BYU Jerusalem 10 YR Reunion

It'll be 10 years this coming Fall that I spent a semester abroad studying at the BYU Jerusalem Center. Having the great husband that I do, and all the support around me to help with my kids, I was able to fly home to Utah (ALONE) to attend my 10 year reunion. It was an excuse to see some good friends and to have a little weekend away. After missing my flight out of Portland due to the most horrible traffic I have ever been in in my life... I did eventually make it to Utah. It was great to catch up with roommates and friends from that time in Jerusalem that I had not seen in years. You can imagine how close we all got. The center was like living in one big house with 170 roommates for 4 months. We were one of the last groups that BYU took over before they closed the Jerusalem Center due to the state of unrest in the surrounding areas. It has recently reopened.

On the flight there, I had time to read back in my journals and to reflect on the whole experience. Every day I wrote how I never wanted this experience to end. It was absolutely incredible. I also wrote about how tired I was. We had field trips where we had to be on the bus by 6am and we'd fall into our beds at midnight. We traveled to Jericho, to Jordan, to the Sinai Pennisula and spent two weeks in Galilee and Egypt. I took classes in the Old Testament, the New Testament, Acts, Near Eastern Studies, ANCIENT Near Eastern Studies, Islam, Judaism and studied Hebrew. One of my favorite places to be was at the Garden Tomb or sitting on the shores of Galilee. I wrote about getting up at 2 am to hike Mount Sinai and freezing almost to death on top of the mountain, waiting for the sun to rise. Seeing the sun come over the horizon and lighting the valley below will always be one of the most amazing views I think I will ever experience. It was simply breathtaking.

I made such wonderful friends at the Jerusalem Center. Everyone was so great and we were all there because we wanted to be. I came to know my Savior in such a personal way as we studied His life and walked where He would have walked. There is an incredible spirit in those sacred places such as the Garden of Gethsemane and the Garden Tomb. The scriptures literally came to life as we read them on location and the meaning of them became so clear.

A flood of memories have come back to me as I've been able to reflect on everything I learned and felt while studying in the Holy Land. It's made me stop and reflect on my life and my testimony and where my priorities lie now. It's good to have these little reminders every once in a while of where we should be. I am just so grateful for this amazing opportunity and the foundation it has given me of the gospel of Jesus Christ and of our Savior's Atonement.

A few of us at the reunion dinner.

Sweet Friends

A House Full of Princesses

So, I now have a 4 year old! I can hardly believe it but oh... what a fun age to be! This little girl is all PRINCESS so of course, we had to have a PRINCESS PARTY to celebrate. For two hours, I had a house full 12 dancing and singing princesses and it was absolutely CRAZY! I have never been so exhausted. Birthday parties are so much work and if you know me, I don't know how to make anything easy. To see the smile on Macy's face and how HAPPY she was to be with her friends made everything worth it. I love this girl! Anything for her! She's completely spoiled.

The girls arrived at 1pm. It was requested that they arrive in their BEST PRINCESS ATTIRE or they could dress up when they got here. They all looked so beautiful in their dresses and it just added to all of the excitement. By the end of the party, I think they had all changed into at least one different outfit and it was all we could do to make sure everyone left in the same clothes they arrived in. We decorated princess wands and party bags with glittery stickers and jewels. Note to self: Stick to stickers in the future and stay away from glitter, glue and anything that is wet and sticky! The girls loved it though! Next came the games: Pass the Slipper (similar to Hot Potato) and Pin the Crown on the Princess. Then the Dance-off-Freeze Competition where the girls danced their little hearts out to "Happy Birthday Princess" and froze when I stopped the music. I got them good and tired. Next came cupcakes and presents and the grand finale...the Princess Pinata. It was a hit. Another side-note: don't put rings and candy bracelets in the pinata that could get busted. You get what you pay for!

It was such a fun birthday DAY all together! I just love my little Macy. She is my little best friend. I love our conversations together. I love playing dollhouse and our little time at night when just me and her read stories together and talk about our favorite part of the day and all the fun we are going to have tomorrow. Macy is such a sweet little girl. She doesn't come without the drama of a 4-year-old, that is for sure, but we love her none-the-less. The twins adore her and she is such a great big sister to them. They follower her everywhere. Nicholas is ALWAYS by her side playing, but mostly bugging her like little brothers do. We are working on patience.

Here's to the birthday girl! Macy, we love you!

The Party Invites!

The Princess Barbie Cake! No, I did not make this. The sweetest girl, Lizzie, did! The girls were all in love with it! I wouldn't serve it because it was just too beautiful! I served cupcakes instead. I think the girls were definitely disappointed.

Stars in the Entryway!

The Beautiful Princesses

The sweet birthday girl opening her presents!

Princesses gathered all around.

This Tinkerbell outfit was so cute!

Macy riding her new scooter! She was so excited!

Celebrating 8 Years Together

Eight years ago today, Mark and I were married in the Logan LDS Temple. We got married on a Wednesday, of all days. I wanted August 1st. Sorry, to everyone that had to take off work in the middle of the week. It was a gorgeous day, not a cloud in the blue Utah skies. After 7 months of planning a wedding without my mother, who was in Australia serving with my dad who was over the missionaries for our church in that area, all the details flawlessly came together. I think we ran out of desserts at the reception but I didn't even notice. Come to think of it, I didn't even get any refreshments at my own wedding. I have no idea if they were good or not. All I know is that we served lots of different cakes. I remember not wanting to take my wedding dress off after the reception knowing that I would never wear it again or have a day quite like this one. Then there was the midnight run through Wendy's drive thru because we both were STARVING after the reception. It was the perfect wedding day I had always dreamed about as a little girl. The prince wasn't bad looking either ;-)

Now, looking back, we look so young and innocent in this picture. My hair is actually done and if you look close enough, we're actually holding hands. Holy smokes! I can't remember the last time we did that! J

A lot has happened in our eight short years together (12 if you're counting when we first met the summer before our Freshman year at Utah State); dating, Mark's mission, breaking up, getting back together, an engagement, a wedding, graduations, new jobs, three moves, three kids, new friends, and lots of laughs and cries, big decisions and surprises along the way. I am so glad that I've had Mark to experience all of these many little adventures with. He is my very best friend and the one I rely on to get me through the day. We are perfect for each other and I couldn't imagine my life with anyone but him. Love ya, Babe! Thanks for making life so sweet! I'm so glad we have forever!