Finding Joy in the Journey

Alec's Mission Call!

2010-03-09T09:23:00.000-08:00

After what seemed like forever my brother, Alec received his mission call! We were not sure when it was going to come, so we waited by the mail box every day...patiently...ha ha! I was at work and received a text from my mom saying that he had gotten it and that we were going to open it in a few hours! Many of our family and friends came over to hear where he was going. Before he opened it we had everyone guess where he was going by writing their name on a piece of tape and placing it on our map of the world. We were all so nervous to find out where he would be serving for the next two years. I video taped it if you want to watch it as well...

Guatemala!!! I couldn't believe it! It was seriously amazing. As soon as he read it I knew that was where he was supposed to go! He is going to be an amazing missionary. He leaves May 26th, and I am going to miss him so much.

Looking at the map to see exactly where he would be serving.

It was very emotional for everyone...especially my parents. My mom was thrilled that he is going to speak Spanish though!

What was special was that my great-grandmother came to visit and was there for the opening of his call. It was a very tender moment.

Loving life in Arizona

2010-02-16T10:56:00.001-08:00

So, I know it has been forever since I blogged, but it is better late than never! Ha ha! There has been so much that has happened since my last post that I don't even know where to begin. First of all, I am back in AZ for good. I loved living in Logan, and miss it a lot, but it has been so nice to be home now. I am so glad to be back with my family. I never realized how much I had missed when I was away. I am keeping busy with a full load of classes and working too. I never would have thought I would be back home now, but it has turned out to be such a blessing. Life is simply wonderful!

Touchdown in London Town

2009-07-27T03:03:00.000-07:00

Hey everyone! I haven't updated my blog for awhile, because I am in London on a study abroad. I actually have created a blog for my trip. You can go to it at http://lovinglondonlife09.blogspot.com!

Summer

2009-06-06T06:32:00.001-07:00

Summer has been great so far! It has been pretty crazy...all of my friends are getting married and having babies or going on missions. I went home for about two weeks, and then I had to head back up to Utah to gain residency. :( I really wish I could have stayed, but alas I could not. It is nice to be back in Logan though! Summer is wonderful in Utah! I am just working at the Olive Garden until I leave for my study abroad in England for six weeks! I am super excited!!!

Spring Fever!

2009-04-21T15:05:00.000-07:00

Spring is in the air! Finally...after a never ending winter we are enjoying spring. I can't believe I only have a week before this semester is over. This year has gone by so fast! I have so much to do before it is over though...I hope that I can make it. Ha ha! My roommates and I decided to take pictures this past weekend. It was so much fun posing and laughing together about all the memories we have made this semester. I love them so much, and am so glad that I got to have them for my roommates.

Conference Weekend

2009-04-11T19:50:00.000-07:00

This past weekend our church had general conference. My grandma and grandpa Porter were visiting at their cabin in Midway, so I decided to go and visit them. We watched conference together on Saturday, and then that night, after the priesthood session we went to the Dairy Keen and ate dinner. It was so good to spend time with my grandparents...I love them so much!

On Sunday morning I watched the morning session of conference with my grandparents, and then I went down to Salt Lake to meet up with some friends from school. My friend, Madi and I went to the conference center and went to the live session in the afternoon. It was amazing! The spirit was so strong. It was incredible to be in the presence of the prophet and apostles. It was also wonderful to hear the mormon tabernacle choir in person. The entire weekend was simply magnificent.

Spring Break continued...

2009-04-11T19:44:00.000-07:00

I was only able to stay a couple days in Arizona, because I had to get back to work. I also had to meet with some professors at BYU Provo, because I was trying to get into a study abroad program for this summer. While I was there I met up with my friends Katelynn Jones and Morgan Palmer, and my cousin McKenzie. It was so nice to see them, because I have really missed them. I then met with the professors, and got into the program! London here I come!

Spring Break

2009-04-11T19:11:00.000-07:00

For spring break I was able to go home for a couple days. It was so nice to spend time with my family. One of the days we celebrated my cousin, Alexa's birthday. At her party we played games, and they also had a blow up machine, which I obviously had a lot of fun with...

(I know...someday I may grow up!) :)

The day I was to leave I went and ate with the Fisher girls (along with my dad, grandpa, and Landon) at Tia Rosas. We had a lot of fun, and it was so nice too see all of them before I left.

I'm so glad when daddy comes....

