Where are you Christmas?

After waking up this morning to 6 inches of snow its officially starting to feel like Christmas. It's been especially different being at BYU than it has the last 18 years of my life, but it's definetly a great change. I have met the most amazing roommates in the world. We are all so different but we have become such a vital part of each others life. I have learned so much from them, and will be forever grateful for their amazing examples. Especially Lyss who leaves on her mission in Feburary and Katie for going to Spain for her mission in May. Couldn't ask for anything better. 

We went to Thai food one night... so yummy

As well as having stellar roommates, you should meet my family. No not my real family, but my second family. Here we are: (missing Christian and Spencer)

This week was also finals. They were a lot of fun, (call me nerd), but I shed a tear when i turned in my last test. But now i'm quite glad that I don't have that much to do, it's nice. Rachel and I went every night to the library until about 11pm. Exhausting, but fun! Sometimes we'd get distracted, but who doesn't right?

* chels: say what?  *rachel: cute boy is see?

Eh whatever, who needs boys. 

HAHAHAHA ok why not!!?!

Rat

Studying hard. 

heelloo

Besides my good friends and studying I actually have been going on dates. Here are my dates from the last 2 weeks! Fun winter dates! 

Jeremy took me to the BYU game at the Jazz Arena! It was SO much fun! 

This was a kind of blind date with Rachel's friend Bryton. Roasted mallows at Riverwoods! Super fun date! 

Tanner was kind enough to come ice skating with me! (he only fell twice) Such a fun date too!

He's definitely one of my best friends in the world.

The past few days i've been fun just being home and spending time with the fam fam. Here's a cute video i got of Chloe singing

That's all for now folks

- Chels

Final project for Service Class

This is my final project for my service class which is by far one of the best classes i have ever taken in my life. Service is such a large part of my life. This class has really helped me have a different perspective of service itself. I hope that i can take these lessons i have learned and really apply them to my life. This project was a creative project, and the only instruction we had was to define our philosophy of service. For this project (this next part is just the write up. Not the actual project) i made a collage that depicted a picture of a cell phone that is "searching for service", you know with the little bars above it... anyway. Here's my write up, and i'm hoping that in some way this will help me better apply my learning of service to real life and make a positive influence on someone's life. 

My philosophy of service: Service is relationship.

The best service we can render is service that impacts an individual on a personal and meaningful basis.

      As a cell phone searches for cellular service, we as children of God have the responsibly to fulfill a purpose by giving out our time and energy as we incorporate our own “search for service” in our daily lives. Like a phone that constantly searches for a receiver, we continue to “search for service” whether or not it is received. In every country, in every household, in every person, in every moment there is an opportunity to personally influence another’s life for the better. In today’s world, we rely on our phones to help us be the most successful in our life. Similarly, “success comes through charity. Charity brings happiness, and happiness brings success.”

Such as our primary use of our cell phones, service is a personal linking between certain individuals. Far deeper than service being a spontaneous, thoughtless process; service is individualized, it is specific, and it is relationship. Providing an individual with the most meaningful service "calls" (pun intended) for precise thought and careful transactions.

  The key to successful service is to serve with both meaning and caution. Because of the positive connotation service had previously imprinted on my life, I never would have imagined service to be a cause of harm and detriment to another person. When you see an opportunity to serve, ask yourself, "what is the best, most important way I can go about serving this person?" And the answer is: be their friend. Develop friendships; for as we develop those relationships we can better meet their personal needs by developing trust and become a resource for the other person. Once you can create these relationships, your service will then come from the heart.

"We serve those we love, and we love those we serve".

 As we go about serving it is vital that we are smart about how we serve. Our effective service not only impacts the individual but it follows the ripple effect, where it can effect generations to come. This is highly applicable to the sacrifice a young adult to give to serve a mission for the church. The Lord is now speeding up and hasting his children to go out around the world to share the happiness of this gospel. Relating back to the cell phone analogy, a phone requires service to operate, even miles and miles from home. We are not restrained to stay within a radius of where we will find service. Service is not limited to those who are just like ourselves, or those who we know will receive our service. Physical factors, disabilities, mental issues, skin color, age, gender, and religion should never be a decider of our motive to serve, they are neither an excuse to not serve at all. We can develop or improve our relationships with everyone, even those we might despise.

“service is an effective service, opposed to a casual commitment.”

