HAPPY BIRTHDAY MOM!

happy birthday to the greatest lady ever, my mom!  top 10 reasons why i love her so much:

#1:  she's a fabulous cook.  does your mom make you sweet potato hashbrowns?  chocolate chip cookies?  green smoothies?  gingerbread waffles?  chunky monkey pancakes?  rustic bread?  divine rolls?  if she does, i'm sure she doesn't make it as good as my mom does.  my mom not only can make anything taste delicious, but she knows the importance of eating healthy and she has passed that along to me.  one of the things that i'm going to take to my own family was the rule that we couldn't come to the dinner table saying "i don't like this."  it had to be "this isn't my favorite..."  haha.  i've come to love that rule.  thanks for such a great legacy of cooking, mom.  i know i won't ever be able to fill those shoes.

 probably the best bread you'll ever taste in your life.  ever.

#2:  she's a runner!!  LOVE this!  throughout my lame, awkward 6th-8th grade years, i wanted to be good at something.  my mom, through example, made me fall in love with running.  we've run a few half marathons together, two Ragnar relays, and many other races, as well as run pretty much all over heber valley.  i can't even begin to express how valuable this time with my mama is to me.  we are able to talk while running.  i have learned so much about my mom through these experiences, and i think she's learned a lot about me as well.  these times, running with my mom, will forever be some of my favorite memories.

my family ran our first 5K!  not sure what year this was, but it was a while ago because parker and whitney look like babies.  haha.  i know, my family's awesome.  you don't have to tell me. 

#3:  she's so easy to talk to.  my mom has always been my best friend.  when i get home from school, or a date, or a night with my friends, my time is usually spent either following her around the house or sitting on her bed, telling her about what i did.  i love that she will listen to me.  i know she cares about what i'm talking about.  when i've made a mistake, i feel like i can talk to my mom about it and she will help me through it.  now that i'm not living at home, we text pretty much all day every day, and usually talk on the phone.  i'm so glad we do!  mom, i love talking to you! 

 best friends.  always.  :) 

#4:  she loves my dad.  i am so blessed to have the parents that i do, and that they love each other so much.  they have taught me what a marriage should be like, and how life should be lived.  i love that they love each other.  they love doing things for each other, going places together, spending time together, exercising together, playing games together, and teasing each other.  i want my relationship with my husband to be like my parents' relationship. 

man, look at them.  they are stinkin cute!!  20 years and going strong!

#5:  she's got an amazing testimony.  i know she loves the gospel and the Lord so much.  i don't think i could have been taught any better how to put the Lord first in my life and be successful in the gospel.  my mom has taught me that the gospel life is the best life, and true happiness can only be achieved through giving your heart to the Lord.  she pushes me to be better every single day.  how grateful i am for that!  she always magnifies her callings and tries a little harder every day.  what an amazing example.  

my young women leaders of the heber first ward.  my mom was the president and did an AMAZING job.

#6:  she's an awesome quilter.  (okay, i know you've gotta be thinking.. is there anything she DOESN'T do?!  the answer is no.)  seriously though, her quilting/sewing skills rock.  she's made so many things for me -- i couldn't begin to write them all out here -- but my favorite thing is probably my bedspread.  i wanted a "hawaiian" room for so long, and my mom spent months on my quilt.  it is a beautiful quilt.  i love it so much i brought it with me to college.  she makes the most fabulous things!  she's got soooo much talent.  i will never be as talented as she is! 

yeah, my mom made that and hung it up on each of our birthdays every year. 

#7:  she is so positive!  my mom is constantly smiling and laughing and looking for ways to make a situation better.  i have learned so much from this.  she's so friendly to everyone she meets.  she makes me laugh on a daily basis, whether it be in person, or through a text, or on the phone.  she has one of those contagious personalities, where everyone wants to be around her.  i hope that i have taken some pages out of her book!  :) 

that's my mom, right there.  always so happy!! 

#8:  she is always, always willing to try new things.  whether it be a new recipe, a new food, a new outfit, a new exercise challenge, a new book, etc.  my mom is always willing to put herself out there!  she has gained so much from doing this.  i know i look up to her for all of the new things she tries... especially when we make fun of her for trying them, and then they end up being awesome.  

one time, my mom and i went to savers and picked out the ugliest clothes and tried them on.. dontcha wish your mom did that with you?! 

