The Birth of the Messiah

Jared and I have grown these last 5 months, with hard decisions, realization of debts and re-configuring family goals. 

In our home we have this framed picture of Christ.

Grace & Truth by Simon Dewey

Jared and I browsed for days together to decide which depiction of Christ we wanted to have as the central image of Him in our home. This picture showed the love and understanding that we know our Saviour has for us. His face is strong and one to trust to lift your burdens. It has changed the tone of our home, in fact with all the changes we have made, it has made our house feel like a home. 

Christmas, as you all know is about the birth of Christ. Christmas is not my favorite holiday, Easter is. Mainly because I love the focus on the Atonement at that time of year, the season of rebirth. This year I wanted to make Christmas just as beautiful by getting to know Christ more, for reals this time. 

Often we say that Christmas is that time about Christ, or we need to put more Christ in Christmas, but I think we often fall a little short of trying. I wanted to find something that would fill the whole month of December as I try to get to know my Saviour and grow closer to him.

I contemplated for a long time to figure out what would be the best thing to do. It suddenly hit me during church and I decided to read and study Jesus the Christ this month. Since I have left social media for the remainder of the year, I will have plenty time to do this. 

I find that when we rid the negative influences from our lives, we need to fill those with something positive, and something eternal, such as the love of Christ.

So Say We All

A Prelude to Change

So after a lot of thought, I have decided that I have not utilized my blog in the way I would like. Jared and I talked and I discovered I would be no use if I tried to do a blog that had some sort of theme. Life does not give us just one theme. Us being nerds will most definitely be in here, so will our successes, failures, our opinions & progress reports. 

There you have it, I am moving on with my blog without bounds.

Through the last month or so I have recognized how much I am on 3 electronic devices 70% of the days I am working. It simply makes no sense that I would have TV or music on, working on my computer, and playing a game or scrolling through Facebook on my phone. Since when does that make sense? Also almost all the time with family and friends, phones or computers are out and blocking this social vibe that I have been really craving. You know those times when you and your significant other go to a park with drinks, maybe food and just talk and people watch? Yeah, I miss that.

November 22nd through January 1st, Jared and I are going to try clearing out what we think have become impulses with our phones. 

For Me:

No Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Periscope, & Game Apps.

Also Phone on Airplane Mode @ Church.

For Jared:

No Facebook, Cheezburger, Reddit, Periscope & Game Apps. Also No Phone @ Church.

I am hoping this will let us connect more as a couple, strengthen our social skills & hopefully be able to make more friends in our ward, neighborhood & hopefully enjoy the time with family even more. We simply forget that face to face communication is so much better & that our voices give us the chance to use fluctuation& tone to give emotion and meaning to our words. Simply texting does not allow for easily understood humor, sarcasm, happiness, sadness & frustration. Often we misconstrue what others are trying to say. A phone call is better, but still we now have the trouble of communicating with those who do not like, understand & know how to talk over a phone. Face to face is simply the best.

I crave the days where it was okay to walk over to the neighbors house, knock on the door and ask a friend to play. Too often I see 4 yr olds on smart devices and I cringe at the thought that even if I teach my children to communicate, will their peers? Constantly I talk to single friends, frustrated with the dating scene because of the over use of technology. Jared and I met online. But Jared was the only one that replied to my short paragraph with 5 of his eloquent paragraphs. One month after this extensive conversation, we met. We simply did not have any problems keeping our phones in our pockets and having a thrilling, long & competent conversation. In fact Jared and I would talk for hours on our dates. This is apparently not found any more from what my friends have told me. Relationships cannot thrive or survive if you can not vocalize your needs, wants, emotions and goals!

I hope that somehow we can find this balance in life between technology and the beauty of conversation and being who we were created to be...social! Also I hope you enjoy seeing me grow as a complete amateur blogger!

