Perfectly ME

"Do not wish to be anything but what you are,

and try to be that perfectly."

St Francis de Sales

The little red toolboxes

How can one cute little red box hold so many important tools?

We have been planning this "Girls Night" with our Young Women for the last several weeks.... you know, a night to just gather with the girls and eat way more calories than you had alloted for the day, to just lounge on the couch and talk, reminiscing summer highs and lows as well as talking about the excitement and trepidation that accompanies a new school year. I can't believe how quickly summer has come and gone, our talks quickly gravitated to the upcoming school year with it starting in less than 2 weeks. It was such a great opportunity to just "hang out", talk and understand a little better about what kinds of things they face, the temptations, the pressures and the important responsibilities that they are confronted with at such a young age. It is always so fun to be around these amazing young women and to be strengthened by them and their discipline. Their testimonies and commitment to the gospel is far stronger than I had at their age and I love and admire them so much. I've said many times since I was called to work with the YW that it feels like I have far more to learn than I have to offer and that continues to be the case.

With everyone's summer travel schedules, it was one of the first weeks in over a month that we had all of our girls as well as all of our leaders. There's always an amazing spirit and energy when we have everyone together.

Tonight we decided that we would focus on "Back to School Tools" and what we as leaders could provide them with that would help them as they faced the stress and pressures of a new school year. We learned a lot last night about just how many pressures and temptations they face as teenagers today!

One of my lovely partners in crime, g, originally saw this idea here. We took it, adapted it a bit and made them our Back to School Toolboxes.


We bought small metal tins from the craft store, drilled holes in the lids, primed and spray painted them glossy apple red then screwed a little metal eye strap to the top to serve as a handle and voila'... the littlest toolbox you've ever seen.


Finally they were ready for the "tools". We included lots of little treats and trinkets that will hopefully serve as reminders to them as they face temptations and the challenges of life this upcoming school year.


We packed it full of things like:
* Gum - "Chews" good friends
* Take 5 Candy Bar - "Take 5 minutes" for personal scripture study each day
* Modest Girls Rock Chapstick (from Deseret Book) - "Stick" to what you know is right. Be modest and be chaste.
* Button - If you don't have anything nice to say, 'button" your lip.
...and lots more.


It was a great night filled with great tools and great reminders that were just as appropriate for the "not so young" women.... like me!

Always. Sometimes. Never.

I always:

* make the bed

* put 2 bounce sheets in the dryer

* want to go on a vacation

* watch the Today Show

* wait for the empty light to come on before filling my car with gas

I sometimes:

* sleep past 7am (by sometimes, I mean rarely)

* wear perfume

* go to bed at 9pm

* listen to my ipod

* cook dinner

I never:

* take naps

* get cheese on my hamburgers

* leave dishes in the sink

* want to exercise

* drink milk

A Beautiful Evening

My heart is very full today and I have found my emotions very close to the surface all morning. We had an incredible opportunity to be a part of an amazing family home evening fireside last night for our ward and neighborhood with the musical talent behind the Reflections of Christ project. If you aren't already familiar with this beautiful project, it's photos, videos and music then you must check it out. I posted a little bit about it when it first came out last year, and they are now nearing completion of the second installment, which focuses on Christ in the Americas. They expect it to be out sometime in the fall.

Freddie Ashby, who is a big part of the musical portion of Reflections, is a long time and very dear friend of mine and graciously agreed to round up some of the other talent and come do a special fireside for our ward. Wow. We were fortunate enough to have Clyde Bawden, a concert pianist and incredible composer of much of the Reflections music, Freddie, who is one of my true heros and has the most beautiful voice I have ever heard, Alex Boye', who's a member of the MoTab, has an impressive and diverse resume and is amazingly talented and last but not least, Jason Barney who is the producer of it all in addition to having also written some of the music. Wow. I still can't believe how lucky we were!

It was such an incredible honor and opportunity to hear the testimonies, talent and experiences of these amazing people in such a private and intimate setting. The spirit that accompanied us as they shared their music and testimonies of the Savior was undeniable. I am so thankful for the opportunity to be reminded of such incredible truths. My testimony was given a serious boost last night.

One of the best parts was for Chris and I to be able to sit back, listen and enjoy as they warmed up and rehearsed prior to the fireside. It was a private 45 minute concert and inside peek at some really incredibly talented musicians and we enjoyed every single minute of it.

We really appreciated our amazing neighbors for opening up their home and hosting this event. It truly was an honor to have such a special presentation of such an incredible project that is sure to touch anyone who sees and hears it. We were lucky enough to have them perform a few of the songs from the new, not yet released project, Another Testament in addition to many of the songs from the first Reflections. The music is beautiful and I've heard the images from the new project, which were shot in Honduras, are completely breathtaking. I'm not suprised.

These are not only talented musicians but also, and most importantly, they are incredibly nice, humble, great men. From left: Alex Boye', Jason Barney, Clyde Bawden, Freddie Ashby and cute little Karli in the front.

One of the best treats of all was being able to have Freddie's daughter Karli come with him. She has a song that she sings with her Dad and Jessie Clark Funk on the upcoming CD. Freddie shared a sneak peak with me and she's amazing! I don't get to see them very often, now that they've moved to Arizona, so I really loved seeing her again and I always love being around Freddie. He's just one of those people in my life that makes me want to be better. I really love and admire him and am thankful for the influence he's been and continues to be in my life. Thanks again Freddie. You are amazing!

If you haven't seen this slideshow, watch it.

If you have, watch it again.

It's worth it.

2009: THE SUMMER OF THE...

I can't stop eating sno cones.

I feel like I'm 10.

happy birthday...

to you!

my one and only.

my rock.

my patient, kind, consistent, hardest working, ice cream loving, doesn't know how to work the washing machine, awesome, sexy husband.

Thank you for loving me. I hope your birthday is fantastic and that the year ahead is your best one yet!

x.o.x.o.

-the mrs.

"Are women born this way?"

Easily one of the funniest clips I have ever seen...

I love it when...

something that was so fun and so cool when I was a teenager is just as fun and just as cool today.

Low Key Holiday

Our neighborhood has a long standing traditional breakfast and gathering in the park near our house every 4th of July morning. This year, the youth were in charge of the set-up. 6am came awfully early...but it looked so great once we got it all ready.

What a nerd. I sooo love this guy. (and those cute girls too)

Just some of the funny girls who got up early to help us and make us laugh...

Some of my favorite gals celebrating with me in our red, white and blue...

CJ and a few of the boys warming up the court before all the ladies showed up and schooled them. I wish. We did have a lot of fun and played a lot of volleyball before the morning was over.

This is such a fun tradition and one that we've come to love. I got way too wrapped up in our volleyball games to take pictures once the crowds arrived, but there was a HUGE turnout and a really amazing sense of neighborhood. We feel so lucky to live in such an amazing place.

************************************

CJ and I took full advantage of the remainder of the day and worked on just a few of the many projects that still loom about us and our home remodeling project. I'm not sure that we will ever be "done" but progress is always good. I really love him and he continues to amaze me with his work ethic. Mostly he works and I keep him company. :)

As evening approached, we declined the invitations to head out to the many functions and festivities that were going on and instead decided to stay in and celebrate with some home-cooking and relaxation... just the two of us!

Shrimp Tacos w/ Citrus Cabbage Slaw

&

Homemade Key Lime Pie...YUMMY.

And the best part of the day was being all snuggled up in bed, long before any of the fireworks celebrations outside ever even began.

Happy 4th of July!

c*k*j style

Happy Happy Summer