#9:  she has a wonderful relationship with her mom.  i think this is what made me yearn for a good relationship with my mom.  my mom and my grandma are such great examples to me.  they, too, are best friends -- something that i look up to so much.  they love to see each other, laugh together, spend time together, and give advice to each other.  what a legacy of love.  

two of the cutest ladies on the planet.  love you mom and grandma :) 

#10:  she is my biggest support.  everything i do, my mom is behind me 100%.  she pushed me through high school to be my best.  she pushed me in piano to excel.  she is still pushing me today.  she supports my decisions and loves me unconditionally.  no better mom could do that!  mom, i love you so much.  i hope your day is absolutely fantastic because you sure deserve it.  thanks for being the best mom and my best friend!  

my support system :) 

A TIDBIT

through blog stalking (admit it.. you do it too) i found this oober cute blog by this fabulously cute girl.  she's mormon!  and doing an AMAZING job, in my opinion, about being open about her faith.  and she has about a bajillion followers.  sharing the gospel through blogging -- how awesome.

this blog post made my day.  read it, and then read all the comments.  so interesting.

the gospel life is a wonderful life!

AND WAITING

so i have two friends on missions right now:  one in brazil (where the letters take about 3 1/2 weeks to get here) and one in pennsylvania (where they take about 3 days).  i had been waiting for a letter since january from both of them.

disclaimer:  i know that missionaries aren't supposed to be thinking about writing me.  and i don't expect that!  they're focused on their missions and i am SO proud of both of them.  in any case. . .

i was starting to get so impatient when going to get the mail that melina decided to start filming every time i went so that when a letter did come, she could get my reaction on film.  (i know, it's a little bit pathetic.  okay, so it's a lot pathetic.  but i figure if i can't laugh at myself then what can i laugh at?)

enjoy the progression.  these are hilarious.

this last one is embarrassing.  i know, i know.  don't judge me.

SOME THOUGHTS

embarrassing:  i am addicted to blogging.

oops.

it seems i always just have so much to say!  so much to put out on the blogosphere, for everyone to read, whether they're interested in my life or not.

also.  what is up with every attractive male at byu being married?

i see a cute guy.  we get closer.  i smile, he smiles.  my eyes travel down broad shoulders and defined biceps to his left hand.  and. . .

there's a ring.

or.  i'm sitting in the library, surrounded by guys.  i see some possibilities.  i do the ring check.  yep, there it is.  a ring.  signifying that some other lucky girl has already snatched him up.

what is going on here?!

another thought: my ecstatic attitude toward cooking has fizzled out.  yesterday, i was starving.  i didn't feel like cooking anything.  so i went to my cupboard and took out a can of chili and a can of peaches.  and that's what i had for dinner.

starving student?  that's me.

MEET THE FAM

i love these people more than anything.  i got to go home over presidents' day weekend and spend some time with them, and it wasn't long enough at all!  they mean the world to me.  here is a tidbit about each of them:

this is my dad.  he's a goofball, but one of the best men i have ever met.  he's a spiritual giant.  i am seriously so thankful that he leads our family in righteousness.  i love my papa so much!  he loves movies,  reading, football, the gospel, and his family.

parker is my younger brother.  he's 14 and growing up fast.  i think he looks older every time i go home.  he just got his braces off and is loving his straight teeth!  he's such a stud.  he plays the piano like a champ.  check him out!  he loves running, football, reading, movies, piano, hanging with his buds, teasing all of us, and talking.  love this kid so, so much.

my mama.  she is the most amazing lady in the world.  she's hilarious and my best friend.  she teaches music at the elementary school and does a fabulous job.  she loves running, quilting, cooking, teaching her family how to eat healthy, and the gospel.  she has an amazing testimony and is such an example to me.  love you mom!

yeah, this is me.  you already know me, but i'm 19.  i'm attending byu and absolutely loving it.  i love running SO MUCH, reading, being goofy, singing, playing the piano, and hanging with my friends.  i love the gospel of Jesus Christ with all my heart and every day, i learn something new about it.  i am so blessed.

the sweetest kid you'll ever meet.  right here.  jaren is 11.  love him to death.  he loves reading and is super duper smart.  he also loves video games, being outside, playing with his friends, and making cookies.  he makes the best chocolate chip cookies ever.  he's pretty shy around people he doesn't know, but he's got a fabulous sense of humor that surprises me.  love you jare bear.

whit twit.  my sister and very best friend.  whitney is 16 and such a beauty.  seriously, she is drop dead gorgeous.  she and i have been best friends since she was born, from playing barbies and house to making up dances to talking about boys and sharing clothes.  she loves boys (haha whit, i'm joking), her friends, watching movies, doing hair and nails (she's way better at that than i am), running, and crafts.  i love when i get a text or call from her -- it brightens my whole day.  she makes me laugh and is such a support to me when i need it.  i love her soooo much! 

