Christmas Spirit

To end this blogging adventure (for class at least), I thought I'd share a video that combines two of my favorite things: Christmas and Penguins.

Time to Fly

In just a few hours I will be headed to the airport. I get to go spend a week in California; partying it up with Shamu and Mickey Mouse. It's the perfect stress reliever before finals begin.

I saw this video awhile ago, but since I am about to get on an airplane, I figured it was appropriate for today's blog post.

 Next time I fly, I wish it could be on this airplane heading to New Zealand.

Thanksgiving

I cannot believe that tomorrow is Thanksgiving. I feel like it just creeped its way here this year. I am grateful for so many things. I am truly blessed to be where I am today. There is a lot of Christmas music for the season, but not a whole lot for Thanksgiving. 

So enjoy this wonderful song from Josh Groban: 

Riverwoods Christmas Lights

Okay, so I know there are a lot of people who wait for anything Christmas related until after Thanksgiving. But I am not one of those people. To help bring in the spirit of Christmas my friend and I went to the Riverwoods shopping center this weekend where they did a show and then turned on all the Christmas lights for the first time. Santa even made an appearance. There were a couple of groups and bands that put on a concert to help kick of the holiday season.

The musicians did a wonderful job. Especially The Str!ke (who just happens to be one of my personal favorites). It was great to see music bring so many people together to have fun and begin the celebrations of the upcoming month.

General Conference views on media

I mentioned in a previous post how I like to review the conference talks when they are printed in the Ensign. As I have been re-reading some of the talks today, I noticed that quite a few of them mentioned the importance media has played in helping spread the word of the Gospel.

President Thomas S. Monson said "We acknowledge the blessings of modern media in allowing millions of members of the Church to watch or listen to general conference. The sessions of this weekend are being broadcast via television, radio, cable, satellite transmission, and the Internet, including on mobile devices."

Wahoo! Media and the Church for the win!

Facebook

The slogan Facebook used when it was created was that you could connect with friends around the country/world. When I first got an account, this was not really the case, since practically everyone I knew lived within 20 minutes from me and went to the same High School. As I've gotten older it has slowly become a way to keep me informed of my friend's lives who have moved to other states or countries. Although a lot of people post random crap that has no purpose or they abuse the whole idea of Facebook, it's nice that it is there so I can see pictures and updates from those I don't see very often but don't want to completely forget about.

And then, at work this morning, my boss called me into her office because she wanted help with her Facebook account. She got one awhile ago, but she needed help with all the notification settings. Once we got her squared away, she became very excited showing us all these posts from people she grew up with. She expressed true gratitude for the invention of Facebook and being able to stay connected with people from her childhood. And the fact that she's in her sixties, makes it a big deal.

Snapchat

I wasn't sure quite how I felt about snapchat when it first came out. Wasn't it just the same thing as sending a picture through a text message. But then I learned the joy of being able to make silly faces that could disappear. Unless someone took a screenshot, then that was just rude. Depending on my mood I still have mixed feelings about whether I'm a supporter of it or not.

However, there has been a big positive about snapchat in my life, and I was reminded of it after today's lecture in class. We talked about how media can either bring your family together or create conflict that could create a wedge. In my family, snapchat has brought us together. I've never been extremely close to my brothers, but with the joys of snapchat we have found a form of communicating that works for us. They are not always hilarious selfies, but of other things going on with our days. Whether it be work, play, or pictures of their children, it has seemed to work as a good style of communication between us. So for that, I am thankful for snapchat.

Songs Getting Stuck

I love listening to music. Background noise is one of my favorite things. It may just be me, but when there's music playing it almost feels as if my life is that much cooler (could be a movie or something). But, there are those times that a song gets stuck in my head and it drives me crazy. It could be a song that I absolutely love, but when I can't get it out of my mind, I almost want to rip my hair out. Ever feel that way? While this was on my mind, my friend sent me this link about the top songs that get stuck in people's heads. I love these songs, and I definitely agree with the article that they are catchy. But I wouldn't be the happiest if they were constantly on repeat in my head.

http://fox13now.com/2014/11/05/and-the-worlds-catchiest-song-is/

Voting

Today I am grateful for the electronic voting system. Just imagine how annoying it would be if we were still counting all the votes by hand. I for one, am glad its electronic now. I would not want to be the one counting all the votes. Definitely makes life easier.

Mash Up

I've mentioned before that I am kind of a nerd. I came across this little video of joy the other day. And it made me laugh. I don't know how people have time to do these things, but I'm grateful for them. I need a good laugh every once in awhile.

http://www.buzzfeed.com/catesish/my-heart-will-go-ultron

Scary Stories

Seeing as it is almost Halloween, I figured I would share some horror stories. I love Halloween and all the spookiness that goes along with it. Enjoy!

http://m.9gag.com/gag/av0v95O?ref=fb.s.mw

Talking Babies

This video has been around for awhile, but my dad just reminded me of it and I couldn't stop laughing. I love how these twins are totally having their own conversation. Super cute!

Skype

In my opinion, Skype (or any other form of video chat) is one of the greatest inventions. I have a niece who is three years old, and she loves calling people on the phone to talk to them. But, it's even better when we Skype because she gets way more excited about being able to see the person she is talking to. Her sister is only nine months old, so the other day when I was Skyping with them, she saw my face and got super excited. She can't talk to me on the phone, but seeing my face and smiling at me was her form of being able to "talk" to me. And on a plus side I got to see her crawl, so I was happy too. Thank you technology!