…. Let us “send our signal” throughout the world, let our service be contagious, let us love those we serve so we can effectively impact their lives for the better. 

happy

Hello :) Today i am happy. There are a lot of things that make me happy. And i just felt like writing a list... :)
1. BYU - probably the coolest school in the world!
2. The gospel
3. My calling - relief society teacher, i learn so much!
4. My Job - I absolutely LOVE work!
5. My momma and papa - they're amazing
6. My siblings (C- Dog, Maya, Ry- Dog, Coco bean), oh and my dogs!
7. Gramma and Grandpa (both sides! Amazing examples)
8. My best friends (Tori & Marissa)
9. My other best friends (Katie, Rachel, Alissa, Natasha and Hope)
10. Tanner
11. Music - it can change lives!
12. Food and water (essential- so lucky i have it)
13. My brain
14. Sleep.. ahh
15. Chocolate and flowers!
16. Time
17. Nature (hiking fishing boating camping running rain sun snow leaves)
18. Holidays - they pretty much ROCK
19. My patriarchal blessing
20. The temple!

I could probably go on forever, and just because they're in order doesn't mean one is better than the others. To me they all mean a lot, in different way. I'm just so happy. I can't stop smiling and feeling extremely grateful for what i have. I love life! :)

p.s A little update on college for long lost family and friends who are curious :)

- Midterms are coming up next week! So maniac studying begins
- My favorite class is probably a tie between Service and Book of Mormon
- Haven't gotten higher than an 80% on a test. (that's before the curve)
- I'm not failing ;)
- I'm always hungry
- only 5 school weeks until Christmas break! Booyah
- my dating life?? well i've been on a total of 2 dates.. been asked out 4 times. not any keepers yet :) Plus i'm lucky enough to be visited by a good looking kid every once in a while (tanner)
- Haven't chosen a major yet..
- Tonight i sign up for classes! Wish me luck!
- ALSO, a mission?? I think it's way cool but for now, i don't think that its my thing. Hopefully in the next year or two i get to opportunity to go on one! :) Very exciting.

I miss everyone that i don't get to see very often! Thanks for all you do for me! LOVE YOU!

Chels

College baby ;)

girls

This to my best friends in the world. Chloe, maya mom and Tor. I love you all and miss you all so much.

Also, here are pics from ryans soccer game. But not of ryan or soccer. haha

Find Joy in the Journey!

alright, i admit it. College is HARD! I didn't expect it to be easy, but i didn't expect it to be emotionally, physically and mentally draining. And its only the first semester. I guess lately i've found a lot of things to complain about. But I writing here, right now mainly to clear my own thoughts and to change my own attitude.

Why is it sometimes we just feel... blah? You know those days.. Why is it like that? I mean, life is great. You are doing what you've always wanted to do. You have all the resources you need. And you are blessed in so many ways but you just feel like there's a cloud over your head. I am ashamed to admit i feel that way when the Lord has given me so much and all i can give back is a bottle of nothin'.

As a part of my job, i work with professors here at BYU in the Business School. I love my job. Not just because i get to sit in a nice comfortable chair and have a name tag and candy, but that i work with the most amazing people in the world. The life of a professor isn't easy, in fact, I am sure it is plenty stressful. Yet, they seem to come into to work every day with an outgoing, positive and energetic attitude. Same with the General Authorities of the church. Their lives are FULL of craziness. So the question is... how are they so happy? And the answer: 

Find Joy in the Journey.

I realized that finding happiness in life is more than just being successful, or having a large secure group of friends, or always looking your best, or spending your time doing what you love. Life is about change. Its about growing through your struggles. Its about those hard nights when you can't take any more reading. Its about those moments you want to give up, and you don't. Its finding joy in our every day lives. President Hinkley said that "life is to be enjoyed, not endured". We can't spend our whole lives saying to ourselves, I sure can't wait for this day to be over, or I can't wait until i'm done with college or whatever it might be. Let's find happiness in today. So bring it on world, and Come What May and Love it.


-Chels

racial prejudice

Okay, so i didn't know if it was dorky or not post a paper i wrote in my class. It's not a great paper, (sorry Mr. Nagro) but i guess i just really liked the lesson i got out of writing it:

Growing up in Utah, I didn’t face an intense amount of public prejudice against those not of my race, most of those in my community were Caucasian and Mormon. Maybe because of such a large majority of similar people it made prejudices even more extreme, but personally I never felt anything against those that weren’t like everyone else. That was until I got to Jr. High and the beginning of High School and heard racist jokes that everyone laughed about. Because everyone was saying them and having a good time, I didn’t see anything wrong with it. That all changed in my last two year of High School.

