Thursday, May 31, 2012

CHHS Class of 2012

I really can't believe I'm typing this post!! My baby sister graduated from high school today!!! OH MY GOODNESS! :( I'm sooooooo proud of her though! She's been through so much, both good and bad, and she's grown up so wonderfully! I'm so grateful for our parents too, and all the sacrifices they have made for her :) She had a party last night with friends, which were all graduating, except one (who is already graduated). It was so fun to see everyone and eat smores, and roast starbursts!! Lol


And now the big day has arrived. It was so fun to see Jess in her deep green, and all her friends dolled up, or the guys with nice ties, and cheering and excited!! They had more talks than I remember at my graduation, but it went good. I'm really happy for Jess! They also had a student pass away from a car accident. She was a young girl, age 17 I think, graduating with an AS too.... So they had her parents come up and accept a diploma in her behalf, it was the cutest thing and everyone was standing and clapping and cheering! I got a little teary-eyed. It was way cool! And then they were out!! It brought back so many memories of my day, and all that I had gone through and all the people who made a difference that year! I love my sister. She was one of them. She was my rock, my shoulder to lean on.... and my very best friend. I really hope she knows how much I truly appreciate her. We've always been pretty close growing up, and close in age and I love it!





One of my favorite photos! - Taken by me

Taken by Me

Congratulations Copper Hills High Class of 2012!

Wednesday, May 30, 2012

185 Days To Go!!!!

Remember this?
This was last years dom. One whole year ago I was just 6 months in!


And here I am today :) 185 days left! :)
I'm so very excited and happy!!!!

Stalking Missionaries

So pretty much missionary girlfriends have this thing.
Where we do favors for each other.
Ya know like,
"Hey, my boyfriend is serving in _____."
"OH HEY! I LIVE THERE!!"
"Really? Then say hi if you see him! :)"
"Yeah sure!! :)"

*Few days later*

"Hey! I saw him, here's a picture!"
(Or two).

Yeah, we're kinda crazy like that.
We stalk each others boyfriends and snap pictures.
But this really awesome friend of mine has done it a few times now.
She had her friend find Brady and she was kind enough to take some pictures, and
they were sent to me!! I was just so happy to see them :)



Isn't he just the cutest missionary ever??
Ugh. I miss his cute smile so much :)

Tuesday, May 29, 2012

Chocolate Milk Tuesday

Yes, we have changed it. It used to be Hot Chocolate Tuesday. But I visited my best friend tonight, and we decided to have chocolate milk instead! :) Her new place is just so darn cute, and has Jenna written all over it! She's so crafty, so she's gonna have to be my personal decorator when I move out! Hahaha, it was so fun seeing her :) We just laughed, and laughed some more..... oh and laughed again. Just memory after memory, and talking and catching up and just hanging out like old times! I loved it! :) I had some of her lasagna, and it was soooo yummy :) I can't wait to visit again!



 Love you lots best friend:)

Monday, May 28, 2012

Hogle Zoo 2012

We went to the Zoo today for Memorial Day! My sister and her in-laws/BIL's family went to the Zoo and we brought along Evan and Jessica! It was so fun! Evan just stared and I'm sure he was just not sure since it was his first time! It was neat to see the animals again! I hadn't been since like... elementary school! Hahaha anyway, we had a good lunch and were able to see the bird show :) Which was way cool! I can't wait to go back and see the Polar Bear exhibit!!

He was out after 2 seconds of being buckled in!

Sunday, May 27, 2012

Can Sisters Be Roommates?

Yeah. It's highly possible.
In fact, we've done it for 2 days now.

Even though we've lived with each other our whole lives.
Oh well.
Having the parents gone this weekend,
makes it different.
But we have survived everyone,
and the parents are coming home tomorrow.
Yay!
I've missed them.
Yes. Jessica does know how to make dinner.
And yes, I know how to eat.
It works out perfectly.
:)

Call Me Crazy, But I Love it!

Today in church, we had a lesson in RS on this.
Beautiful talk. I've read it a few times now.