2009-02-16T20:24:00.000-08:00

This weekend my dad came to see me! It was so nice to spend time with him. On Sunday we went to church and relaxed the rest of the day. On Monday we went to Salt Lake and ran some errands, spent time with family, and with each other. It was definitely something that I will cherish always. My daddy is the greatest!!!

Night of Enchantment

2009-02-07T12:01:00.000-08:00

Last night the IWA had a formal dance at the institute. I went with my friend Rob. We joined my IWA chapter for dinner at my chapter "mom's" house. It was so delicious! We then went to the dance, and had a blast! They had a DJ playing the music, and the movie Enchanted was playing in another room. The entire night was spectacular!

50's Dance

2009-01-19T09:06:00.001-08:00

The IWA (Institute Women's Association), which I am a part of, had a 50's dance on Friday night. I went with my roommate, Stephanie, and we met up with our group of friends. It was tons of fun! They had a live band playing 50's swing, a speed dating thing, and the movie Singin' in the Rain was played in one of the rooms. I had a blast dancing...and came to find that a lot of the things in the Singles Ward movie were true about institute dances. Ha ha!

New Roommate and Job!

2009-01-16T12:30:00.000-08:00

My roommate finally came! My roommate, Annie, who I lived with last semester is teaching English in China for six months, so I got a new one. Her name is Stephanie Wade, and she is from Colorado. She is so cute and I already love her! I do miss Annie, but Stephanie is fabulous too!

I have been looking for a job the past couple weeks, and I finally got one today! I am going to be a hostess at the Italian restaurant, Olive Garden. I am really excited and hope it will be a great experience for me. This is a picture of me and two of my roommates, Stephanie and Courtney eating at the restaurant.

Back to School

2009-01-10T09:23:00.000-08:00

I survived the first week! I got into each of the classes that I was hoping to get into, and I braved the snow. I am taking four classes along with three institute classes. I am enjoying them all and am excited to learn. It is a bit different though living in the cold. I have had to learn how to scrape the ice off of my car, how to dress for the cold, how to drive in it, and how to walk without slipping. It has been an experience to say the least. I am getting the hang of it though, and am finding that the snow is beautiful...when you are not in it! My mom sent me a poem this week that I absolutely loved, and I think relates to my present situation. I changed it a bit, but I hope you like it!

It's winter in Logan

And the gentle breezes blow

Seventy miles an hour

At twenty-five below.

Oh, how I love Logan,

When the snows up to your butt

You take a breath of winter

And your nose gets frozen shut.

Yes, the weather here is wonderful

So I guess I'll hang around

I could never leave Logan

'Cause I'm frozen to the ground!

Ice Skating!

2009-01-05T13:02:00.000-08:00

The day after Christmas we drove to Utah to spend some time at my grandparents cabin in Midway. It was so much fun just being with my family and seeing our relatives and friends. One of the nights we went ice skating at the rink in Midway with my cousins. We had a blast! It was kind of difficult to skate because they only clear the ice off twice a day, but we still had a good time.

Christmas

2009-01-05T07:58:00.000-08:00

Christmas this year was wonderful! For the eve we went to Grandma and Grandpa Porter's house. We had dinner, acted out the nativity scene, and exchanged gifts. It was so nice to spend time with the family and create new memories with them.

After we went to the Porter's we went home and opened gifts as a family. As you can see I really liked my new pajamas. Ha ha!

Christmas morning was fabulous! We woke up late, and saw what "Santa" had brought us, and then we had a delicious breakfast. We then spent the evening at Grandma and Grandpa Fisher's. We had dinner, played games, and watched old family videos. It was an amazing Christmas, and I am so glad that I was able to spend it with the ones I love.

Girl's Night!

2008-12-24T10:19:00.000-08:00

Last night I had my girl friends over for fun and games! All of the girls, except my roommate Annie, were my friends from high school. We are all going to college in different places and some of us are either married or getting married (SCARY!!!), so we wanted to hang out while we could. We played the game called "Loaded Questions". It was hilarious! We then watched one of our all-time favorite movies, "Bride and Prejudice". It brought back so many memories! We also created new ones. I love them all so much!

A family night to remember...

