Dear Federal Government

About this economic stimulus package that has supposedly "saved" 1 million jobs, what about the millions of others that can't find a job and are losing jobs because of the economy that you are "saving." 10% jobless rate and likely to go higher. It couldn't possibly have anything to do with the government and their policies and practices.... I didn't think so.

My Choice

There is a new movie out there that is getting a lot of attention, it is called Paranormal Activity, and it seems that many of my students are watching it. I keep hearing from my students how scary it is, how they couldn't sleep all weekend, they were crying during the movie, etc. Personally, I don't try to do things that cause me to miss sleep, I have a hard enough time getting the little bit of sleep I happen to get.
For those of you who haven't heard much about this movie, I don't know much about it, but I do know that it received an "R" rating, and that is enough to keep me from seeing it. I have been told by multiple students (including active members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints) that I should "make an exception" and go see it. "It isn't that bad." "I don't know why you won't watch 'R' rated movies." Etc.
To me it is is simple, I made a decision and I am going to stick by that decision. I am sure there are plenty of 'R' rated movies that overall are pretty good movies, but that doesn't mean I am going to run out there and see it because it is "good." They are rated 'R' for various reasons, I understand this. Here is how I see it: 1. The prophet has counseled us to not see 'R' rated movies and use caution with all other ratings. 2. Our world has enough of that stuff in it, why should I go subject myself to it, pay $8 or more to attend, and give it my undivided attention. 3. I prefer to see movies that are uplifting and inspiring, last I checked, there aren't many uplifting and inspiring movies that are rated 'R.'
This is not to say that I will go out and watch any movie that is rated 'G', 'PG', or 'PG-13.' I try to educate myself on what the movie is about and evaluate what the content of the movie is. I try to be a discriminative viewer and make a decision that I am comfortable with. I'm not saying I am anywhere close to being perfect, because I know that I am far from it. All I know is that I want to always be worthy of having the Holy Ghost as my constant companion.
I am sure some of you out in the blogging world are thinking that I am a prude, sheltered, and intolerant. To this I say, I hope I am intolerant to those things, sheltered from the world as much as possible.
We have plenty of things around us trying to lead us away from the influence of the Holy Ghost and the comfort of our Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ's love. I CHOOSE to do everything within my power to always be worthy of the influence, comfort, and guidance of the Holy Ghost. I CHOOSE to do all I can to be close to my Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ. I CHOOSE to not subject myself to those influences that the world markets. I CHOOSE to stand up for what I believe. I CHOOSE to follow the prophet.
(Sorry to get on a soapbox with this issue, but I had to get it out.)

"It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year"

I LOVE General Conference weekend, a time when the members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints have the opportunity to hear messages from the leaders of the Church. This is always a time of reflection, self-evaluation, and sincere prayer for me. A time when many of the questions of the soul can be answered as you listen to the messages with an open heart and mind, while heeding the promptings of the Holy Ghost.

This morning when President Thomas S. Monson, prophet, announced the construction of a temple in Sapporo, Japan, my heart was full of gratitude. The Church members in Japan are amazing and dedicated in their faith. The Church members on the island of Hokkaido (where Sapporo is located) must either fly to Tokyo, or ride the train or drive for the better part of a day to arrive at the temple.


What a wonderful time we are blessed to live in, a time when revelation continues and our Heavenly Father sends prophets, seers, and revelators to the Earth.

The Final Weekend of Summer

Emily wanted me to post this one, so here it is...with a brief disclaimer, I HATE pictures and I HATE swimsuits. Here it is for ya Em!

It has been a while since my last post, and I really do have a few posts in the works. Okay, let me be honest, I have a few ideas for posts but I haven't actually sat down and composed my thoughts or haven't been brave enough or confident enough to post them.

Life has been busy, but good. Definitely busy.

This past weekend I went water-skiing at Willard Bay with Emily and Brian and their family, along with Vickie. I hadn't been water-skiing in at least 6 years, so this was a bit of an experience. I was worried that I wouldn't be able to get up, but decided to go for it. After a few attempts I was able to get up and ski for a while. I forgot how much fun water-skiing is and wish I had more opportunities to do so. I didn't take any pictures, but Emily made sure to be the good mom and get plenty of pictures of her kids, so of course she had to take a few of me. (Thanks for being sympathetic to my dislike of pictures Brian!)