I'm so blessed to babysit my nephew.
In fact, it's not really babysitting.
It's more like, lets play, laugh,
and dance to glee music on the tv!
It's best friend time :)

I truly love watching him,
and take every opportunity that I can.
We had him over the other night so my brother and SIL could go out! My sisters were all with me and we just played for a couple hours! It was a lot of fun and this boy just had us laughing the WHOLE time. That was one thing that stuck out to me in this general conference talk. That it's a blessing to be around these children; these spirit children of our Heavenly Father. And at the end of the day, no matter how stressful or horrible work was. No matter what score I got on my math test, or what boy is breaking my heart now, or if I didn't get a letter... to see that precious, most priceless smile greeting me at the door with a hug just wins over every time. I can't even describe it but my nephew has taught me so much when it comes to just being happy. He's always going to be there, smiling, laughing, throwing toys, screaming, running, hugging me, and just being carefree. He's a blessing and a constant reminder from my Heavenly Father that I have a beautiful life, and that I can just take a breather, and focus on what really matters..... my family. :)

So grateful for this little boy.
I never thought I could have so much love for him.
He has truly changed my life.

So, to the future, thank you Evan. For loving me at my best and worst.



Thursday, May 24, 2012

My 58th Letter

Now I have to explain something before I share a few things from the letter.
Well, basically to explain what I'll share from his letter.

Before Brady and I dated, we ran track together. And we were conditioning in the weight room one day, and I was lifting the bar (which btw, weighs a whopping 45 pounds, which for me, is heavy) but as Brady walked by, he looked at me and said, "You're gonna need spotters for that kind of weight!" Hahahaha, we both started laughing and I'm sure I just punched him.

And when we did date, we were at the mall one day, and we walked by a Rosetta Stone kiosk and I looked at him and said, "Babe, do you think she really knows every single language in the world?" Hahahaha he just looked at me, laughed and said, "Babe, Rosetta Stone isn't a person." Oh my goodness! We just laughed FOREVER. Hahahahahaha

So now, its my pleasure to share with you the joking my boyfriend likes to pull on me, knowing I can't slug him for it, and it also takes about a week for my response to get to him. Hahaha, oh the joys of being a missionary girlfriend :)



Ahh! Is anyone else excited that I have 6 months left??
Cause I totally am!!! :) :) :)

"Rhyfeddol! That's Welsh for "amazing ;) I just bought a Welsh-English dictionary... Perhaps I should have just asked Rosetta Stone how it's said ;) Remember that babe? You're so funny! ;)"

"I'm trying to exercise hard as well! You can probably outrun me now, so hopefully I can be as fast as you someday. It would make it easier for me to workout over here if I had a heavy bar ;) You're too cute."

"We had a sports day awhile ago, and I got to talk to the missionaries from Ashton 2. Adama and Racquel are both doing really well! Adama's son was baptized a while ago. I also think that Racquel's boyfriend has been baptized. It makes me so happy! :)"

"What if I just gave you myself as a birthday present? I'd be two months late ;) Just kidding. I'm already yours!"

Oh jeez. He's so crazy.
But stinkin' cute!! :)
He just sounds so happy where he's at right now :)

I also still have no idea why he writes me in pink ink.
Hahahahaha, gotta love him.

Monday, May 21, 2012

My 57th Letter

"I just get so excited to write you on Mondays!"

"I'm all BOMed out!"

"I like the phrase in Judges 5:12, "Arise...and lead thy captivity captive."

"I really like reading the Old Testament."

"I sure hope we get to spend Thanksgiving together..."

He's just so darn cute:)
Almost at 6 months left!!
♥

Sunday, May 20, 2012

the Last of Graduations

We are at the end in my household. My baby sister graduated from Seminary tonight! So bittersweet; and I'm sure it's even more bittersweet for my mom. I cannot believe how fast time has gone. I swear my sister JUST entered high school and I was the one graduating. I was the one giving the talk at seminary graduation (which, I still have.), the one walking up the shake hands and greet my bishop and his wife. I cannot believe it's already been 2 years (I know, like it's sooo long ago, but it is!) Everyone who spoke tonight did a VERY wonderful job! :) Their talks were amazing. It's incredible to see how strong the generations of the Lord's Army is!! To see all the bright and beautiful faces taking into their hands a diploma they spent four years to receive. Four, very hard, but very rewarding years. Seminary was my life, my all. I lived, ate, breathed, talked, walked, existed, in seminary. It was my life, and I couldn't believe I was leaving :/ But I'm so grateful for all that I've experienced 2 whole years later.

