Sunday, April 24, 2011

Happy Easter!!

Happy Easter my friends! I hope that it has been an excellent one for all of you! It has for me. Sacrament meeting was great. One of the speakers shared this story that I absolutely love. Talks in Sacrament meeting are almost always great, especially on Easter. But today, because things were focused specifically on the Savior and His atonement, they seemed to hit me a little bit harder.

After church, I decided that I really wanted to make cupcakes. I was in one of my crafty moods. They didn't turn out as cute or as delicious as I hoped but, they were better than some things I've made.

Can you tell that those are Easter eggs? That's what they are. In case you were wondering.
In case you want to attempt something like this, let me warn you, don't put
any oil or Crisco in the chocolate like you would normal melting chocolate.
It lasts 1.2 seconds out of the freezer and then starts to fall over.
After I was done making cupcakes and helping my mom make dinner, one of her former students from Texas, Kelly, who is attending BYU came over and we ate the most delicious Easter dinner consisting of pineapple glazed ham, funeral potatoes, blueberry Jello salad, and homemade bread. Well, we had much more than that but those were my favorite things.

Kind of a stinky picture of a table before we actually ate at it.
That is actually not the ham that I ate because I forgot to take
 a picture of it before we ate it all.
Photo Credit
Blueberry Jello salad. Yes, it looks disgusting. But let me just say- DELISH!
Funeral Potatoes. I think we've all seen those in one form or another.
But, that doesn't make them any less enjoyable.
Well, I'm starting to feel just a tad hungry again. So, that's all for now!

Do You Want a Donut?


There was a boy by the name of Steve who was attending Seminary in Utah. Here, Seminary classes are held during school hours. Brother Christiansen taught Seminary at this particular school. He had an open-door policy and would take in any student that had been thrown out of another class as long as they would abide by his rules. Steve had been kicked out of his sixth period and no other teacher wanted him, so he went into Brother Christiansen's Seminary class.

Steve was told that he could not be late, so he arrived just seconds before the bell rang and he would sit in the very back of the room. He would also be the first to leave after the class was over.
One day, Brother Christiansen asked Steve to stay after class so he could talk with him. After class, Bro. Christianson pulled Steve aside and said, "You think you're pretty tough, don't you?"

Steve's answer was, "Yeah, I do."

Then Brother Christianson asked, "How many push-ups can you do?"

Steve said, "I do about 200 every night."

"200? That's pretty good, Steve," Brother Christianson said. "Do you think you could do 300?"

Steve replied, "I don't know... I've never done 300 at a time."

"Do you think you could?" Again asked Brother Christianson.

"Well, I can try," said Steve.

"Can you do 300 in sets of 10? I need you to do 300 in sets of ten for this to work. Can you do it? I need you to tell me you can do it," Brother Christianson said.

Steve said, "Well... I think I can... yeah, I can do it."

Brother Christianson said, "Good! I need you to do this on Friday."

Friday came and Steve got to class early and sat in the front of the room. When class started, Brother Christianson pulled out a big box of donuts. Bro. Christianson went to the first girl in the first row and asked, "Cynthia, do you want a donut?"

Cynthia said, "Yes."

Bro. Christianson then turned to Steve and asked, "Steve, would you do ten push-ups so that Cynthia can have a donut?"

Steve said, "Sure," and jumped down from his desk to do a quick ten.

Then Steve again sat in his desk. Bro. Christianson put a donut on Cynthia's desk.

Bro. Christianson then went to Joe, the next person, and asked, "Joe do you want a donut?"

Joe said, "Yes." Bro. Christianson asked, "Steve would you do ten push-ups so Joe can have a donut?" Steve did ten push-ups, Joe got a donut.

And so it went, down the first aisle, Steve did ten pushups for every person before they got their donut. And down the second aisle, till Bro. Christianson came to Scott.

Scott was captain of the football team and center of the basketball team. He was very popular and never lacking for female companionship. When Bro. Christianson asked, "Scott do you want a donut?"

Scott's reply was, "Well, can I do my own pushups?"

Bro. Christianson said, "No, Steve has to do them."

Then Scott said, "Well, I don't want one then."

Bro. Christianson then turned to Steve and asked, "Steve, would you do ten pushups so Scott can have a donut he doesn't want?"

Steve started to do ten pushups. Scott said, "HEY! I said I didn't want one!"

Bro. Christianson said, "Look, this is my classroom, my class, my desks, and my donuts. Just leave it on the desk if you don't want it." And he put a donut on Scott's desk.

Now by this time, Steve had begun to slow down a little. He just stayed on the floor between sets because it took too much effort to be getting up and down. You could start to see a little perspiration coming out around his brow. Bro. Christianson started down the third row. Now the students were beginning to get a little angry.

Bro. Christianson asked Jenny, "Jenny, do you want a donut?"

Jenny said, "No."

Then Bro. Christianson asked Steve, "Steve, would you do ten pushups so Jenny can have a donut that she doesn't want?" Steve did ten, Jenny got a donut.

By now, the students were beginning to say "No" and there were all these uneaten donuts on the desks. Steve was also having to really put forth a lot of effort to get these pushups done for each donut. There began to be a small pool of sweat on the floor beneath his face, his arms and brow were beginning to get red because of the physical effort involved. Bro. Christianson asked Robert to watch Steve to make sure he did ten pushups in a set because he couldn't bear to watch all of Steve's work for all of those uneaten donuts. So Robert began to watch Steve closely.

