Life's a happy song...

... when there's someone by my side to sing along.

Thanks for reminding me of this Mayson :) And by the way everyone, this movie was quite fantastic.

"Festival of beauty"

Two days ago, I posted about a post that Matt (Please do yourself a favor and click on the link and read it. It's worth the 5 minutes) made on his blog about women's natural beauty and a challenge that he gave girls to go one day a week without wearing make-up. At first thought, I decided Matt was crazy. But, after more consideration, I thought it might be kind of a fun thing to try. Even if I feel way better about myself when I'm wearing make-up and hate going places without it, I realized there could be some benefits. (Like, learning not to freak out when I wake up 3 minutes before I need to be somewhere and don't have time to do anything) It's healthy for your skin, you'd save a little bit of time one day a week, and you'll start to notice your already-beautiful features so you can enhance them instead of hide them with your make-up. Really though, I don't want to take Matt's challenge just to learn to deal with myself when I'm ugly. I want to learn to appreciate my natural beauty. So, here goes! One day a week! You should join me!!

When I told Matt I was accepting his challenge, he told me that I  needed
 to post on my blog about my "festival of beauty" (hence, the title of this post).
So, here's day 1 without make-up!

"Do you girls think you look ugly if it's a sweat-pants, hair-up, no make-up kind of day? Well I have got news for you... You all still have the same beautiful eyes, same beautiful smiles, and same beautiful personalities... I believe that to be beautiful, it's more about what is on the inside of you rather than the outside... make the inside of you beautiful. Be the best person you can be and that will make you more beautiful than any make-up product the industry can throw at you."
--Matthew Woodruff

"The gospel teaches us that true beauty is more than skin-deep. A young woman whose countenance is aglow with both happiness and virtue radiates inner beauty... If happiness is the most attractive accessory a young woman can have, then a smile would have to be the most charming cosmetic. Make-up, if applied tastefully and in moderation, can enhance appearance. But no amount of eye shadow, lipstick, or mascara could possibly compete with the natural attractiveness of a genuine smile. It brightens the room. It cheers others. It communicates friendship, love, and optimism so much more than any cosmetic ever could. It puts people at ease and is welcoming. Truly in the world of glamour, there is no close second to a genuine smile."

--President Thomas S. Monson

Also, here's another little tidbit form Ilene Beckerman (I have no idea who she is):

"When I was your age... I wish I'd known that I already had everything I needed within myself to be happy, instead of looking for happiness at beauty counters."

Simply incredible.

This is video is of possibly the best proposal I've ever seen/watched/read about/heard of. Please watch it!! It will make your day!

P.S. To my future husband: I would never in a million years expect something extravagant like that. It's just cute :)

Make-up

Today, as I read a post on Matt's blog and showed it to my roommate Cheri (both of us were pretty much dying at our desire to hide Matt from the rest of the women in the world), it reminded her of a picture she saw online that entirely agrees with the point Matt was making (Though I still may not...). Enjoy! :)

SO TRUE!!!!!

What a great place to rest your bones

Today Ben, and Jeff, and I went on a short little fishing trip to Warm River and it was a blast!!

"Well, now, take down your fishin' pole and meet me at The Fishin' Hole, 

We may not get a bite all day, but don't you rush away.

What a great place to rest your bones and mighty fine for skippin' stones, 

You'll feel fresh as a lemonade, a-settin' in the shade.

Whether it's hot, whether it's cool, oh what a spot for whistlin' like a fool.

What a fine day to take a stroll and wander by The Fishin' Hole, 

I can't think of a better way to pass the time o' day."

-- The Andy Griffith Show

the 1st of december

Today is a very exciting day. Many of you already know why today is so special, but some of you are in the dark. So let me enlighten you! Today is the first day of December! Today is the day that all of those scrooges who hate Christmas music can officially be forced to give in. Today is the day that you start to feel that special spirit in the air that sends tremors of excitement through your whole body. The day that all of the little kids really start to get to work making their lists for Santa and start lining up in the malls for a chance to sit on his lap. The day that families start putting up their Christmas trees and lights and that little towns start to be able to be seen glowing in red and green from satellites in space. Today is the day that random Santa-impersonators start showing up at the front doors of Walmart and asking for money for various charities. Today is the day that seeing cute couples walking the streets wearing mittens and hats and holding hands suddenly gives you too much joy to be normal. Today is the day that starts "Ugly Christmas Sweater Thursdays". Today is the day that adorable little families can be seen in their front yards making their own little version of Frosty the Snowman. Today is the day that snow transitions from being a pesky annoyance on the road only out to make you wreck your car and freeze your tail off to being a lovely reminder of the Christmas season. Today is the day that the Christmas season officially starts!!! Honestly!?! Can you not feel that excitement?! I can!

This Christmas season is going to be a little bit different for me. There's still going to be the abundance of Christmas music, ugly sweaters, presents, and snow. But, this year I'm adding something more. All my life, my parents tried to always remind my of the true spirit of Christmas and of what the whole season is really about. But sometimes it just slipped through the cracks. So, this year, I am going to do my best to remember that Christmas is really supposed to be about our Savior Jesus Christ and His birth. I couldn't be there at the time of His birth to give Him a gift of gold or silver. But, I can give him the gift of caring for his children. I am going to try to make this Christmas less about receiving and more about giving to others. Because, Christ himself said, "when ye are in the service of your fellow beings, ye are only in the service of your God". I have made a goal to do something extra, big or small, to help someone around me and to make their Christmas just a little bit brighter. I know that doing this will, in turn, make my Christmas better. (Which is hard. Because I already absolutely love Christmas and everything about it!)