Institute is incredible and I've learned so much from my many different teachers, and the many different subjects. It's not wonder President Monson has asked us to make Institute a priority. It really does change lives, and it really does help with the things YSA's stress about!! I'm so excited for Institute to start up in June! :) It's gonna be one rockin' summer! :) Anyway, I'm extremely proud of my baby sister and how far she's come! I'm excited for her to graduate high school and experience adult life! She's come a long way, and I'm so happy for her! :) Love you Jess! Congrats Grad!

Free Pony!

So my stinkin' awesome beh friend of mine had this brilliant idea.
We were driving to her house after church, and drove past this...
Yup.
That's right.
A free pony!!
Oh my gosh.
We were laughing so hard.

We decided my nephew would love it, so we switched cars and got the truck to go pick it up. Hahahahaha we were laughing the whole time and just felt like complete idiots because we felt like everyone was watching two girls pick up this used pony. Hahahaha, we didn't care. We purposely drove on the main road to my house just have people drive past us with weird looks on their faces! Hahahaha

We showed it to my nephew and he was scared. He didn't want to touch it, or sit on it, but he liked that it bounced. After a while he did touch it, and then sat on it for like a split second but cried after that. Hopefully he'll warm up to it, because my mom said his dad (my brother) had one when he was little and loved it to death!! Hahaha, it was such a fun experience, so random, and definitely hilarious! :)

I love my best friend very much!

Saturday, May 19, 2012

House of Example

I went to the Temple today, and to my surprise, there was NOBODY there!! I was in and out in like 30 minutes, which made me appreciate the days where I'm there for 2+ hours, a lot more! Usually they have appointments on Saturdays but it was so dead!

Anyway, they were all so sweet to me. They even gave me about five extra minutes before going into the font to "ponder" what I need, and to say a prayer if I'd like. It was so sweet! The women are always so kind as well :) I love that they all lead by example! That they love and care for every single youth that walks through those front doors, to come and serve. It's an amazing feeling, and such a wonderful site to see. The Temple workers truly see us as God's children, and it shows in how they treat us. I love the people there :) I wish I could write them all a thank you letter!

What a beautiful day to have spent at the Temple! :)

Wednesday, May 16, 2012

My Blog Is 2 Years Old!

Can you believe it?
I've been blogging for 2 straight years now!
You can read all about the first chapter of this story here.

I can definitely say I've come a long way. I graduated high school, started dating Brady, went on loads of adventures with him and then he got his mission call. I got my braces off, moved down to college, came back all weekend, got close with my roommates, started my first semester of school, celebrated birthdays, conference, adventures, dates, skype calls, text messages, elder babe, etc. Then it was the farewell, my final goodbye, first finals, christmas break, emails/letters, second semester, nephew was born, spring break to disneyland, goodbye to roommates, moved home, got a job at a CU, mother's day phone call, moved to the singles ward, got close with my best friend, started school close to home, dated someone, went on a few dates, made new best friends, country swang, christmas break, three packages, ring, cruising, and here I am ready for my last summer without Brady.

I did a little summary, and I know I didn't cover it all. I can't even begin to try and tell you all that I have learned these past 2 years, but I can tell you it's been a lot. I've grown so much from that first post, and even this post. I'm a new Ashley and I love it :) I love blogging. I love blog stalking, I love blog design, I love the fact that it's my journal and someday I can print it off into a book! I'm so grateful to all my readers who have commented (given feedback) or who simply just read it to read it, and maybe nobody reads my blog, but I'm grateful for those who support me and my story :)

I wouldn't want it any other way.
I have a beautiful life,
and I ask God's forgiveness if I don't love it enough.
My name is Ashley, and this is my story :)

