One Year Ago...

One year ago today, I had one of the best experiences of my life. I went to the Jerusalem Center, I would not trade that experience for anything. And I am going back....sometime. Oh mylanta 2010 went so fast. Well parts of it did.
Highlights:
-Trying out skiing
-Getting a new laptop for college
-Going to the BYU Jerusalem Center
-Seeing the Giza Pyramids
-Eating cow tongue. (Not recommended)
-Staying on the Sea of Galilee
-Spending the summer with my family
-Transferring to BYU-Provo
-Having my Idaho roommates come visit me
-Trying the completely "random" room-roommate thing.
-Taking 8 trips back and forth to Utah
-Riding in a Limo
-Trying Calamari
-Attending Christmas Shows: The Forgotten Carols, The Nutcracker, The Christmas Carol, and Jon Schmidt.
-Finishing Statistics
-Completing all my Generals
-Getting a new job as a secretary
-Seeing SLC temple square all lit up
-Ice skating for New Years with friends

Well that about sums up my year! Awesome. Bring on 2011!

"Cutesie"

Bows, ribbons, flowers, coordinating, barrettes, clips, sashes, scarves, shoes, earrings, pictures, and MATCHING. I just love these things. Every semester I always try to get my roommates to match and coordinate for roommate pictures, I think it so cute but much to my despair it never happens. So as always it didn't happen this semester either. But nonetheless, I still think they are awesome. What a good semester with Stacie, Megan and Hanna.

Amazing Woman

“DaLynn, slow down, it is not a race!” Was what she used to say to me during every piano lesson, “You will sound a lot better if you don’t try to go so fast.” The faster I finished the quicker I could get my hands into her DELICOUS treats, my favorite were her peanut butter kiss cookies, or maraschino cherry cookies.
Walking into her house to the smell of FRESH homemade bread, or scrumptious pies was almost expected every visit. Her bed was ALWAYS made, the living room was in pristine condition, vacuumed orange carpets, grocery lists on the fridge, and a huge curl dryer on the table. She would KINDLY direct us to the toys downstairs or if we were lucky we could play with the toys under the oven. After playing downstairs for a while, she would come down and ask if we wanted an ice cream cup with a wooden stick. But she would say, “PLEASE go eat it outside.” And we were quietly reminded to shut the door on our way out. We would say, “Can we watch a movie?” Even though we only had the option of Cinderella, so she would say there is SO many better things to do. Sometimes she would say, “Do you want to come back to Audra’s room.” This was a huge treat, Audra’s room! Wow how COOL! And then she would show us her newest sewing project. Which was ALWAYS for someone else. Maybe even ME. My birthday was NEVER forgotten, I think I got the same ABC cookbook twice, but it didn’t matter, I loved it just the same. Playing in the doll house was an ALL TIME favorite; take your shoes off before you go in! Upon leaving there was always a SWEET warm hug with her very strong hands. But what I will never forget is the sweet legacy she left. As I was at the hospital this weekend with her, I know she doesn’t know me and doesn't remember a single thing, yet as she was trembling her hands, I put my hand on hers and she played with my finger, I could feel her ever present spirit radiating and it comforted me as I started to bawl. I will never forget her wonderful example. Love you Grandma!

The Season of Gratitude

One of my favorite General Conference Talks this session was President Monson's talk on gratitude. I have reread it many times since I was there live and it just impresses me every time. And since it is a season of gratitude, I always like to write things that I am grateful for. These are my top things:
-The Gospel of Jesus Christ in my life
-Supportive Parents who love me and want to help me succeed
-A wonderful place to gain an education
-My friends and roommates
-Jesus Christ and the atonement

"We can lift ourselves and others as well when we refuse to remain in the realm of negative thought and cultivate within our hearts an attitude of gratitude. If ingratitude be numbered among the serious sins, then gratitude takes its place among the noblest of virtues.... The grateful man sees so much in the world to be thankful for, and with him the good outweighs the evil. Love overpowers jealousy, and light drives darkness out of his life." President Thomas S. Monson

I am more excited this thanksgiving to go home and see my family than I have ever been before! Plus Provo is FREEZING! :) (but gorgeous)

Forever Stained

Everyday there is always something that makes me laugh hysterically.
So yesterday, I was able to go to the BYU vs. USU basketball, it was a great game and a awesome game to be a cougar. :)
However, I met some friends at the library afterward, because we are just stalwart students like that. I was concentrating pretty hard on my Statistics homework. Then out of the blue I hear Kennedy say, "Its a bird". And then I hear the flapping. Stacie yells, "No that's a BAT". At this point the 4th floor of the library turned into chaos. I was in awe and didn't move, meanwhile Stacie and Kennedy are clinging to each other and hiding behind bookshelves. As the bat swooped around the ceiling it got lower and lower and then all of a sudden it was over our table. At this point, I freaked out and jumped into the bookshelves with Kennedy and Stacie. The bat migrated to the other side of the 4th floor and we knew because we could hear the chaos forming as well. Mind you the 4th floor the library is the Quiet Zone. It suddenly turned into the NOT so quiet zone. I heard two boys yell, "Its like the office." They darted off with a coat and a garbage can. At the entry of the 4th floor the bat was trapped, by this time it had quite a crowd, paparazzi included. It was quite the scene. They threw a jacket at it and the bat hit the wall and fell to the ground, it got out from underneath the jacket. The boys threw another jacket at it and it was trapped. They quickly grabbed the garbage can and scooped it up, put a garbage bag over it and made a little air hole, so the little buddy could breathe. Everyone gathered and took pictures of the little creepy thing. I don't know where they put the bat, but about 20 minutes later the police came up. They said they had heard there was a bat on the 4th floor, we were like way to go security, way to be on top of it. After the commotion settled, it went back to the normal grind at the library. That spot on the 4th floor of the library right by the media lab will forever be stained in my memory.

Lessons We Learn

Today we had a WONDERFUL ward conference, the bishop spoke, as well as the Stake President. They both are wonderful men and have such a sweet spirit radiating about them.
One of the things that struck me that my Bishop spoke on was about choices.
He said, "You can only do the big things right if you are doing the little things right." I loved this, he went on to list the little things that guide us along a safe secure path to making big decisions, these include:
-Meaningful Prayer
-Scripture Study and Pondering
-Temple Worship
-Partaking of the Sacrament and renewing our covenants
-Serving others
-Caring for the poor and needy
-Magnifying our callings

All these in a sense are "little" things bring us to our Heavenly Father. They help us gain a strong hold to the iron rod. I have a strong testimony that as we do these things we will gain a knowledge of who we are and who we are to become. I love my Heavenly Father and I am extremely grateful for the blessings that he pours out to me.

Bleeding True Blue

Soooo obviously I am back from Israel, much to my dismay. I still reflect on those days quite frequently. But I love having my J-ru Crew up here in Provo its a blast.
I do not know if I have fully adjusted to being a full blown cougar, but I am sure having blast!
Hope we can win tomorrow! :)