Scripture Power!

Sundays are always my favorite day of the week.

I always go to sleep that night and feel 8,000 times better than when I woke up. It's like it gives you a new reason to commit to being more Christlike for the week, but it's an encouraging challenge, you know? Today I went to the park for a little and just sat by myself and read my scriptures. No music, no distractions. Just quiet time to myself. It's amazing what you can learn when you just listen to the Spirit and enjoy his companionship.

I am amazed every time I open up my scriptures. It's so amazing to me that something written thousands and thousands of years ago can still be directed at me aaall these decades later. And it's also crazy to me that the stories buried in it's pages are real and took place right here on the same earth I live in. I remember when I was in primary and they would teach us about the stories on at a time and I would be amazed and sit there sitting on my hands, leaned into my teacher. I especially remember the stories they would tell about the scary, bad Lamanites and then a few weeks later, it was the scary Nephites! And Jesus calming the storm, healing the gross, sick people, crying every single time I heard the story of his death, and coming back to life after he had died, Haha But I loved it. To me, primary seemed like story time, singing time, and just all around fun time.

Now that I'm grown up, I find myself sitting on my hands, leaned over reading the scriptures but this time, these stories have all new meaning to me and my life. It's amazing all the things I don't know, even after being a member for 21 years. That's amazing! The gospel never changes, yet I learn something new every single day!

I loved sitting there, soaking in the nice weather, no one really out being rowdy and obnoxious. Just me, a blanket, and my scriptures. I definitely love to read them more now than I did in my teenage years, which is when I feel like I really could have used what it has to offer. I've started to read them every single day, probably for about 2 years now, and it's changed everything. It can change my mood, it can change my actions of the day, it can calm me down when I'm feeling anxious or at a low point, it can open my eyes, recommit to habits, or drop old ones. It's just awesome. Just thought I'd share. :)

Ps-If you haven't read this talk, it's awesome (ps Sib-it reminded me of you) And here's a little treat to end this post. It's true that I don't know everything, but I know enough. And I owe much of that to the scriptures. The gospel is true, and it's amazing.

Beautiful Burlesque!

I am exhausted today. Oh my gosh. I really am turning into an old woman....it's only a matter of time until I throw my back out.

Two cool things happened today: One, my wittle baby sister followed in the footsteps of her big sisters and had her first colorguard performance, which was aaactually a competition. I would've filmed it but my dad said if they catch you, they find the school you're here for...and that's all he said. But. It sounded dangerous. Anyway. Competition. SO cool to watch.

I mean look at this girl!! You can't tell because I took this picture RIGHT after they had finished, but she was smiley, she nailed every single move (she says she messed up once, I never saw such a thing), she was sharp, and I literally was squealing watching her!! She is a natural. And if you heard the song, the tempo is pretty fast, and it didn't throw her off at all. Gosh, I just can't say enough about how proud I am of her. Rachel and I obviously tried to embarrass her by calling out her name and cheering and doing the wave...she wasn't bothered. What a waste.

We all went to support her, including Erin, and I think I can say that even at middle school age, there are some seriously talented kids and you could tell everyone worked really hard and tried their best and that completely made the competition worth watching. Great job Qiarra!!!

My dad's smile is so fake, you should just call it Taco Bell. Haha

Well, what can you do? Haha And my favorite picture of the day...

I'm so proud of my little sis and ALL the hard work she put into her performance!! I love you Nic!!

The other cool thing...ha. Pun intended.....was that it was literally raining while it was SO SO sunny outside today. What. In. The world?! And us sisters got to go out to lunch, just the three of us while the old folks came home and took a nap. Jeez. Haha But it was cute. I took both their cell phones away so we would all actually talk, and I've got to say, I have some hilarious characters in the ol fam. All in all, I'd say it was one awesome day. And!! We didn't have to pack! Hallelujah!! Or work!! So. Quite the day, but now I am going to bed. Not even saying a clever goodbye.

