now listen here...

Inspired by a friend's blog list, here is what I would tell my younger self:

1. He's out there, and you'll find each other when the time is right, so stop looking around and "what if"-ing and enjoy your life.

2. Keep being driven and stubborn. Being strong is your gift.

3. Don't let being driven and stubborn make your life all business all the time - you'll have the rest of your life to be a grown-up.

4. Yes, high school is easy - but with just a little effort you will ROCK it!

5. Repeat after me - "Everyone else is as insecure as me." Repeat often and BE A BETTER FRIEND!

abc's

Copy this from my cousin's cute wife's blog:

A. age :: twenty-nine (my birthday was only 3 months ago but it still took me at least 30 seconds to figure out my age!)

B. bed size :: queen (Trevor wants a king, but I think we should both just loose some weight)

C. chore you hate :: dishes (it's the only thing I really have to force myself to do)

D. dogs :: allergic (but if we had a heated garage and a bigger yard I'd probably indulge my husband's wish for an outdoor one)

E. essential start to your day :: my scripture/journaling/personal prayer routine (if this gets missed or skipped over for any reason, I can guarantee you don't want to get in my way - I just get kinda mean and impatient)

F. favorite color :: charcoal gray

G. gold or silver :: silver

H. height :: 5'6 3/4" (I still measure myself frequently to see if I've gained that extra quarter inch)

I. instruments you play :: piano

J. job title :: mom extraordinaire

K. kids :: Josh and Taylor

L. live :: Brooks, Alberta

M. maiden name :: Mendenhall

N. nicknames :: depends on who you ask (Mendenhall relations call me Lisa D, or Lisa Diane. Carly sometimes calls me Lu-lu, Julie often calls me some variation of Lisee. Privileged and dear friends from back-in-the-day refer to me as Lisa-piece-a-poo, not flattering, but true. Trevor calls me his "little field patty" or "meadow muffin", not really flattering either. I think I missed a couple)

O. overnight hospital stays :: I've only ever been admitted to the hospital for baby-delivering purposes.

P. pet peeve :: when people mis-use or mistake or mispronounce works (I am currently irked by "fustrate", instead of fRustrate)

Q. quote :: "I know you KNOW, I want you to DO." Thanks Dad.

R. righty or lefty :: right (but sometimes I pick up a pen with my left and go to start writing and am momentarily confused as to why it's not working properly)

S. siblings :: Julie, Joel, Dallin, and Carly (and super SIL Christa)

T. time you wake up :: whenever my kids decide to get up (anytime between 6:30 and 7:30 usually, but I can't rule out an occasional 5:30)

U. university attended :: UofLethbridge, but not completed (that's right you've discovered my not-so-secret shame: I'm a drop-out)

V. vegetables you dislike: I can't come up with one

W. what makes you run late :: When I come home from an early Sunday morning meeting to find my children still in their pjs and my husband just getting into the shower - 10 minutes before church is supposed to start!

X. x-rays you’ve had :: dental xrays

Y. yummy food :: steak (thank you Frank for converting me to the ways of medium-rare meat and horseradish, your contribution to my life lives on in every expensive date-night dinner my husband buys me!)

Z. zoo animal favorite :: anything behind glass (you'll find me face-smushed to those exhibits for hours!)

um, ya, like that

Random conversation with missionaries:

Me: Oh, I read that on so and so's* blog
*names changed to protect peoples identity (and the fact that I stalk alot of blogs)

Elder: They have a blog?

Me: Yup.

Elder: Do you have a blog?

Me: Ya, but I'm really bad at keeping it up.

Elder: How bad? like only once a week?

Me: Um, ya, like that.