And just so you can see their faces too, you'll know why I love Skyping with these adorable girls.

Cute right?!

Love Lessons

I'm in that stage of life where I'm searching for the one I'm going to marry. And I've mentioned it before on how crazy it can be with the whole dating thing; it's frustrating. And sometimes it just gets really hard and I become fed up with the whole system. Then there are those times you get a kick in the butt reminding you of what you need to be doing. And I hate it. It's never fun when you have to be vulnerable and it can be hard to open up.

There's been an article going around that relates a devotional from Elder Holland about lessons of love and dating. Some of them make me think "yah, that's right!" where others are "I should be focusing more on that...whoops." It was another kick in the butt, but a good reminder at the same time. Here it is if you haven't seen it pop up on the book of face yet: 

http://www.millennialmormons.com/10-love-dating-lessons-can-learn-elder-holland/

Feeling 22!

So...today is my little sister's birthday. She's 22 years old today. I don't know how she got to be that old, but it happened. I texted her this morning dedicating Taylor Swift's song as her theme song for the next year of her life. We all need a song to give us a boost right? Even though I have to be in the right mood to be able to listen to Taylor Swift, this song always brought a smile to my face when I was 22. It just feels cool to have a song about a phase of your life. Now its time for my little sister.

You Are Worth It

Yesterday in relief society we talked about eternal marriage. Such a wonderful topic. But you know the direction it ends up going in a singles ward. Everyone puts in their two cents about dating and all the things that are wrong and complain about how they're not married yet. Not to harp on all the girls in my ward, but some of them are 18, first semester at college, and complain about not being in a relationship yet with a returned missionary who is dying to whisk them away to the temple. There were a few of us older girls who have had quite a bit more dating experience than them, who are just as frustrated about living the single life in Provo.

As our discussion continued we focused a lot on becoming the best version of ourselves that we could be, this has to happen before we end up meeting Mr. Right. I remembered an article that I read a few weeks ago on a blog that talked a lot about how a girl shouldn't settle for what she doesn't deserve. It was a good reminder after the relief society chit chat that we are all worth it. There is a time for all things, and you just have to live your life to the fullest while everything pans out. Yesterday I was very grateful for social media and the ability we have to express our thoughts and opinions (like in a blog, haha) because you never know when someone else in the world is going to need to hear that thought and how it could affect them.

If you feel like reading the article, here's the link: http://ashlinsblog.com/2013/09/24/youre-not-a-plan-b-kind-of-girl/

Entering a Different World

Do you ever find an amazing book and spend countless hours reading it until you are finished? I have this problem. When I get a good book that I become super involved with, I cannot do anything until I have finished. This has occurred way too often with all the Harry Potter series; buying the book the first night it comes out and going straight home to read it until I'm done. Forget sleeping, who needs that anyway. But do you ever get so invested that you forget about the rest of the world? It feels as if you enter a different world and the real world should just freeze. But when you're done, the world continued on without you and you're now left with a torn heart between the book world and the world around you.

Sadly though, during school, the only world I enter into while reading is that of a textbook. But every break in school allows for a time to escape reality. I countdown for that time again.

Childhood Fail

I always get distracted when I get on the internet. I start off doing really good with homework, and then, I just need a break. I start looking at one thing, that leads to another, and before I know it I've looked at all these crazy articles and realize that I officially accomplished entertaining myself for an hour without realizing it.

However, during that "wasted" hour I find so many good things. Good as in random/interesting/funny things that make me think "who has time in their life to research and find out all this stuff?!" Exhibit A: An article on answers.com that mention a bunch of unhealthy snacks from your childhood. As sad as it may be, I ate so many of these snacks, and now that I look back through the article, it's as if part of me died by seeing the sad non-existent future of my childhood food fun.

http://www.answers.com/article/1214337/12-totally-unhealthy-snacks-from-your-childhood-that-went-extinct?param4=fb-us-de-health&param1=health&param2=1650051&param5=5&param6=6

General Conference

I am so excited for General Conference this weekend. It is one of my favorite times of year. As I've gotten older I've noticed the different ways I prepare for the sessions. When I was younger the focus used to be which pair of pajamas I was going to wear and which coloring books I was going to use. As I've gotten older I've found more profound ways to prepare myself.

Before each new session of Conference I like to re-read all the talks from the previous one. This helps me remember what has been discussed and allows me to open my mind to more questions that I might have that could be answered in the next session. Without media, this would be impossible. We have so many options available to us with access to review counsel from our leaders of the Church. I can purchase the Conference edition of the Ensign, or download it to my phone or I-pod. There are times (like this weekend) where I am extremely grateful for media and the positive use we can use it for. And let's face it, without media, we wouldn't be able to watch Conference in the comfort of our own homes.

The Piano Guys

So, I’m a nerd. I may or may not be obsessed with Marvel and DC Comics. I saw this video that the Piano Guys did of the Batman theme song and I literally got chills. The Piano Guys are so talented. And bringing together all the cars from Batman brought a smile to my face. I'm not a huge fan of classical music, but there are certain artists that are only instrumental that I really enjoy. The Piano Guys are one of them. Every time I listen to their songs I feel so peaceful inside. Super helpful for getting through a Monday.

http://thepianoguys.com/portfolio/batman-evolution/