Never Grow Up

Ok, first of all, I think I blog too much. It's pretty sad when something cool or fun or intense happens to me, and I think Oh man, I should blog about that! It's pathetic really. Oh well. I know of at LEAST 4 people that read this. Haha But. I think I am going to do another blog challenge in March and actually try to keep to it because that's the only thing that will keep me sane while I patiently (yeah right) wait for delicious spring** to come!!!!! So. Bare with me. Haha

**Actually, spring semester usually involves allergy attacks, sunburns, and sweating throughout the night for me. But honestly...I can't wait!

Also, I needed a new post because I am sick of looking at that Preamble movie now. So. I might as well talk about something fun. Like Mason's birthday!! Oh my gosh, I am such a jerk. I never blogged about it!! When I asked Mason to take a picture with me, right before it flashed, I said "Show me how old you are now!" And this is how it turned out. Haha And earlier in the day, I was asking him about turning four and how sad I was that he was getting so big, and he says "Ashwee, (I am going to be so so sad when his little accent goes away) four is not big yet. Five is big...Carter's big, but I'm still a little boy. Don't be sad!" Haha

Poor little guy was so sick the whole beginning of the day and ended up sleeping after church all the way until dinner time. But it was nice because Mike, Mason, and I all took a little nap while Erin, Rachel, and Carter all went and checked out his cake. And I wrapped the presents, and we all set up for the party. But it was so sad that he was not feeling well at all.

Anyway, for the actual birthday part, Erin and Mike threw him a cute little mini-party on Sunday (since it was Sunday, they were having cake and ice cream and then Erin took him and his friends to McDonald's for lunch on Tuesday and they went back and played games. So cute) and it was awesome!!!! What adorable parents. :)

Erin's friend, Michelle, made his cake and it was AWESOME!!! It was a Ben 10 Omnitrex and it looked legit. And tasted that way too! Rachel told me she told Michelle she was going to make Rae's wedding cake. I'm stealing her as well. Haha There were party masks, action figures, toys, and it was just plain cute. They just had some of his and their friends come over and they played games and we sang and had cake and ice cream! It was sooo cute and sooo fun to watch my little nephew turn 4. Good grief he's getting big!! And he's such a goofball. :) I hope this year goes by veeeeery slow. And don't even get me started on May when Carter turns 6. Not one person will be excited he's growing up so fast. Kill me now.

Happy Birthday little baby!

Happy P Day All!

Happy Presidents' Day!!!

I've had this song in my head all day so naturally, I am giving a shout out to the Presidents!! Whoo whoo!! This song has been in my head all day and helped me to be the only person in my 8th grade class who knew the preamble word for word. What up.

Tonight I got to talk with this wonderful girl, Camille Bowman!!

She is freakin hilarious (hence the picture) And she's bloody brilliant. I swear, it's like everything I think, she knows and she has the best solution to them! We got to talk for like an hour, which is AWESOME (even though I used to get to talk to her MUCH more being her roommate...which I miss) and I am just SO excited for her to go on her mission and own it. She is such an amazing person: she cares for EVERYONE, she helps me to remember what's important, what's not, and not to take myself or my life too seriously. It's really inspiring to be around her and to hear what she has to say. I'd prepare yourselves citizens of Italy-your world is about to be rocked. It was so much fun and so nice to finally get to talk to her and I can't wait until we get to do it again soon.

Also sad news is that Alex went back to the Burg today. When I was at work, I was actually sad knowing that I was aaaall alone again. Like that was what I was looking forward to, but now it's over. Thanks for such an awesome weekend Al. It was so great to have my little babe back where she belongs!..Well, until I go back up to school. Then you have to follow me.

Siiigh. That's okay. I'll see her soon and at least T-Roy is here...for another day. Haha Good grief spring. Hurry on up! I miss my friends!!

Double A Battery Fully Charged!

ALEX IS IN TOWN!!!
Yes, we both agreed this was a strange picture. But. There were only two.