2008-12-24T09:58:00.001-08:00

On Monday night, we had my mom's side of the family join us for family night. First we had dinner, which was a mexican fiesta. We then sang Christmas carols and had our own "bell band". My Auntie Ruth brought some bells for each of us to ring to form a Christmas carol. It was really fun, but got annoying when all the little kids kept ringing them. Ha ha! We then got all of the kids dressed up to act out the Christmas story. The costumes were hilarious! After the nativity, we went around the room and shared a favorite story or something that we love about Jesus Christ. It was so wonderful to hear everyone's testimonies of Christ. The spirit was so strong, that I know that none of us will ever forget this family night.

My brother Grant played Joseph. He was not happy at all with being married to his cousin. :)

This is a picture of me and my cousin Alexa playing the bells. We were awesome!

Gingerbread Houses

2008-12-24T09:46:00.000-08:00

One of our family Christmas traditions (starting last year) is making gingerbread houses. We make them with our good friends the Nelsons. Sister Nelson makes the gingerbread houses (out of real gingerbread), and my mom makes dinner. This year was a blast! Everyone was really creative with their decorations. We made a huge mess, but it was worth it!

Finals Week!!!!

2008-12-09T21:35:00.000-08:00

So, the dreaded finals week has arrived! My brain is totally fried!!! I feel like I live at the library... actually I do...I am at the library right now! I have four finals so I am extremely stressed out! I am glad to know that it will not last forever. I am just going to study as much as I can and do my best! I can't do anything more than that!

Basketball Game

2008-12-07T16:34:00.000-08:00

This weekend we had a game against BYU! It was being held in Salt Lake at the Jazz's stadium. My friends and I drove down to see it. It was crazy fun! We wore our "Y B U?" shirts. On the back of them it says, " Win or Lose, you still Live in Provo...'nuff said!" Ha ha! I loved it!

We lost 68 to 63! It was such a close game! I WAS SO MAD!!!! (as you can see in the picture above). Even though we lost, it was extremely fun! It was such an intense game!

Thanksgiving!

2008-12-07T16:13:00.000-08:00

Usually our family does the Turkey Trot, or the city of Mesa's Thanksgiving run, every year on Thanksgiving morning. This year however, I was the only one that represented the Porter family. I was really nervous because I hadn't run for awhile, but I did great! I ran all six miles without stopping and finished strong! What was even more fun though was seeing my old teammates and running with them. I just love running!

On Saturday morning I went to the temple with my dad and siblings to do baptisms for some of our ancestors. There were a lot of people that day, but it was alright because we got to spend more time together in the temple. It was such a neat experience!

It was wonderful to go home for Thanksgiving break. I had missed my family so much! When you are away from home you truly realize what you are most grateful for!

We all scream for ice cream!

2008-11-19T10:20:00.000-08:00

It's that crazy time of year when everything is stressful! I have so many projects and tests due before the Thanksgiving break and then finals after that! I just want to scream! So, Emily and Molly decided that we should all scream for ice cream! Last night, we took a break from our studies and got some ice cream at Charlie's. It was so good!

A bunch of Hocus Pocus

2008-11-03T11:35:00.000-08:00

No we weren't dressed up as witches, but this Halloween was definitely full of hocus pocus. I went with my friends Emily and Molly to the school's Halloween party called The Howl. It is the biggest Halloween party in Utah. I was dressed up as a fifties girl, Molly was "mormon" barbie, and Emily was Lucille Ball from the I Love Lucy show. The party was crazy! There were so many people that it was hard to even breathe. We went to one of the concerts that was a recycled rock band, which means that they drum on different things like trash cans and ladders. They were so awesome! We didn't stay very long, but it was fun just being with the girls!

Showing off our eyelashes! (I know I look like a frog!)

Molly and I dressed up like gangsters at the ward Halloween party. It was so much fun! We are companions as ward missionaries so it was hilarious seeing everyone's reactions to our get-up. It was even funnier that it was us, because we are the whitest girls ever! Fo sho!

Homecoming!!!

2008-10-25T11:19:00.000-07:00

Last night was homecoming, and it was an absolute blast! I went with Heath Bleazard. We went to dinner with a group of my friends at a Logan original restaurant called the Bluebird. It was really good! We then went back to the school and danced the night away! The school set up three rooms with different kinds of music playing. One had a band playing jazz music, the main one had a band playing oldies, and the last room had a DJ playing modern music. We went from room to room throughout the night dancing to each. It was so so much fun!

These are my two best friends, Molly (top) and Katie (bottom). Molly let me borrow one of her dresses to wear. They were also in our group for the dance. We danced like crazy girls the entire night! I love them tons!