Walking out to the "Deep" water.

I got up and even convinced myself to get out of the wake of the boat! I know, I'm a wimp.

The rest of the day was pretty good, probably one of the most productive Saturdays I've had in a very long time. I took a 15 minute nap, got ready for the day, went and got a pedicure, attended an Endowment session in the Ogden Temple, enjoyed the lightning and rain, changed the oil in my car, and finished preparing my lesson for Relief Society on Sunday.

Provo River Half Marathon

Yes, you read that correctly, I ran a half-marathon. Actually, run might be the incorrect term to use, maybe survived would be more appropriate!

So, here's what happened...Back in May(ish) Amanda somehow talked me into training for a half-marathon. For some strange reason I said okay. Looking back, I was completely nuts, but we went ahead and started to process of getting the lazy, out-of-shape, former runner (ME)conditioned enough to survive 13.1 miles of running. I'll be honest, the training's sole purpose was to get me to finish, that was the only goal and I am happy to say that it was accomplished. We ran probably 3 times a week (if that many). Here is the kicker, on my Summer vacation I woke up early enough to be at Amanda's by 5:30 a.m. THREE TIMES A WEEK! Many people would call that dedication, I call it INSANITY.

I was feeling pretty good most of the Summer, but a few weeks before the race my right IT Band started to bother me. I wasn't very shocked since most of my high school running career I was fighting some sort of tendinitis. Our longest training run was about 9 miles, so going into the race I wasn't even sure if I could make it 13.1! To top it all of, the week before the race I somehow tweaked my back and could barely walk for 2 days. Thank heaven for a good chiropractor, ice, advil, and a lot of rest. The entire week before the race I did not run one time. Ah, the serious nature of my training ;)

The evening before the race Amanda and I drove down to Provo to pick up our numbers, t-shirts, and any other instructions needed for the following morning. After picking up our stuff we met Shannon at Macaroni Grill for some prerace carbo loading. It was so good to see Shannon and catch up a little bit. After dinner Amanda and I drove to Lehi where we would be staying at Erin's (Amanda's friend) house. We really meant to get to sleep earlier, but I had a feeling that wouldn't be the case. Too much chit-chatting before bed!

The alarm clock went off WAY TOO EARLY. My thoughts included: What in the heck am I doing up at this awful hour to run 13.1 miles? Is my body going to hold up? Am I going to survive? Will I still speak to Amanda after this is all over, since it was her idea? We drove back to Provo, hopped a bus on a pretty chilly August morning. (I never imagined I would get a 64 degree day for a half-marathon on a Saturday in August, but I was EXTREMELY grateful for that temperature.) I am still thinking that this is completely crazy, but then again, so am I.

We started the race, and to be honest, the first 4-5 miles just flew by. It is the best I have ever felt running. By mile 7 or so my knee started acting up, but you all know about how stubborn I am, so I just kept on going, stopping every now and then to tighten my knee strap. Then the real fun kicked in, my left foot started hurting, and I mean HURTING, at about mile 10 or 11 (I really try to block out this portion). At this point I was considering just walking the rest of the way, giving up, etc., then the stubborness kicked in. I tried, and tried, and tried to get Amanda to go on ahead. I knew she was feeling good, but she insisted on staying with me. We walked a little, but for the most part just went at a pretty slow jog. At mile 12 I told Amanda to go ahead and I would see her at the finish line. I knew at this point that I would finish if it killed me, I wasn't about to go 12 miles and not get that last mile in. That last mile wasn't as bad as I had imagined it would be. I spent that time thinking, pondering, and communicating with my Heavenly Father.

People ask me how I did and my response is that I accomplished my goal, FINISHING! My time was 2 hours 12 minutes and I am 100% fine with that time. The course wasn't too bad, mostly downhill with beautiful scenery.

At the finish line Amanda gave me a big hug and asked if we were still on speaking terms. I assured her that we are :)

After the race I didn't dare sit down because I knew that if I did I would never get back up. Amanda wanted a pancake, all I wanted was the delicious watermelon and some water. Once we were done eating we went back to Erin's to shower and get into some clean clothes. Then the lovely drive back home.