Gosh, WHERE would we be without best friends?!?

MY BEST FRIEND ALEX IS IN TOWN!!! And oh my gosh was I so so so so excited to see her!!! Goodness, it's been far too long. It's seriously so weird having the same routine everyday. Wake up, take Qiarra to school, yoga and/or run (sometimes I skip because I have to..), go to work, come home, and...well...I guess I'm not sure what's after that, but they're all basically the same. So it was SO great to finally have my best friend home to play and crack up and talk with!! Oh and do a whole lot of this...

If you start the youtube one and let it go for 20 seconds, then push play on our video, you can clearly see we're doing AWESOME!!! Haha....Seriously. Try to match them up. It makes it 50 times funnier to watch!

Yeah, we're cool. Things got pretty hot. There's 5 of these babies. Haha But it was SO much fun-we played Just Dance, made a food run, and came back with Paranormal Activity 2-SO awesome and Al was right: WAY way scarier than the first one. LOVED it. Haha I love that Al loves to watch scary movies JUST as much as I do and that we don't have to be out doing something to have a ton of fun like other friends.

My most favorite part was when we tried to hook Alex's mom up with Charles White. Story: Alex & her mom go to Apply store. Cute, super nice guy helps out. Alex sees instant date opportunity. So after all her detective skills and master planning, I get there and Plan Chuck Roast was underway. We went to the Apple store, asked where Charles was (in the back, JUST about to leave-in my brain, I thought it was destiny right then) and he comes out and Alex the Brave (I was so proud) innocently asks if he is taken.....drum roll please!....He is. BUT! There's hope yet for these three young lassies. For Alex flat out says "Is it serious?" (Best part of the whole conversation) and he basically beat around the bush, translating into "No"!! I know!! Isn't that great!? So I'm not giving up hope. Haha Charles White, Rochelle WILL win your heart!! :)

Anyway, it was such a fun fun night (thanks for the Del Taco run Alexa) and I am beyond excited to have my best friend in town for the weekend! Thank you Presidents for...well...being Presidents and giving us a day off!! You guys are just great. *Salute

"I'm So Proud of You"

It's amazing what the words "I'm proud of you" can do.

I got to talk to my most favorite elderly woman today, my grandma. The only one I've got now. She's on a mission, so I don't get to talk to her very often. I mean, yes I'm allowed, but she's super busy in Missouri of course, and I am super busy going to school and here working. So when we do both have the time to talk to each other, I take every opportunity.

She is such an easy person to talk to. She never says that I'm crazy or wrong or anything negative. She always just listens and I feel like she definitely sees my side of things just as much as she helps me to see the other person's side.

Something else I love about her though is that that first thing she always asks is "How are you doing?" or "How are things in the life of Ashley?" (She's one of the only people who still call me Ashley all the time. Haha) And then she just listens while I ramble on. Well today, I was explaining to her about all my recent stresses, and I finished by telling her where I stood. But the first thing she responded wasn't any sort of advice or counter to what I said. She simply just said "I'm so proud of you Ashley. That is such a healthy attitude. I am just so impressed with the woman you are becoming. You've got your head on straight, both feet planted on the ground, and a very firm testimony and relationship with the Savior."

It was so so nice to hear! This whole year, I've been trying to work on myself (which isn't a bad thing) but I've been working so hard to make sure I am becoming what everyone else would see as a good person and who I want me to become. But she helped me to see that I'm actually not completely off the beaten path! She continued by saying "You know, when I was your age, I was no where near where you're are now." and she told me about all the things she was concerned with and her challenges back then, but she said that this mission has really helped her to become the person she wanted to be too. And then her voice cracked and she said "I am just so proud of you."

That was all I needed, all I could've asked for her to say. I think that's all a lot of people need. Someone to say "You're doing okay! I'm proud of you! Keep it up!" Most of the time, I try to say it by giving someone advice or just listening. But everyone needs a little encouragement sometimes. So I had to write this out because I know I can have something to look at tomorrow or the next day or in a month, when things are getting rough. Someone is proud of me just for who I am. Thanks for that today Grandma. I think you are such an amazing person and I am so blessed to have you in my life. And even though your mission is hard, you've overcome every single challenge. I love you and I'm so proud of you.

