for them about a date or something but I don't usually, it's just nice to smile. :)

Haha, ok, I'm done now. Here are some pics from my most recent Women's Chorus concert. We did a Disney princess medley and wore tiaras and chiffon "goddess" shawls for "I Won't Say I'm in Love."

I had a bit of trouble decorating my tiara...not really my thing... :)
And yes, I still don't know how to do eyeliner properly...thank goodness for Jenny!