 My high school wasn’t largely diverse, with the majority Caucasian, we had a few black and a decent size group of Latinos.  The greatest racial prejudice that I participated in and that I witnessed first hand were telling racist jokes, even with those of that same race. They would participate in and laugh with those who told jokes against their own race. As a means to fit in with the crowd, jokes about Mexicans or Black people, or Jews, or religion became popular and common within groups. These jokes weren’t intended to offend, but subconsciously those races joked about made them feel ashamed and hurt even though they may be laughing as well. That is where the segregation between “white Mormons” and “everyone else” began. No one ever admitted it, but you knew it, you saw and classified people into their own groups. My high schools mission statement “a community of one” motivated us to strive for unity, but if you asked students or those from different schools, they would all agree that Timpanogos was a school made up of cliques. Hispanics grouped together, band members grouped, religions grouped. It became far more than just the typical high school stereotypes.

I am ashamed of myself for making assumptions of others because of their race, living arrangement, and traditions.

I didn’t like how I felt.  I thought of how I would feel if I was criticized for my beliefs or for the way I look if I was apart of the small minority. I stood up for what I believed and when I heard a racist joke, I wouldn’t laugh, I would ignore them or walk away. Several times I told the one telling the joke to stop and that it wouldn’t do anything but hurt the other person. For some, because they were so accustomed to telling these racist jokes and became numb to how it would make others feel, my say didn’t seem to make a difference. But for others, they stopped, and realized what destruction this was doing to those around them, including their friends. If I could go back, I would take back some of the jokes I said to my own friends who were of a different race.  I realize now that everyone should be treated equally, and that we should attempt to eliminate ANY racial prejudices even if they seem harmless. Each race, ethnicity and color should be respected and valued. There is no superior race. God loves all his children, so we should too.

no shave september

Moses!!

Homecoming, football, and good times

Nothing is more fun than going back home for a few nights after a week full of college. Luckily i have the privilege of living fifteen minutes away from home. (haven't decided if it's a good thing or a bad thing yet) but so far, its been nice for me! This weekend was quite unique though because i kind of got to go back and live a day in high school again. It started on Friday Night... Homecoming game! I got to place the crown on Alisa's head! So excited she won Homecoming Queen! She totally deserved it! Then i watched the rest of the game in the students section! Supa senior all the way! love it!

Tanner always wished he was Homecoming Queen! haha

I'm making that face at my dad cause he wouldn't stop taking pictures of me! haha

My Bestest friend ever! She cheered at the game! Total replay of High School! 

Yay for Alisa!!

Alright, i had to put this picture up from last year. Good times!

Alright, then it was Saturday! Saturday morning i went up to the Brigham City temple with my Ward! It was so beautiful and amazing! The ride was extremely long and uncomfortable, and i thought my days of riding in a yellow school bus were over, but apparently they weren't. haha. It was a neat experience! That evening i took pictures for Connor's Homecoming group! I'm just lucky Connor actually let me take them, usually i'm way too cool to be seen with him, but this time he couldn't resist me haha! (just kidding, i really bribed him to let me take them so i could see him and his date all dressed up). After that it was time for the Holy War. BYU vs. UTAH. Good thing my Best friend is a Utah fan... we butted heads during the game. She was pretty excited Utah won! We also decided to pick up "stalker" status and spied on everyone after the dance and drove around looking to find door step scenes to watch. Don't judge us, we're just really missing high school.

Homecoming Pictures

So adorable!

Connor and Casey

Lookin Good!

The Entire Group!

The boys

The Girls

BYU vs. UTAH

And to end the week off, was Sunday. We had regional conference, lots of family time, and temple square with Tanner, Kylie and Reid!

Mom

 Today i'm very happy. Maybe its the weather, or the feel of fall approaching, or the start of school, but today i've just felt so many familiar feelings and i've just had a continuous flow of memories from living at home. My thoughts then meet at a central source, the source that made it difficult to leave, the one who i look up to the most, the one who made home for me, a place where i am the most happy. and that one person is my mom.

Its been a little difficult for me my first week of college, its a lot of change and i am really homesick... thanks to my mom, for making home my place of refuge and a place that i know i've found my greatest strength and i miss my home mainly for that reason.

