Be Happy Now

    This last weekend Brian and I went down to South Jordan to spend time with Brian's dad, Craig because Laurie was out of town visiting Brian's brother Mike and their little family. On Sunday in Relief Society this cute young mom with four kids gave the lesson. The lesson was on President Uchtdorf's conference talk "Forget Me Not." Here we were reminded 5 things the Lord doesn't want us to forget.

The one that stuck out to me the most was the "Be Happy Now"
    "Don't forget to be happy NOW!  There's nothing wrong with seeking good, what is wrong is when we put our happiness on hold waiting for that perfect thing that we think will make us happy. Are we failing to notice the blessings that we do have?"
    This mom told an example of what many of us grow up thinking. We start very young and think "If only I can get that bike that Casey has for Christmas, then I'll be happy" and then for Christmas we get the bike and our next thought is, "If only I can have those shoes, then I'll be happy" and then it moves to that awkward time when we're the oldest in the primary and we feel way too old to be there especially when we have to sing in the primary program with all those little kids and we think, "If only I can be in Young Women's now, then I'll be happy." Then the time comes to be in Young Women's and the next thought is the big 16, "I can't wait to be 16, because then I can date and drive and I'll surely be happy then." 16 rolls around, and driving and dating begin and we find that they really aren't all that we thought and so the next thought is, "If only I could graduate from high school now and move on to college, then I'll be happy!" And then we graduate and the next thought is, "If only I could get married now, then I'll be happy." And once your married it's "If only I could have a baby now, and then I'll be happy." And then the pregnancy kicks in and the morning sickness and then we're left thinking, "Man, I can't until this baby comes! Then I won't be sick and I can be happy!" and then comes the baby and all the up-all-nights, the diapers, the fussing and crying and we think "I can't wait for this baby to be out of diapers, then I will be happy!" And then comes another baby.. next thing you know your youngest is starting Junior High and you think, "Where did all the time go?" Well it went while you were waiting to be happy.
    I know this is a long example, but it hit me very strongly because in a few short months our life is about to make another huge change. In a few short months we will be graduating from College and moving to Medical School far away from Utah. A few short months is all we have left of living together in Utah for at least 8-10 more years. One of the thoughts that has been coursing through my mind is how excited I'll be when we return back to Utah to live in 8 or so years. Then I have to remind myself, that is years and years away! I'm living in Utah now. Be happy now! Right now I need to take advantage of being so close to our families and friends.
    So right now, now matter what is going on in my life, I am choosing to be happy right now. Enjoy the journey, not just the destination.

Emily+Joe Engagement Pictures

    Emily and Joe are such a cute couple! They were troopers in the cold snow! Thanks for the great shoot you two! I am very excited for your upcoming marriage!

Disneyland: Let the Memories Begin!

    Over Christmas break Brian and I went with the wonderful Larson's on an adventure to Disneyland! Brian's older brother Curtis came home for the holidays (He's still single ladies!) and Brian's little sister Mandy is going to Mexico to teach English for 4 months and left January 5, so it was our little Christmas from Laurie and Craig and our own little Hoo-RAH!
   What an adventure we had! It was so much fun to be down there with the family. Disneyland really decks out during the holidays and I had never been there before so it was a whole new experience! It was magical all the same! We left on December 20 and returned on Christmas Eve! Thanks Laurie and Craig for a wonderful time together!!

Into the sun!

Now check out these scores.... Hehe :)

These are REAL LIVE REINDEER! Pictured above is Dancer, Comet, Blitizen

    Disney's new World of Color is SO cool! It's a show with dancing lights and colors projected on water across the entire park! It is SO cool!!

It was a very Magical vacation for us!

The Eagle

    As I was driving home to Huntsville, I crossed the spillway and pulled over to the side of the road when I spotted a Bald Eagle. I couldn't help but get out and take a picture or two. Soon many other people stopped to take pictures and see the Eagle.
    It was sitting on a branch pretty close to us and it didn't take long for it to get spooked and take flight. Soon I had people giving me their emails for me to send them the pictures I was taking! There was a dead raccoon below the tree that I'm sure he was guarding, so I'm sure we'll be seeing him again!

    This is why I loved growing up in Huntsville. Seeing sights like this is always worth the drive to me!

Christmas with the Kendells

     The Kendell Klan has a tradition for Christmas Eve where we build Gram Cracker houses and see who can be the most creative with their work. Brian and I returned home from our wonderful trip with the Larsons to Disneyland just in time to quickly throw together our little house. This year ours was a barn! Last year it was castle!

    On Friday December 30th my whole family went to the Bountiful temple together. It was a very special experience for us to be there together with the realization that this is forever!

New Year!

 Our kiss at midnight!

 

Our Top 10 Highlights of 2011

1. Sealed in the Salt Lake Temple
2. Score of 37 on the MCAT
3. Our trips to a beach house in California, Disneyland, and our Caribbean Cruise
4. Moving into the Logan 29th Ward (We LOVE our ward here!)
5. The births of our two new nephews Aiden and Trae
6. All my new equipment with glitter nails, painting, and photography
7. Being so close to family and friends (Next year we won't have that)
8. The blessings, love, and support that has surrounded my cousin Jared's death
9. Acceptance to The Chicago Medical School
10. Celebrating our marriage of 9 months which is equivalent to 43 weeks which is equivalent to 302 days which is equivalent to 7,248 hours which is equivalent to 434,913 minutes which is equivalent to 26,094,838 seconds. But who's counting?!

    2011 was a great year for Brian and me. We really have so much to be grateful for! I am so excited for this upcoming year as so many adventures will unfold! Happy New Year!