The entire night was just fabulous!

October Break

2008-10-20T15:22:00.001-07:00

Guess who surprised me this weekend?!! My mom!!! I was going to spend the break with my cousins and grandparents in South Jordan, and my mom decided to tag along! I was so happy to see her! I have missed her so much! It has been hard not having my mom around for 2 months! We spent the weekend with our family, which was so much fun. We also got to spend a lot time together just driving around seeing places and shopping. I was really sad to see her go, but was glad that she came at all. I have the best mommy in the world!

On Friday night I drove to the little town of Grantsville. My friend Heath from school invited me to join him and his family in their annual Halloween party. I dressed up like a 50's girl, and Heath was a witch (his mom dressed him up). We had dinner and played some games. It was so much fun getting to know his family, and see what its like to work on a ranch.

Stake Conference

2008-10-20T15:12:00.000-07:00

We had stake conference this weekend, and it was awesome! The spirit was just so strong. I have so much that I want to work on now. I went with my friends Emily and Molly to the session on Sunday. It was held at the Logan Tabernacle, which is this lovely building right on the main road. We decided to take a picture because the leaves are changing color!

Fabulous Weekend

2008-10-05T16:59:00.000-07:00

This weekend was absolutely fabulous! We had a football game against BYU on Friday. I went with my friends Emily and Molly to the game, along with their sister, her husband, and their little girl. It was so much fun! I thought we were totally going to get creamed by the Y, but the final score was 34 to 14. The main highlight of this weekend though was general conference. The messages that were shared were so amazing, and many of them seemed to be written for me personally. Conference just makes me want to be better! It was also raining these past two days, so it has been a perfect weekend!

Kindred Spirits

2008-10-02T12:59:00.000-07:00

Last night I had IWA, which stands for Institute Women's Association. It is kind of like an LDS sorority. There are about 10 different chapters of the group at our institute. My chapters name is Mary Fielding Smith. We meet once a week and have an activity. It has been so much fun getting to know and love the girls in my group. As Anne of Green Gables would say, we have become "bosom" friends and we are most definitely "kindred spirits". For our activity last night we had a bonfire with some of the other chapters. We had dinner, a rock climbing wall, volleyball, and smores. It was so much fun! I am so glad that I joined such an amazing group with such amazing young women!

Road Trip

2008-09-29T09:59:00.002-07:00

This weekend I needed a break, so on Friday afternoon I drove to Salt Lake City to see my great grandmother, Nana. We went out to dinner at our usual restaurant, "Chuck O' Rama". We then went back home and visited with some of her neighbors. In the morning before I left Nana told me stories about her childhood. It was a lot of fun learning about my ancestors and feeling like they were a part of me. I had a hard time leaving because I love my Nana so much. We created memories this weekend that I will cherish forever.

When I left my Nana's house I drove to Provo. I went and stayed with my cousin, Mckenzie who is going to BYU. It was fun seeing her and my other friends (Katelynn Jones and Amy Allen). The next day, Sunday, I went to a mission farewell of my friend Brian Thompson (on the left). His family along with the guy on the right, Eric Gudmundson, have been my family's friends for a long time. We lived next to them when I was three years old, and we have done something with them every year. I had a great time being with them and remembering the good old days. This weekend was absolutely fabulous! I am even more proud that I drove all over Utah by myself!

Rollerblading...

2008-09-28T22:22:00.000-07:00

My roommate and I go rollerblading sometimes, and it is so much fun. When we went rollerblading on the night this picture was taken it wasn't as fun. We decided to get a group together one night to play games at a park. We made the trip over with two guys from our ward. We rollerbladed, while they rode a longboard and a bike. When we got to the park we played "Blind-man's Bluff" and soccer. After we were done playing we made our way back to our apartments. If any of you know anything about Utah roads, then you would know that they are not the best. Keeping that thought in mind, on our journey back home we came upon a very rocky and cracked part of the road. It had tons of pebbles all over, and so I tried to get through them as well as I could. Unfortunately, I got a couple stuck in my wheels so I couldn't move. I plummeted straight onto the hard ground. It hurt so bad! I tried to act all tough and so I started laughing and gave a bow as I stood up. Everyone told me to get a ride with one of our friends that had driven, but I refused and kept rollerblading. As I was painfully making my way home, I looked down at my hand and found blood all over it. I hadn't even noticed it! When we finally arrived I also found that my knees had been torn up pretty good, but not as bad as my hand. Everyone tried to help me clean it up, and it hurt so much! I am totally fine, but am a baby. I will probably be riding my rollerblades again soon!