Only 200 Between Us

We're almost there babe!! I can't believe tomorrow I'll have to wait 199 more days.... I can't believe I'm almost in the 100's!!! I feel like just yesterday I had 500 days left!! Now I have 200 and it feels wonderful :) We're almost to 18 months and been together for 2 years!!! June is going to be a beautiful month :)

Miss you lots, finish out strong.
And come home soon :)

"There was no such thing as a dream come true. Oh, but that was all the day before you. Now you're here and everything's changing, suddenly life means so much. I can't wait to wake up tomorrow, and find out this promise is true. I will never have to go back to the day before you. In your eyes I see forever, makes me wish that my life never knew the day before you."
- Rascal Flatts 

Tuesday, May 15, 2012

Perfect Together

"He's not perfect. You aren't either, and the two of you will never be perfect. But if he can make you laugh at least once. Causes you to think twice. And if he admits to being human and making mistakes, hold onto him and give him the most you can. He isn't going to quote poetry. He's not thinking about you every moment. But he will give you a part of him that he knows you could break. Don't hurt him. Don't change him. And don't expect more than he can give. Don't analyze. Smile when he makes you happy. Yell when he makes you mad, and miss him when he's not there. Love hard when there is love to be had. Because perfect guys don't exist. But there's always one guy that is perfect for you." - Bob Marley

♥

Sunday, May 13, 2012

Happy Mother's Day :)

 Happy Mother's Day to my cute mom! :)
She's amazing and I'm so grateful to have her in my life.

My mom is my best friend. She just gets me. She just understands. She's just the best mom EVER. Ever since I was little I've always wanted to be just like her. My sisters and I would always wear her earrings, or her drill team costumes. We'd play house and pretend to be mothers to our dolls. I loved when my mom would tell us stories of  her mom and we would just laugh and beg for her to tell more stories. I loved how my mom taught us to be obedient, and honest. She taught us the importance of going to church. When I went through my rebel days and begged to go home from church, she'd always kindly tell me no, and wouldn't let me go. I appreciate her for doing that, looking back I wonder why I did that to my mom and family, because now I love sitting next to her at church and I never want to leave!

I love all that she has to teach me. I love that she's honest with me, and will answer any questions that I might have about life. She's someone I've learned to trust, it's been very hard but very rewarding. She is always there, without fail, just to listen and always give advice. She's my shoulder to lean on; she just gets it. I can't describe it any other way. I love my mom and she is everything I ever asked for in Heaven. I thank my Father in Heaven everyday for my mom. She is such a big blessing in my life.


Being in Relief Society means I get a gift too.
Dang, I'm getting old ;)

Happy Mother's Day mom :)


And to all the mom's in the world, have a wonderful day too!

Saturday, May 12, 2012

Linsey's Baby Shower!


We had Linsey's baby shower today and it was so fun! We had a great turn out and we played a lot of games! We had some food out for everyone to eat, and then got started with some games! The first game we played was "Guess the baby food" jar game! It actually is quite hard because you're not allowed to smell it, but we had some close wins! Then we had Linsey open up her presents and she was spoiled.... well okay, Sawyer was spoiled! But it was so fun to see all the wonderful things everyone got her! You can never have enough clothing, even as a boy! Then we played another game, called the diaper game. You melt chocolate and put it in the diaper, as if it were poo, and then you have to smell it and try to guess what it is!! Hahahahaha the looks on everyone's faces, and even the little kids faces were hilarious!! I loved that game :) After that we played a game where we had everyone cut off a piece of string that they thought would fit perfectly around Linsey's belly. We had about 5 people get pretty close and finally chose a winner!


It was a wonderful shower and I'm so glad I did it! I'm so grateful to all those who helped and attended! I can't wait to meet this little guy :)

Friday, May 11, 2012

My 56th Letter

Brady wanted me to share a scripture with all of you.

6 And now behold, we desire to know the cause of this exceedingly great neglect; yea, we desire to know the cause of your thoughtless state.