So Say We All

A Dream Come True

Saturday night, Jared and I had finished our chores and we looking to find something to do. We made the decision that a movie would be fun and would double as date night for the week. After contemplating what had just come out, what was remaining in the dollar theater, and what was new, we decided that we should see Cinderella (Disney 2015). 
I was not expecting at all what I felt while watching that movie.
The story line followed that of the original animated feature, though with a bit more depth and you get to meet Ella's mother and father. I loved that it was beautifully filmed and written so well. But what got me what how much of an emotional & spiritual mirror it became to me.
If anyone knows me, they know my mother is the best seamstress in the world. All my childhood, even into my adult life she has rescued me and blessed me with hand made dresses and clothes. My appreciation has never faded, but was was ever so reminded of my wonderful mother and my love for her. 
It is when Cinderella walks down the stairs. Expecting that since she was able to provide her own dress to go to the ball, that her stepmother would let her go. As we all know, her step mother was not at all planning to let that happen. After destroying her dress, her step family left Ella in emotional turmoil. She runs to the garden to only meet an elderly woman that asks for milk, and of course Ella readily complies. After sloppily draining the boil of milk down her throat and dress, the woman asks Ella why she is upset, and then reveals that she is her Fairy Godmother. After an entertaining transformation of the coach, footmen, driver and horses, all that is left to be transformed is Ella's dress.
It is in that moment that Ella refuses to let her Fairy Godmother to change her dress completely, but that she remain in that dress because it was her mother's. Her Fairy Godmother asks if Ella's mother would mind if she spruced it up a bit, and change it to a charming blue. Ella responds in the affirmative and the change begins.
In this beautiful moment Ella slowly spins, revealing the flow of the voluptuous skirt and as she stops butterflies flutter and land along the neckline. I could not console my swelling heart! I cried and remembered the beautiful moment when I put on my wedding dress my mother made me, for the first time. I remember twirling in it, knowing that my mother made that dress for me, and that I was no doubt a princess.
Now fast forward to the strike of midnight when Ella runs to her coach, hoping to escape, she runs into the King. Here she stops and tells him that his son loves him. To most, that is just a sweet moment, but when you see the prince curl up with his dying father, it means so much more. Me and my husband are only 60 days away from getting sealed, and with that has come a long journey of gaining a stronger relationship with our Father in Heaven and as a couple. That moment that Ella explains that the prince loves his Father reminded me of how much my husband loves not only his earthly father, but how much he loves his Heavenly Father. I think it is important, that as his eternal companion, that I recognize that love that he does and support him in showing that love for our Heavenly Father.
Now the last thing that impressed me was the fact that from the first time, to the last time they meet and the slipper fits, the prince calls himself an apprentice, that he is learning a trade. The trade being King. I think that we all are apprentice gods and goddesses, and I loved that at the end he expresses that he is still working on it, and hopes she will love him even though that is all that he is now.
Jared asked me a similar question when we talked about marriage. He asked me if I would accept that he had things to work on still before we could be sealed. That he needed to learn and grow more, and if I could commit to him while he did so. Not discounting that I too had my own self to sort out. But we recognized that we both were just ourselves, imperfect apprentices. But with time, and if we have as Cinderella's mother said, courage & kindness, we can achieve all that we need to, to become Kings & Queens.

2015

   Whoa time is speeding by and I do little with my days other than work, you would think I could keep the world updated. So just a little summary to catch you all up.
   Our first seven months of married was full of fun with our first Christmas, our first New Years kiss, First Married Valentines Day and now on to more adventures! We are still waiting for SSI benefits for Mom, but we hold our faith that all will work out soon.
 
    On other more recent news:
This year we have a lot of new exciting things happening, like getting sealed in the LDS SLC Temple on our anniversary 7*3*15 and we are super excited. We have just completed the temple prep course in our ward and met with the Bishop. Surprising news was given. We are now prepared to go get our endowments! This was surprising, since we had no previous knowledge of how it would all go down we were thinking that we would have to wait nearer to our year mark. We had planned to do everything on the same day. After talking with our parents and consulting our Father in heaven. We have decided that it is too important to put off and we are working on getting our recommends so that we can do this as soon as we are able. We also decided that we would be doing it at the Mt. Timpanogos Temple, since it is important to us both as our childhood temple.

We are also taking advantage of the Club House at our Community. Today was the first day and I am way out of shape, 30 minutes of power walking did me in. Not a good sign, but I have hope that I can do better as we continue to go. I have needed to be healthier before, but with our growing celestial goals we are looking at the possibility of children. At my current weight and health, it is just not possible without major health risks. So onward to health.

SO SAY WE ALL