Abbrievs....

have got to go.  Maybe it's just me, but I am sick and tired of terms (if you can even call them that) like "totes" and "jelly." Ya know how people are always saying things like, "I wish we still spoke in Jane Austin tongue"?  Well, this is why:  "Oh, he is totes one of my fave peeps ev.  I am totes jelly that you get to go on a date with him!"  I'm sorry...what?!  I cannot tell a lie.  I am guilty of using these abbreviations.  It started out as harmless mockery of one of the guys in my ward, (don't worry we are friends so I made fun of him to his face, not behind his back.  I really don't like the whole behind-the-back stuff) and then it turned in to me actually using said "abbrieves" in my daily speech!  I am ashamed.  Ya know, I don't mind a couple of them, def and perf and of course legit are fairly acceptable.  Totes jelly, though?  Really?  Here we are in my Ethics and Values class, having a very nice discussion on, you know, Ethics and Values...when a girl blurts out I'M TOTES JELLY THAT YOU...blah blah blah...I don't even know how she finished her sentence because I was just in so much shock that she said that!  (Yes, I do realize that I just talked behind her back.  It was for demonstration purposes.  Sorry).  Here's the thing.  No one is perfect at speaking the ever-complicated English language.  If you are, I commend you greatly.  I mean I realize that I frequently use words like "difficultness" and things like that, but the laziness of us texters and tweeters and bloggers has just gotten out of hand!  Now we speak this way!  It is just something that has kind of begun to peeve me.  Obviously.  Anyway, tell me what you think.  Unless of course it's mean, or you are going to make me feel stupid for sharing something that I have just been thinking about.   So basically just say something if you kind of agree, or maybe have a funny story.  I love funny stories!  Well, I'll stop now...have a good night!

Fall Festivities

My Thanksgiving was....WONDERFUL!!!

Thanks to my WONDERFUL family. 

Here are a bunch of fun pictures!

My mom had me make these cute little name-placers.   

Our new kitchen just got finished, and Thanksgiving dinner was
our first meal to eat in it!  

We have much to be grateful for,
so I hope you all had a WONDERFUL Thanksgiving as well.
ON TO CHRISTMAS!!!

Shout Out....

To my dear Katie Bastian.

This lady.

Isn't she lovely?!

I may or may not have stolen these pictures from her facebook profile pictures. :)
Isn't she gorgeous?!  Oh my goodness. 

Katie plays Mary in Savior of the World.  She plays the part so well,
showing her own soul and testimony throughout.

Me, Mer, and Katie at Tuchano's

As you all may have noticed, I like to do little shout outs to some of the people who are truly inspiring me at the time.  I met Katie in Savior of the World and she is in the Mo-tab with my dad. I introduced myself to her one day at rehearsal, and we have been kindred spirits ever since!  Katie and I have both expressed how amazed we are at how fast we became such good friends.  She and I are sooooo a like, it's weird.  We feel like we have been friends for a lifetime.  Probably even before.  :)
 Katie is one of the most passionate people I have ever known.  She feels so freely, and expresses those feelings in the most eloquent way.  She is a wordsmith.  It is one of her many gifts.  I read her blog, and want to publish it so the world can be inspired by her as well!  The world would learn a lot from this girl.  I am constantly amazed at her sincere desire to improve - improve the world and improve herself and improve the lives of dear ones around her.
Saying that someone just knows what to say to make you feel better is so cliche, but Katie is truly so intuitive.  Her empathetic heart moves her to say things and do things and serve others in ways that are life-changing.  There have been several times that her words and actions have brought me to tears by the way they touched my heart.  To me she emulates exactly what it means to be a spiritualy-intuned daughter of God.  I want to be like her when I grow up.
I can honestly say that my life has been forever changed because of my angel Katie.  I am humbled that I am blessed and privileged enough to know her.
Everyone needs a Katie.

A Treasure for YOU!

