6 posts for the month of May?

That's just sad. 

Maybe it's because I've been spending my days thinking about what to write over here every Friday. The requirement to be profound once a week can be a bit taxing. 

Oh well. 

Adi Love

This is my niece Adi. She recently decided that I am her favorite aunt, which is so flattering. Every time she sees me, her face lights up and she gives me a huge hug. She tells me that she loves me over and over. It is very sweet.


Last Sunday we had a big family dinner, and of course Adi was there. When she spotted me, a smile spread over her face as she exclaimed, "I love YOU!" She gave me a great big hug and a kiss. 


"What's my name?" I asked when she was done.
"Uhhhhh..."


I love the fact that Adi can't remember my name (or the name of any of our other family members, for that matter), but she knows that she loves us. Wouldn't it be great if we could all be that way, letting go of our impressions and judgments and categories, and focusing our energy on loving unconditionally? 


I love the lessons that we learn from children. 

Top 10 "Friday" Parodies

So my husband and I love finding parodies of Rebecca Black's "Friday." Of course, some of them are even worse than the original, but we've actually found some good ones. The list is getting so long that I decided that I just had to share.

10. The Glee Version. They make it sound more like a dance party mix.

9. The Stars Wars Version, aka "Prime Day."

8. The Conan O' Brien Version, "Thursday." Horrible quality, but that's the point, right? This version of the rap cracks me up!

7. The Christopher Walken voice over. Famous for "my hand is a dolphin!"

6. The Christian Church Ad, "Sunday." This girl doesn't sing much better than Rebecca Black. I love the rap that her pastor does in the middle!

5. The Bob Dylan version. I love this version because it is so soothing, and the comments are hilarious!

4. The Chinese Version. He actually makes it sound quite nice!

3. The soulful Mullet-guy version. I'm not sure what the best part is - his purple shirt, his hair, the beautiful piano line, how melodramatic he is. Judge for yourself. 

2. The Rockin' Acoustic Version. It makes me so happy. 

1. The bad lip read, aka "Gang Fight." This is Brandon's absolute favorite. They change the melody of the song, so it's less annoying, and the lyrics are oh-so quotable. "Sweet Carp on the side!"

Hope you enjoyed these as much as we did!


PS- My good friend Li-Sha reminded me of another great version by Stephen Colbert and Jimmy Fallon. Don't miss it! Thanks Li-Sha :]

We might be runners

Image found here.

I just signed my husband and I up to run the Lavender 5k in Mona on July 9th. I've never run a 5k before. My last race was the Dr. Seuss Magic Mile when I was about 6 - I walked most of the way. Hopefully this time, I'll do better. 


Though, my husband talks about the one time he spontaneously ran a 5k while he had a cold and was wearing jeans. If he survived that, I'm sure I can manage this race. 


And with views like this, it's sure to be an amazing experience.

Image found here.

Image found here.

Image found here.

If you'll be in Utah during the summer, you should run the race too!

The Women in my Life

Each mother's day, I can't help thinking of the many amazing women I know whose hearts break on this holiday because they haven't yet received the opportunity to be a mother - and so, I want to express gratitude for ALL the women in my life this day.


I'm grateful for my mom who taught me to laugh, to serve, to worship, and to trust in God when all else fails. She makes each day magical. She has been there for me on all my darkest days. She is my hero, and I hope that some day when I grow up, I can be like her.


I am grateful for my grandmothers who have taught me to sew, to cook, to clean, to work hard, and to appreciate my family history. Both of my grandmothers are beautiful, strong women who have always been great examples to me.


I am grateful for my aunts who taught me how to take care of babies, to have fun, and to enjoy life as it comes. I don't know any of them very well, but I am grateful that they saw the beauty in me even during my awkward years, and have always shown me love and support. I look forward to the opportunity to get to know them better some day.


I am grateful for family friends and church leaders who have taken care of me over the years. They have been like mothers to me, encouraging me in my dreams, teaching me their talents, always taking the time to listen to me and give advice. I feel blessed to have been guided through life by such angelic servants of God. Your testimonies and Christlike love have made me into the person I am today. Thank you for listening to the Spirit and being there for me whenever I needed a helping hand.


I am grateful for sisters-in-law who have welcomed me into the family with open arms. They have not hesitated to love me and help with our wedding. It is a blessing to know that my children will grow up in a family with aunts and cousins who will always love and encourage them.


I am grateful for my sweet mother-in-law who has loved me without restraint and stood up to help me before I even knew I had needs. I am grateful that she raised such an amazing son to be my eternal companion and that she has accepted me as her own daughter. I could not ask for a better mother-in-law.


Thank you to each of you women who have shaped my life. I believe that it truly takes a village to raise a child, and I was blessed to be placed in a wonderful village. Don't forget that your little kindnesses, testimonies, and acts of service really do mean a lot - they have changed my life for the better. I echo Elder Cook's sentiments - you women are incredible!


Have a wonderful Mother's Day.

Wonderfulness.

We just got back from our California trip yesterday. It was delightful. We feel so refreshed and ready to get back to work.


Our open house was beautiful. My sister did an incredible job with the decorations, food, and everything. She really is amazing! It felt like an old-fashioned garden party, and was more magical than I ever could have dreamed of. Thank you to all of you who helped out and came by to share your love and support! It was a wonderful day and we are still in awe of all the love that was showered upon us. Thank you! (You can see more gorgeous photos here.)

My uncle built this sweet archway

Sneaking away to a secluded table on one of the decks

Everybody loves Wibby!

All the children wanted to dance with us. It was so sweet!