Slippin' and Sliddin'

2008-09-28T21:59:00.000-07:00

A couple weeks ago the institute decided to have a jello slip-n-slide for one of its activities. I thought it sounded like really fun, but wasn't planning on doing it because I was busy. These girls in my ward talked me in to it, and we had a blast! You may be wondering...Jello? And my answer to that would be...yes, jello, green jello! First we had to jump into a blow-up pool full of green slimy jello. Then we ran and slid on this huge tarp as some people sprayed us with hoses. It was kind of gross, but way fun! My hands even turned green after!

We were all trying to be the first to the end of the slip-n-slide. I was getting really frustrated because I was barely not able to make it each time! It was tons of fun though, and was something that I will remember always.

Dancing back to the 80's!

2008-09-15T07:07:00.000-07:00

The first week of school is over! Whew! I made it! To top it off the school had an 80's dance! We got the these fabulous outfits and decided to dance the night away! Some people wore the craziest things I have ever seen! It is even sadder that it is back in style!
It was so much fun! I almost forgot that it was a school dance because there wasn't any gross music or dancing! The DJ played 80's music the entire night and had the music video playing in the background on a huge screen. Thriller is the best one of course!
80's music is the best! I am proud to say that I was born in the 80's, even if it was just barely!

Welcome to Utah State! Go Aggies!

2008-09-10T10:42:00.000-07:00

Welcome to Utah State! These are pictures of me and my roommates on campus. Ashley Struthers is in the middle on her stomach, Annie Wirthlin (she's my roommate) is to the right of her, and Hanah Gilman is at the top. We are sitting on top of the famous "A" where you can become a "True Aggie". You become a "True Aggie" on Homecoming or A-day night when you stand on top of it and kiss someone of the opposite gender at midnight. You can also do it under a full moon. I am determined to become a "True Aggie" some other way!

We are standing together in the middle of the field that is called "The Quad". Behind us is the Old Main Building which is one of the oldest buildings at the school. At night the letter A is lit up, and you can see it as you come into Logan.

We found a golf cart and decided to ride in it. We are so crazy!

We are leaning on a fence just outside of our apartment, which is right behind us. Aren't we so cute?!

The Apartment

2008-09-10T07:30:00.000-07:00

Hey everyone! I am finally up at Utah State! Sorry that I haven't posted in awhile. My blog has been acting up and wouldn't let me on! I will try and update you as best I can on my adventures in college so far. First of all, I want to take you on a tour of my apartment...

This is the front room of the apartment. There is a couch and a chair to go along with it. They are not the most fashionable, but are extremely comfy. Off to the side there is a built in shelf that we have put our movies on.

You then walk in and to the right there is the kitchen. It isn't that big, but is fairly nice. Our counter top is granite!

This is my room! We have bunk beds! I am on the bottom. It has been pretty interesting sharing a room and bathroom, but roommates are awesome!

Summer Lovin'

2008-08-13T16:42:00.000-07:00

I absolutely loved this summer! I can’t believe that it is over! There have been so many wonderful experiences this summer that I will cherish always. This entire summer I have been working for the Gap, which has been an adventure in itself. I have learned so much from working there, and have met so many awesome people. Even though I was working I was able to get time off for vacation too! It was so nice to just be with my family. Here are some pictures of some of my summer adventures:

These are some pictures from my 19th birthday party! It was so much fun! I had a bunch of my friends over to swim and play games. It was the best birthday ever (thanks to my awesome aunts!)!

Many of my friends got married this summer! I couldn't believe it! This is a picture of me and my good friend Haley Woolf, now Neiswender (I hope I spelled that right). I am really going to miss her!

This was our Utah trip! We went to Lagoon (top picture). It is a family tradition to go every year, since I was born, and I still love it! While we were there we went up to Logan, so I could show everyone where I was going for school. It was so much fun, and it made me even more excited to go in the fall! The picture on the bottom is of me, my dad, and my sister Alena enjoying the Aggie Blue Ice Cream at the Creamery.

Made a Blog! Finally!

2008-07-25T17:57:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone! I thought I would finally create a blog! I am leaving soon to go to school at Utah State University, so I decided that this may be a good way to keep in touch with you and you with me!