Quick Update

Have I ever mentioned how much I love my roommates?  Well I do.  

Have I also ever mentioned how much I love this?

(when I say "this" I mean Savior of the World. 

 The following are all pictures of SOTW besties.)

Besides making some of the greatest, eternal friendships, I am learning so much from being in this.  I know I post about it a lot, but it is so important to me right now.  It is such a humbling, emotional thing to be a part of this great work.  That's what it is.  Missionary work.  We are told every night by the directors that this is not a "show" and we are not "actors."  This is a missionary service.  Being a part of this is like trying to drink out of a fire-hydrant.  It is a lot to take in sometimes, but I am so grateful for it because I know it is making me a better person.  However, enough about me.  It is a show about Jesus Christ.  His gospel.  We are also reminded by the directors that it is for His glory.  We are told to not try to be seen on the stage, but to be windows to His love.   In most shows it is the exact opposite.  The spotlight does nothing here.  How amazing is it that The Savior of the world gained the world not by always trying to be seen, but by quietly showing the greatest love possible?

I love that.

Oh.  As far as school goes...I don't have any pictures for that....but I did get a 98 on my last Stats test!  You done been ACED!  Also on my Stats test, I was awarded the cutest tree diagram because I actually made the diagram into a tree with grass and flowers.  I go to college.   English is hard and is giving me a run for my money.  Actually my parents money.  Well, and scholarship, but still.  That class is definitely pushing me.  A lot.  I am thrilled to actually have my schooling kind of mapped out!  I just have Winter semester, and then a quick, 2-class Spring semester before I have a degree!  Associates, that is.  Then, in the fall of 2012, I plan to just live at home and save some money.  Hopefully I'll be in Little Women at Center Point Theatre.  I love that show.  THEN, in the Spring I will go to Utah State (where my heart and pride truly lie), and there I will take 2 classes that are specific to USU and required for applying to the Advanced Standing Social Work Program.  Usually people take those 2 classes the semester they apply, and one can only apply in the spring, thus me taking Fall semester off.  It works!  So that is the plan, and we will see how well that plan plays out.  Sometimes I try not to predict too far into the future because you never know what the Lord has in store.  But!  One can dream and prepare.  Mostly trust.  

Ummm let's see.  I'm not dating anyone; I'm just getting more awesome.  I am the Gospel Docterine teacher, and I love it.  It is my dream calling.  What else???  Can't think of anything.

So, yeah!  There is a small Hannah update.  

But to Learn

Savior of the World is changing my life.  In so many ways.  In good ways.  In sometimes painful, but very good ways.  Our Father in Heaven is a father of mercy.  I feel so humbled by all that is happening in my life.  

"Have you given up hope, Thomas?"

"Hope, no.  But my demands, yes."  

I feel like layers of fear, stubbornness, and pride are being stripped away from me.  That's what I mean by painful.  However, the pain leads me to feel the purest kind of peace that only comes from recognizing my nothingness compared to the Lord and His all-knowing majesty.  

It isn't just for others that I was told to try out for Savior of the World.   I have begun to accept the unknown that lies ahead - it is for me.  

"Trust that the Lord will fulfill His promises.  In His due time. " 

I Feel I am Your Daughter

"God is inside me."

I know because of strength that is not my own. 

 I get it from my Father.

I know from the attributes that make me, me.  The ones that I inherited from you.  

My sensitivity.  

I know because I can feel your majesty in my heart - "Your heart beat makes my heart beat."

 I know because of that night I was laying in bed, scared to death - suffocating.  I told you I wasn't going to close my prayer.  I wanted to stay in prayer as I fell asleep.  I wanted you to stay right by me 

as I slept.  

You stayed. 

 I felt you hold my hand.

I know because of the conversations that we have.
I love them.
Even when I don't immediately recognize that they are happening.

I know because you sent your son, my brother, to rescue me.
Everyday.

Father, I feel I am you daughter, and I promise that one day,
I'll come home.