I ♥ Love

Well, another Valentine's Day down. And I have to say, this one wasn't half bad!!

I kept getting the nicest text messages today, Rachel and I went shopping (there was a sale at Forever 21) and got to have some sister bonding time, I got to babysit my freakin cute nephews which included a whole lot of this...

They are doing the Just Dance version of the song. So talented.

But I woke up (Bible, it was like a movie) and there was a box of Sweethearts on the pillow from my dad, which was the NICEST surprise!! It set my mood on "happy" for the rest of the day. And I just love that at Erin's house, she had made all these Valentine chocolate covered strawberries for her the people she visit teaches and Carter's teachers and it just looked like Valentine's Day over there. And I got to babysit my nephews!!! I love those little guys. If I could play with them and just listen to them talk all day, I would. Poor Mason was so sick with a fever, so I felt bad but they wanted to kind of just lay around and we had pizza and played a couple games, but it was still so cute. They are so funny!!! I mean, the video proves it all.

The other thing I wanted to blog about was Mason's birthday, but that deserves it's own little post I think. SO cute. Oh! And good news, I saw this article today, and can you guess what number 4 (MY LUCKY NUMBER!!) is? Thaaaat's right. BOOM baby!!! Haha Great great day I'd say.

*I didn't mean for that to rhyme. "My wife says if I read anymore Dr. Suess, I might actually turn into Dr. Suess." (fingers crossed!)

Recollection

I was packing up my room today. It felt a lot like the scene in Father of the Bride, when Annie has to pack up her room. Only minus the part where it's because I'm getting married. Still sad though because I know a lot of it won't be seen until I actually do get married and by then, I probably will just be like "Oooh let's look through this, but then get rid of most of it. Why hang onto it?" So. It's a wee bit sad.

I am a bit of a pack rat. I know, it's bad. But I hang onto every note, every journal, every trinket I find...it's crazy. But it was so fun to see all that stuff again. The perfume bottle I wore every single day of 10th grade, and it eventually got switched with a much emptier one at Prom. I got gypped. The notebooks I used to write my texts in (and yes, I know. I still do that) and the little collages we'd make in Beehives of all the things we thought our futures would hold-weddings, being famous, making lots of money. All my soccer trophies, especially my very first year's when I was doing it because I was new in Murrieta and my parents thought it would be a great way to get involved and make friends. We ended up winning first place in the whole city!!! That was awesome. "Millennium madness." Back when everyone thought the world would end in the year 2000. Hahaha The stuffed animals I got from boyfriends or Easter, the things I made in Achievement Days, aaaaall the quotes from all my Young Womens lessons. All the birthday cards I've basically ever received are in one giant blue box so I can remember just what stage I was at by what people wrote inside. "You're getting so big! We love you" to "You've become quite the young woman and we are so proud and impressed by who you are." Ah man. I miss those days.

There's also this thing that I used to do with all of my calendars. Every single year, my parents get us a calendar for Christmas-it's so nice. Well, when I was in middle school, I used to use them sort of as my journals. I would write all the things that happened to me that day. As I have grown up, I still do that sometimes-mostly when it's things I want to remember happened on a certain day. Big things. But back in the day, it was every little thing. That's what the calendar pictures are in the collage. It was so funny to see the squares filled up with the funniest little things. "SAT NEXT TO MARK TODAY" (this boy I had THE biggest crush on in middle school) Haha Oh man. Only in 8th grade would that be the most exciting thing EVER.

Anyway, it was a really weird, bittersweet thing to pack up all that stuff again. It's nice to be nostalgic every once in a while. I love reliving old memories. And I can't wait until I open those confusing boxes again someday and tell my kids all about how their mom came to be.