I can honestly say, I have no idea why he wanted me to share that.
Hahahahahaha so random.
But again, he melted my heart and he's just so amazing :)
Just a little over 6 months left!!
:)

Wednesday, May 9, 2012

The First of Many Summer Fires





My cousins Skye & Ty had a fire at their new house for his birthday! It was so fun, and good to see their new house! They have SO many mules and cute little chickens and goats, and of course, the lovely bugs that decided to join the party! We talked, and had smores, and laughed about autocorrect pictures!! Also, Skye announced that her and Ty are expecting a baby in February! :) I'm so excited for her!! Love her to death, and I can't wait to visit again!!

Saturday, May 5, 2012

Good In Goodbye

"Because we expect each other to always be the people in that picture. But people change. People aren't pictures. And you can either take a new picture, or throw the old one away."

"As bad as it was, as bad as it hurt,
I thank God I didn’t get what I thought that I deserved.
Sometimes life leads you down a different road.
When you’re holding on to someone that you got to let go,
Someday you’ll see the reason why,

 There’s good in goodbye."
- Carrie Underwood


I've been giving this post a lot of thought. I don't want it to come off as a sad post, but yet I want it to be deep, and to trigger that place in your heart that says, "Wow.... that goodbye was really hard, but I no longer feel that pain when I look back. I'm proud of how far I've come, I've made it." Goodbyes are never literal. Carrie Underwood's song explains my reasoning exactly. Sometimes things in life are hard to say goodbye to... dreams, lives, family, friends, possessions, goals, lovers, jobs, hometowns, abilities... you name it, and someone has probably said goodbye to it.

It's not how life is planned. Because again, we don't plan our lives. I like to think we do, but in the end, I honestly believe it's up to God on how our life goes. Without him, I don't think we'd be anywhere that we are.. It's within these goodbyes that we find ourselves. It's within these goodbyes that we find our true strength, that God never reveals to us until these very moments. It's these goodbyes that get us through the day. They shape and mold us. They cause us to appreciate everything that lasts longer, more.

Life doesn't just come to us easily, and if it did, there would be no life. There would be no hi's, no goodbye's, no dreams, no lives, no friends, nothing. We'd be living for nothing. But because life comes with these goodbye's we have something to live for... we have something to hold onto every single day. And that thing we hold onto is that something good will always come our way no matter what. We hold on to that hope, that happiness, that belief, that knowledge, that someone, something, is out there, somewhere, waiting for us...

There is good in goodbye, there is.
I firmly believe that,
with all my heart.

Some goodbye's are forever, some aren't. It's what we decide to hold onto, that determines its life-span. In a way, I'm grateful for the goodbye's in my life. Some have been very hard, others have been very easy, others... kind of in the middle. But each one is unique, and has taught me something different about myself that I never knew. I've seen strength in myself that I never thought existed. Somehow these goodbye's are good for me. Even though I might not agree tomorrow, it's the truth. These goodbye's lead us to tomorrow, they lead us to victory, nothing but good comes from goodbye's.

Believe it.

Friday, May 4, 2012

Family Is My Greatest Blessing

I know I post a lot of Brady on here....and my life, and the weird and crazy yet awesome things I do, but the one thing I love blogging about is my family!! I love it, and especially about the adventures I have with my nephew! He's such a stinkin' cutie and I love him so very much! :) My sister and I were lucky enough to watch him tonight while my brother and sister-in-law went to see Avengers and the parents were on a date! So we just played and it was nice weather outside so I brought some toys, including the basketball and his bouncy ball, and we just played and it was wonderful! Then my parents came home from their date and my mom joined us outside for a little bit! My sister Jess took some pictures for her photo-class so I'll share a few with you!

Evan is just such a stud. He cried cause I wouldn't let him just walk into the road, so then I taught him that we needed to watch for cars so I showed him to look both ways and if it was clear, that we could walk. Hahahaha, I'm pretty sure he hadn't a clue what I was saying, but oh well :) Then we played in the dirt some more and went inside! Then him and I just hungout! I love when we sit on the couch and he just sits next to me, and wiggles and moves, and acts silly and just talks and talks and talks really loud! It's the cutest thing, and it always makes me laugh. He's always making me laugh!! He's just a funny kid and I love him very much :) I already feel like I have a close relationship with him, and I'm so glad. I'm so happy that I was blessed with a nephew like him, and I'm even more grateful that my brother lets me watch him! I enjoy it every single time!