In other good news, I got accepted for a very special internship! This summer, I will be writing blog posts for BYU Women's Services and Resources! My posts will appear each Friday. I am thrilled and honored to have this opportunity to use my talents to make a difference. 

And now, two of my new favorite videos to brighten your day. The first is the trailer for the new Winnie the Pooh movie. I am so excited! Pooh is a big part of my childhood. I'm glad he lives on. 

This video is a gorgeous song by Peter Breinholt and John Schmidt. My husband introduced it to me as we were making the long drive to San Diego. Listening to it while watching the sun set behind the beautiful Utah mountains was a very special experience. 

Enjoy your weekend and the beautiful spring weather!

Life is good. 

What Saved Me

Artist Cassandra Barney is working on a project called "What Saved Me," based on submissions from blog readers. This is my submission. 

Yes, he's wearing a grape soda pin from the movie "Up"

e.e. cummings once wrote, "We do not believe in ourselves until someone reveals that deep inside us something is valuable, worth listening to, worthy of our trust, sacred to our touch. Once we believe in ourselves we can risk curiosity, wonder, spontaneous delight or any experience that reveals the human spirit." 

I did not believe in myself until my husband believed in me. 

I grew up a shy and introverted girl. I struggled with self-esteem throughout high school and my first few years of college. I felt that I was never talented enough, pretty enough, smart enough. People told me that they thought I was amazing, but I never really believed them. I was convinced that I would never measure up, and that I would have to get used to living a life of mediocrity. 

But when I began dating Brandon, things started to change. He never gave me eloquent compliments, but quietly and sincerely showed that he loved me. He was always gentle and considerate with me. He expressed appreciation for my virtues and my morals. He recognized my strengths and told me how they had blessed his life. He told me I was beautiful, not just because of how I looked, but mostly because of who I was. He served me, and thereby showed me that he adored me. Day by day, he encouraged me and uplifted me. 

Slowly, gradually, his love changed me and helped me to believe in myself. Because I had someone that honored me, I learned to honor myself. He saw me as my Heavenly Father saw me, and helped me to focus on my divine gifts instead of my natural weaknesses. One day, I realized that I did not struggle with my self-worth anymore. I had truly learned to love myself, because of the love that Brandon had for me. That selfless, Christlike love has helped me to be happier and better than I've ever been before. I am grateful for this wonderful man who helped me discover my self-worth. My husband's love is what saved me from living in ignorance of my divinity. 

Women are Heroes.

Have you ever heard of French street artist JR? I hadn't until Tuesday. He is fantastic. 


My friend Christine just wrote a post that explains him very well. Basically, he didn't like how the news portrayed women as uncontrollable emotional wrecks, so he set out to photograph them himself and show who they really are. 

The result is powerful and stunning. 

Way to go, JR. I'm a fan.

“Art washes away from the soul the dust of everyday life.” - Pablo Picasso

Love this artist, love this video.

My favorite Kershisnik painting - "Nativity"

Hope this artist and his work wash the dust away from your busy week. Happy Friday!

Jesús De La Helguera is not my favorite artist, to say the least.

For the last day of our Northern Mesoamerican Art class (that's ancient Mexico, if you didn't know) on Tuesday, we looked at some modern Mexican depictions of the Aztecs. The most popular at the artists whose work we looked at was Jesús De La Helguera. As we viewed some of his paintings (shown below), the girl behind me whispered, "ooh, I like these! These are nice." I was disgusted at the objectification of women in these images and at the fact that members of my own sex were so used to seeing women in this light that they had been desensitized to it.

Jesús De La Helguera, "Legend of the Volcano"

Jesús De La Helguera, "Flor de Luna" In my opinion, the very worst one!

Jesús De La Helguera, "La Malinche"

Jesús De La Helguera, "El Flechador"

Jesús De La Helguera, "Grandeza Azteca"

And almost all of his paintings depict women in this way - helpless, flimsy, overly sexual creatures whose only purpose is to please the super-buff men they are attached to. This is not what women are; this is not what God made us to me.

Then the Professor showed us a Minerva Teichert painting similar to the one below:

Minerva Teichert, "Christ Blessing The Children At The Bountiful"

...and the girl behind me groaned in disgust. "Ugh, I hate Minerva Teichert!"

Some consider Minerva Teichert to be over-hyped, but I love her depictions of noble, virtuous, Godly women.

Minerva Teichert, "Esther."A copy of this hangs in the women'sdressing room at the San Diego Temple.

Minerva Teichert, "Mary and Martha"

These are the women I look up to - not the fantasized women Jesús De La Helguera paints.

Another reason why I don't like Helguera's art is because of his unrealistic body types. My first impression on seeing his paintings was, "Am I supposed to be that thin? Wow, I feel so fat!" On closer observation, I realized that his female figures are unnaturally, unhealthily skinny.Why is our culture so obsessed with equating beauty and thinness with worth?

Women, your worth is not based on your appearance. You have worth merely because you are a daughter of God. You have power and influence for good not by being a sex symbol, but by following Jesus Christ and using your gifts to bless those around you. You are so much more than a pretty face. 

I believe that actions speak louder than words - and images. My hope is that as we live virtuous lives, we can show people that true beauty comes from having character, and the true messages of the Gospel can drown out the false messages of a visual culture that objectifies women.

"True beauty can’t be painted on but is a gift of the Spirit. It is literally letting your light shine before men. When virtue is combined with obedience to the Lord’s laws of health and respect for the human body, young people truly become temples in which the Holy Ghost dwells, giving them a beautiful aura. It is this beauty that is most becoming and enduring." 

-Lynn G. Robbins, "True Beauty"