Thanks mom for making it hard to leave. But thanks mom for helping me grow up.

The tiniest things have made a huge impact on my life. The comfort of coming home each day from school, to see my mom there anxious to know how school was or having an "after school snack" ready. The smell of pumpkin spice, and the bags of candy that mom would buy as Halloween approached. She even made our costumes for several years, how amazing is that!? I especially love Christmas time when we come home and mom is busy with friend presents, angel tree gifts, family gifts, or she's making some delicious treat (which either included beans or she had made up herself) Or she gets down the decorations and together we all decorate the house and listen to 106.5 for hours. I love the times in the summer when mom comes home ready to have a fun day, she takes us on an awesome hike or to the pool. We just all love to spend time with mom. Or on a cold January day, where the snow is coming down hard and mom makes us hot chocolate and we watch movies. Or those times when we would break out in crazy dance parties, or giggle at the dinner table, or eat an entire bag of m&m's (mom- naughty, naughty ;) ) haha. or even going to Gold's gym, where mom would kick my butt into shape. I will never forget those little things mom, that you did for me. they truly mean a lot to me! And i look forward to the many years ahead where i know mom will still be there with me.

We might not have it together all the time as a family. We have our hard days and our fun days as well. But despite what we might be struggling with, mom is still able to make our home a place where we can be happy.

I am extremely grateful to have my mom in my life. Thank you for all you have done for me. I miss you every day! I look up to you in so many way, ways that i won't ever be able to describe.

I love you

We need more women of faith

Sister Margaret Nadauld, a former General Young Womens President spoke about the joy of Womanhood. This quote continually keeps popping into my head because i feel its extremely important for becoming the type of women the Lord expects of us.

"Women of God can never be like women of the world. The world has enough women who are tough; we need women who are tender. There are enough women who are coarse; we need women who are kind. There are enough women who are rude; we need women who are refined. We have enough women of fame and fortune; we need more women of faith. We have enough greed; we need more goodness. We have enough vanity; we need more virtue. We have enough popularity; we need more purity."  

There are several examples of women in my own life that i feel represent the qualities of tenderness, kindness, refined qualities, goodness, faithfulness, virtue, and purity.. Some of those women include the following

my mom
my grandma Judy
my grandma Bev
my aunts
my friends

<3


Thanks you so much for being an example to me, and helping me to have that desire to be like you guys some day!

The fine line

Our standards. The Lord's commandments. Our parents rules. These are the lines and guidelines that keep us doing what we SHOULD be doing. Often times we feel that those boundaries limit us, which indeed boundaries do, hence the word "boundary"-- a line depicting where you shouldn't go. We may believe that this limits our abilities when in reality it becomes a boundary that lead us to ultimate freedom. These are the boundaries that save us from heartache, distress, or worry. These limits keep us within the percentage of goodness that remains in the world rather than the vast distance of evil that can overcome us. This test of our faith and our ability to follow the Lords' commandments isn't to see how close we can get to that edge before falling off the cliff. Its about seeing how far away you can stay away from it. Often times, especially for teenagers, we see how close we can get without actually breaking the rules, however, that can become a hazard because even the best kids have the tendency to slip and then they are off that mountain.  Stay away from that edge. Know your standards, keep the faith and endure to the end. Not only do trials test your faith and strength in the gospel but they also test your endurance. The toughest part of this gospel is being able to endure. Endurance, even at its most challenging times, leads to our everlasting goal. The covenants we make constantly battle with the convenience of events that attempt to take the place of whats important. There are several personal examples that each individual has where they must choose between following their covenants rather than what seems a lot more convenient. Imagine this simple analogy, a black line = bad, and a white line = good. Everything relating to your agency either goes beyond this black line or white line, it's either bad or good. There exists no gray area. So whatever you choose must either be really bad or really good, so you know that you won't have any problems getting closer and closer black if you moved into that gray. I know that if we choose to stay in the lines we will have greater happiness, true happiness, down the road. 

Seniors

I cannot believe i am graduating soon.. it's kind of a scary but exciting change. I mean, today i got introduced into Relief Society! I mean, it's RELIEF SOCIETY. I am very excited because i love all the women in my ward but it just seems strange i won't be in Young Womens any more. Anyway, here are some of my seniors. Taken by my aunt Shelly :) She's amazing.