It only took me about 2 days to be able to walk normally again, and the left foot thing...the doctor says it is either tendinitis or a stress fracture! Ah, the joys.

Looking back I can say that I am glad I did it, will I ever run another half? Not anytime soon! I am so grateful for Amanda who stuck with me the entire race when she was feeling good and could have gone so much faster. I can guarantee that if she wouldn't have stuck with me I wouldn't have finished. Thanks for sticking with me and encouraging me the whole way. You are an amazing friend and I am so blessed to have you as a part of my life. Love ya babe!

My Trip to Portland & Seattle (Finally :))

Since my computer is being a pain I will just go in reverse order of how my trip went.

Sunday
After driving 1800+ miles over the weekend I hit a deer with my car just outside of Tremonton, UT. That is right, I was less than an hour from home and hit a deer.
My parents came and picked me up, we sent my car to the shop in Brigham, and I went home frustrated and very tired.
Final Score Rachel-1 Bambi-0

Outside of Portland there is a beautiful waterfall, called Multnomah Falls, right by the Interstate. I couldn't help but stop and take a picture or two.

The 11-hour trip home was a wonderful time for me to do some thinking, pondering, and reflection. I think I spent 2-3 hours of the time riding in silence and having a good hour-long heart-to-heart with my Heavenly Father. I am grateful that I turned off the radio and took the opportunity to feel the Spirit.

Saturday
Sunset over a bridge along the Wilamette River.

Since I found myself with a little extra time I made sure to stop by and see the Seattle, Washington Temple. I wish I would have had some time to do an endowment session.

This is Imri Larsen and me at a kaiten sushi restaurant in Seattle. Imri and I served in the same area, Yamato-Kouriyama, for 6 months. He lives up in Seattle and is going to the University of Washington.

The Space Needle

Pike's Place Public Market-I saw the famous "Fish Throwers" at Pike's Place Fish Market, bought some fun souvenirs, just walked around and enjoyed the atmosphere, and on Amanda's suggestion (thanks babe) I bought myself some gorgeous flowers.

Friday

I spent the entire day with my Dad's Cousin, Larry. We did some sight-seeing and went out to dinner for some delicious, fresh seafood. Yummy!!!

We went to the Japanese Garden, which reminded me of Japan quite a bit.

We also went to the International Rose Test Garden. Portland is, afterall, the City of Roses.

This is Larry.

THIS is Larry's replica 1934 Mercedes Roadster. He built it from a kit over the period of a few years. It is a beautiful car and was very fun to drive. He pulled it out of the garage and I went to get in the passenger side, to which he responded, "You drive, I'll navigate." I've never driven a car that nice. When we pulled into NikeTown a man said, "That is the most beautiful thing I have seen in a long time." The sarcastic side of me wanted to reply, "The car isn't so bad, either." But, I stopped myself!

Thursday

This is the Portland, Oregon temple.

Thursday

I spent the day with Ariana's family, friends, etc. with the wedding stuff. Ariana and I were mission companions in Yamato-Kouriyama, Japan for 4 1/2 months. The sealing was beautiful and I am extremely grateful I was able to be there to support Ariana and Gabriel. After the wedding we took pictures outside of the temple and then headed to a nearby park for lunch. The evening was spent helping out with the reception, most of the time in the kitchen getting food, etc. prepared. I'm so glad that I took the time to go to Portland to be there for this wonderful occasion. Thanks for the invitation, love you guys!

Wednesday

I got out of my college class at 11:30, went and picked up the cross-stitch I was having framed, loaded up the car and set out on the 11-hour car trip to Portland, Oregon

This was a wonderful trip and I am happy I did it, even if I did hit a deer and had to be without a car for 10 days!

Vacation

Our home computer is down right now, so I won't be able to get my vacation update on here for a few days.
To summarize my trip (I promise more details and pictures when we fix the computer):
Wednesday-Go to class, take a test, drive for 11 hours
Thursday-Sealing in Portland Temple, wedding stuff all day
Friday-Sight-seeing in Portland, driving a replica 1934 Mercedes Roadster
Saturday-Seattle
Sunday-Drive home, Hit a deer
Now doesn't that sound like a lot of fun?