Bro. Christianson started down the fourth row.

During his class, however, some students had wandered in and sat along the heaters along the sides of the room. When Bro. Christianson realized this; he did a quick count and saw 34 students in the room. He started to worry if Steve would be able to make it.

Bro. Christianson went on to the next person and the next and the next. Near the end of that row, Steve was really having a rough time. He was taking a lot more time to complete each set.

Steve asked Bro. Christianson, "Do I have to make my nose touch on each one?"

Bro. Christianson thought for a moment, "Well, they're your pushups. You can do them any way that you want." And Bro. Christianson went on.

A few moments later, Jason came to the room and was about to come in when all the students yelled, "NO! Don't come in! Stay out!"

Jason didn't know what was going on. Steve picked up his head and said, "No, let him come."

Bro. Christianson said, "You realize that if Jason comes in you will have to do ten pushups for him."

Steve said, "Yes, let him come in."

Bro. Christianson said, "Okay, I'll let you get Jason's out of the way right now. Jason, do you want a donut?"

"Yes."

"Steve, will you do ten pushups so that Jason can have a donut?" Steve did ten pushups very slowly and with great effort. Jason, bewildered, was handed a donut and sat down.

Bro. Christianson finished the fourth row, then started on those seated on the heaters. Steve's arms were now shaking with each pushup in a struggle to lift himself against the force of gravity. Sweat was dropping off of his face and, by this time, there was not a dry eye in the room.

The very last two girls in the room were cheerleaders and very popular. Bro. Christianson went to Linda, the second to last, and asked, "Linda, do you want a doughnut?

Linda said, very sadly, "No, thank you."

Bro. Christianson asked Steve, "Steve, would you do ten pushups so that Linda can have a donut she doesn't want?"

Grunting from the effort, Steve did ten very slow pushups for Linda. Then Bro. Christianson turned to the last girl, Susan. "Susan, do you want a donut?"

Susan, with tears flowing down her face, asked, "Bro. Christianson , can I help him?"

Bro. Christianson, with tears of his own, said, "No, he has to do it alone, Steve, would you do ten pushups so Susan can have a donut?"

As Steve very slowly finished his last pushup, with the understanding that he had accomplished all that was required of him, having done 350 pushups, his arms buckled beneath him and he fell to the floor.

Brother Christianson turned to the room and said. "And so it was, that our Savior, Jesus Christ, plead to the Father, "Into thy hands I commend my spirit." With the understanding that He had done everything that was required of Him, He collapsed on the cross and died. And like some of those in this room, many of us leave the gift on the desk, uneaten."

Author Unknown

I realize this is long but if you read it, I'm sure you'll agree that it's worth it.

Tuesday, April 19, 2011

I Want to Move!

Okay, I don't think I've ever wanted to move. I've done it about a million times and every time I have dreaded it. But, now, I don't think it could come any sooner. I am so so so excited to move into my adorable apartment, cook in my cute little kitchen, and party with my awesome roommate. 143 days!!!



Look how cute it is!

Monday, April 18, 2011

The Very Thought of You...

"The very thought of you and I forget to do
The little ordinary things that everyone ought to do 
I'm living a kind of daydream
I'm happy as a king
And foolish though it may seem
To me that's everything

The mere idea of you, the longing here for you
You'll never know how slow the moments go till I'm near to you
I see your face in every flower
It's just the thought of you
The very thought of you, my love"

Nat King Cole


Monday, April 4, 2011

Humble

Humble
to reduce arrogance and self-dependence 

I think that humility is one of the hardest things to master. Every human being has a problem with being humble in some way. Some have pride in their appearance, their athletic abilities, or their money. Some, however, indulge in a different kind of pride. I myself often struggle with this. Focusing on lack of specific talents or possessions is also a form of pride. There are so many ways that we can individually suffer from pride and the only way that we can improve is to move closer to the Savior and follow His example. He is the perfect model of humility and by following Him, we will be more able to be like Him. I believe that humility is recognizing that everything that we have: every experience, every talent, every penny was given to us by God. Without Him, we would be nothing.

"The first test of a truly great man is his humility. I do not mean, by humility, doubt of his own power. ... [But really] great men... have a curious ...feeling that ... greatness is not in them, but through them. ... And they see something Divine... in every other man... , and are endlessly, foolishly, incredibly merciful."
John Ruskin

"The greatest act of courage and love in the history of mankind -- Christ's atoning sacrifice -- was also the greatest act of humility and submissiveness. Some may wonder if those seeking to become humble must forever defer to the strongly held opinions and positions of others. Certainly the Savior's life evidences that true humility is anything but subservience, weakness, or servility"
Marlin K. Jensen, Presidency of the Quorum of the Seventy

Sunday, April 3, 2011

Giving

Giving:
to bestow or impart to another person without an equivalent or reward

"One of the sure signs of a person who has accepted the gift of the Savior's atonement is a willingness to give. The process of cleansing our lives seems to make us more sensitive, more generous, more pleased to share what means so much to us. I suppose that's why the Savior used and example of gift-giving in describing who would finally come home to him: 

'Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand, Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world: For I was an hungered and ye have me meat: I was thirst, and ye gave me drink: I was a stranger, and ye took me in: Naked, and ye clothed me: I was sick, and ye visited me: I was in prison, and ye came unto me... Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me' (Matthew. 25:34-36, 40)"

President Henry B. Eyring


(This is the word from last week)