"Now You're On the Trolley!"

One thing that I have always secretly (well, maybe not secretly) loooved is music from the 20s and 30s. My dad listened to it, my grandma listened to it, and I don't even really remember how the love for it came about. But I love the way everyone had actual talent and really sang with heart and I love the way it sounds and makes me want to just curl up in a blanket and watch an old black and white movie (one of my favorites being Breakfast At Tiffany's) So. I decided not only to make a playlist for myself, but for anyone who feels like I do somedays. Maybe when it rains? Or when it's night and there's a calm? Either way, enjoy. (And yes, I know not all of them are from that era, but they fit on here just the same, right?)

Mother/Daughter Movie Night!

Tonight was moooovie night with Rachel and Mom. We saw....

Yes!! The Roooooommaaaate!!! Whoooooo!!! (That was supposed to be said in a spooky voice) In case you have no idea what I am talking about, you're welcome.

I have to say, I do NOT remember being that annoying in a theater in high school...

Okay once, but there were only the 3 of us in the whole theater!!! But still, it was really hard to get into all the scary parts when the whole time you have dumb kids think it's hilarious and laugh through anything suspenseful. Good grief. Anyway, minus the lesbian kiss (after Black Swan, I think I've had enough for...hm, ever), the weird phone sex scene, and the terrible acting from some of the characters AND having to watch every single character be beyond gorgeous (blasted wardrobe) it was...pretty good. I mean I was entertained. I'd give it like a B-. It was suspenseful, but also a bit predictable and it wasn't as scary as it was just makes you think "What a freak!!" In it's defense, it is hard to get into a movie in the worst environment. My mom and Rachel were also both annoyed.

Anyway. My mom REALLY wanted to see it so I was glad she wanted me to come and that Rachel decided to be brave and come too. It's always fun to see a scary movie with my mom. She always squeals, which can be annoying, but also funny. And I'm just thankful none of my roommates have ever been this crazy.....or at least that I know of. Haha

Thank-you From Future Ashley

Why I love interior decorating so much, I don't know. Maybe it's a girl thing. But I am so obsessed!!!! I want to have the cutest little house ever!! I always look for what people's apartments/houses are decorated like after the get married. Like I literally wait for those pictures to show up. Haha And I have this weird thing for black and white rooms! It's weird. But thank you Martha for having my same brain wave!!

And I am absolutely obsessed with the Kardashians. It really is getting ridiculous. But I follow Khloe's blog, and look how CUTE they all are with that little adorable baby Mason!!! I hope I get to be as cute/good of a mom as lil Kourtney. :) Weird, both of the people I think are such cute moms have sons named Mason. Haha


Yeah, that sums up about everything I've thought about today. Haha

Fevriye

Its FEBRUARY!!!!!

Which has it's own list for why that's awesome:

1. VALENTINES DAY. My favorite holiday, although I freakin never get to celebrate it. So sad. (I do love waking up to all these little presents from my mom & dad on my nightstand. It's always such a cute, fun, perfect way to start my day. Wakes me up with a smile. I have the greatest parents) And also, that means decorations everywhere!!! I love when it looks like Cupid threw up on everything so I plan on having my house look like this...

And I love this commerical, called "Couples". It totally gets me excited for future Val-days. :)

2. One month closer to my BIRTHDAY!! Which actually is sad too-I feel like I'm growing up way too fast!!! I mean, 22?! When did this happen!?

3. Superbowl Sunday!! Now, it's not like I'm an avid football watcher by any means. I really don't follow it at all. But I do like to watch games with guys who get into them-dad, friends, cousins...I get excited from all the hype! Haha Eeeeeveryone gets SO into it-painting faces, throwing huge parties, the uproars from different plays...I just find it all hilarious and exciting. At Albertsons, we used to make ALL these special cakes and cupcake orders during the superbowl. That was fun. So. Yes, I do love Superbowl Sunday. It is NEVER dull.

Oh man do I love February.