TENDER MERCIES

tender mercies.  a term that i feel like i never really understood.

yesterday, amidst my own hardships and feeling bad for myself and being oh-so-lonely, i got a text from an old coworker of mine. she's older than me and is raising her daughter alone.  i haven't talked to her since christmas break.

the text said, "hey shaylee, it's tess.  for some reason i've really been thinking about you for the past couple weeks. . . is everything going okay?"

i about started bawling in the middle of the cougar-eat.

an overwhelming feeling of gratitude came over me.  some people may say, "that's just a coincidence." ...but i don't think it was.  that was the Lord's hand in my life, knowing that i needed someone to show me a little love and remind me that i have so many people who love and care about me.  tess may not ever know how much that little text meant to me.  she may not know why she was prompted to text me.  she probably doesn't even recognize it as a prompting.  but that text?

that was a tender mercy.

this morning, my roommates and i went running.  waking up early (haha okay, it was 9:30, but still!) and going outside when it's cold didn't sound so fun to me.  but of course i went.

we walked outside, the sun shining brightly over the snow-capped mountains.  it was a beautiful day. when we started running, i put my ipod on shuffle.  the song that came on was "somebody like you" by keith urban.  the lyrics were so awesome!

"i'm lettin' go of all my lonely yesterdays, i'm forgivin' myself for the mistakes i've made. . . i wanna feel the sunshine, shinin' down on me and you. . . when you put your arms around me, oh baby there ain't nothin' in this world i can't do.  sometimes it's hard for me to understand, but you're teachin' me to be a better man.  i don't want to take this life granted like i used to do."

that was another tender mercy.

this week i've been so silly.  when the Lord wraps his loving arms around me and reminds me with his tender mercies that everything's going to be just fine, there isn't anything in this world that i can't do.  with my Father in Heaven as my guide, i will be successful in becoming better.  it'll take some work, of course.  but so did running 5.6 miles this morning.

elder david a. bednar said, "i testify that the tender mercies of the Lord are real and that they do not occur randomly or merely by coincidence.  often, the Lord's timing of His tender mercies helps us to both discern and acknowledge them."  (i wanted to copy his whole talk and write it here but it was way too long.  you should definitely read it though. go here.)

A HARD WEEK

this week has been an interesting one.  to say the least.

these things called hormones that make us moody. . . yeah, they're not so great.  this week i've been crying, angry, upset, emotional, depressed, happy, excited, positive, and negative.  all of those different emotions since tuesday.  i think we'd all agree, some days are harder than others.

so i've been doing a lot of writing in my journal, a lot of time on my knees, and a lot of time turning the pages of my scriptures.  it's been a self-evaluating week for me.

here's my thing:  i want to be well-liked.  i know, i know, DUH.  everyone does!  but really.  i want to be able to be myself and have people like who i am.  do they like who i am?  i want to be known as really happy, really nice, and really easy to be around.  is that how people view me?  i really hope so.  i want to be a better friend.  i want to be a better student.  i want to be a better version of myself.

on wednesday i was feeling really down about myself.  i was home alone, working and studying, and feeling like a terrible person.  (satan pulling me down. what a jerk.)  i sat there, feeling bad about myself, when i had the thought:  hello!  stop thinking about yourself!  think about somebody else!

right then and there, i pulled out my cards.  i wrote a card to my grandma.  i wrote a letter to a missionary. i wrote cards to both of the girls i visit teach.  then i delivered all of these things.

i felt a little bit better.

moral of the story?  we're all going to have some times when we feel bad.  that's just part of being human. we make mistakes, we dwell on them.  but we have to be able to find a way to feel better about ourselves.  on wednesday, my way to feel better was to think about someone else.  it worked for me.

i'm still not feeling 100% about myself.  but hey, i guess that's okay.  it was a hard week.

next week will be better.