Gardening, Camping, Solstice, Grandpa and Late Father's Day

I am really becoming a gardening nerd! I walk around the hill to work every morning and see this: 

And I get so excited! I think it's so pretty! Look how it's growin'! I didn't think I could get so pumped about a garden, but I am sure excited about this one! 

 We planted over 1000 Green Onions! 

 My Beautiful Grannie and the turnips that I transplanted on the first day of work! They are getting so big! She said I should say, Grannie and Turnip, Can you tell which is which? I said, Grannie, whatever.

 Selfie with my favorite baby turnips that are all growed up now! 

 Tomatoes!!!! Nothing else needs to be said, just I love TOMATOES!!! 

Grannie and Larue in the Pepper House. It's the best smelling place in the whole garden! I love it in there! Yummers!!

Gardening in shorts... I said, when my knees are both covered in dirt, it camouflages my scar, and I practically look normal! :) 

This last week the YSA Relief Society went camping! It was not really camping actually, we slept in a really super dry cabin. But it was awesome! We had some good chats around a camp fire (I have a pretty good hick accents when I say "fire". It's whatevs.) It was a good trip. We really got to know each other better. We had an adventure on the way home Saturday. It was raining and we had 13 girls and 2 men piled on a quad and a side by side. I had no rain gear and I was in the back of one. I was SO wet!! Bishop was driving a 4-wheeler and the wheel popped off, so we stopped a lot to try and fix it and then we just winched it up to the back of the quad and then it snapped so we had to jimmy rig it up. Anyways, the 1 hour rainy ride turned into 3 hours of getting wet. Awesome!!! Adventure is out there! (name that movie... Up!)

Also, Saturday was the Summer Solstice. That takes on a whole new meaning in Alaska. It means NEVER dark for like 48 hours! I didn't stay up for all of it, but I stayed up 'til like 2 AM. We played soda pong. I don't even like pop, so it was like a stretch. We drank a lot of pop and bubbly. More than probably my whole life put together to this point. Needless to say, I went to the bathroom a lot. Then we had a little camp fire too. I don't have a good picture of the fire because my camera wasn't doing so well with so much orange light, but I like fire! 

 Me and Marika. The sparkling headband made me the fairy princess! 

 Sadie, Me and Marika! Solstice party!! 

And this picture is 1:30 AM! Awesome!!! It would be lighter, minus it's super cloudy.

A couple of weeks ago, for Family Home Evening, me and Sadie asked Grandpa if he would spend the evening telling us stories that went along with his picture book. The book has a lot of good pictures, but no captions. So, I filmed his stories. We talked for like an hour and a half. All the segments were like 6 minutes long, so if you're not family, you might get bored with this piece of the night, but I think it's pretty cool. I love my grandpa and his stories. He's going to be 90 in October, and I'm so thankful that I get to spend the summer with him, because there's no saying how much longer I would be able to have a chance like this.

And last Sunday I didn't write a Father's Day blog, but that doesn't mean I don't love my Dad. I talked to him on the phone. I love my dad so much. It's been a good thing for me to be up here too, because I miss him terribly and have realized how much he means to me, and I know that he's missing me almost unbearably, and when I return home, I will be the favorite daughter for sure. My dad has done so much for me and I love him. One thing that I really love about my dad is that he always made time for me. Lots of kids don't get to spend tons of time with their dad. I'm lucky because I was with my dad from 4-6 every evening for 2/3 of the school year, I was with him Friday-Sunday all day! I was with him a lot during the summer. I saw him every day before I went to school. I really am so blessed to have him around as much as he is. He spent time with me too. He rebounded for me and we went on walks and bike rides and hikes and cook-outs all together. He's the greatest dad for me! I miss him a lot and I'm excited to see him in August when I will be his favorite child! 

My Witness

When I was 10 years old I asked my mom how I could get my own testimony. She told me that the first key was a desire, so I was already on my way. She told me that I needed to pray about things I was wondering about and listen for an answer. She told me that I needed to live my life in a way that was in alignment with Heavenly Father's plan. She told me to listen to the Prophets. She told me to do the little things, like participate in primary and classes and to read my scriptures every day and to pray. I think she gave me a pretty good formula. I was still depending on her testimony then and I remember the first time that I really had a hard question that I needed help to believe and get a testimony for myself about. It was when President Gordon B. Hinkley passed away. He was the only Prophet that I knew. I was wondering how in the world we were gonna do it without him. I wondered for a short time, and then I got the opportunity to attend the Young Women's General Meeting in person. I prayed that I would find an answer that President Monson was now the prophet. I remember standing up and everything went silent as President Monson walked in and I KNEW that he was indeed called of God to be the Prophet of His church on earth. I received my testimony of a Living Prophet on that day. Since then, there have been times when I may have wondered about the church and about some things that were said. But my dad taught me a valuable lesson as well in regards to obtaining and then holding strong to my testimony. When he was on his mission, he and his companion needed to find a new place to live. They prayed together and got an answer of where to go. When they were on their way to move, his companion started getting cold feet. He asked my dad if they were sure they should move. My dad gave a scripture to him:  Doctrine and Covenants 6:22-23, which says "Verily, verily, I say unto you, if you desire a further witness, cast your mind upon the night that you cried unto me in your heart, that you might know concerning the truth of these things. Did I not speak peace to your mind concerning the matter? What greater witness can you have than from God?" I always remember that story when I hear controversial comments about the Prophet or the Apostles and other leaders of the church. I remember the day when I stood in silence to reverence the Prophet and I remember the burning in my heart and how in that moment I KNEW that there was a living prophet who receives revelation for us all. Then I don't have to question any longer. I know that the Prophet and Apostles are the spokes people for God. In Doctrine and Covenants 1:38 it says "Whether by mine own voice or the voice of my servants, it is the same." I know that. I know that what these men say is what Heavenly Father desires for us. I'm not saying they are perfect, but I am saying that I believe them. Some people may say that because I hardly ever question what they say, I'm following blindly. I'm not. When I hear something from someone speaking in General Conference that I don't feel 100% about, I do what my mom told me to do, and I remember what my dad taught me. I pray about it and I know that Heavenly Father wants me to follow what His prophet is saying. I'm not saying that I'm perfect either, but I'm trying to follow His plan. 

I know that President Monson is the living prophet of God on the earth today and that he cannot lead us astray. I know that the Priesthood blesses my life each day because without the Priesthood, I wouldn't have the Holy Ghost as my constant companion, I wouldn't be sealed eternally to my family. I know that because of the Sacred Sealing Ordinances that are performed in the temple, I will one day understand and know what it's all about and enjoy those blessings with my future husband and children as long as I live a life in alignment to obtain a temple recommend. I know that Joseph Smith was a prophet and he was the instrument in God's hands to restore the church to the earth. I know that the Apostles are called of God and I know that I sustained them and support them. I know that the Book of Mormon is true. I've read it and prayed about it and I know it's true. I know that Heavenly Father loves me and all His children on earth. I know He wants what's best for all of us. 

I'm thankful for the testimony that I have worked for and that has grown so much since leaving home and seeing different views. I stand by my testimony and I know that if I continue to do the little things each day like scripture study, prayer, being nice to people, following the prophet, going to church, and such, as well as remember the times when the Spirit spoke to my heart and gave me a testimony, I will stay close to God and be a happy and peaceful person. 

I'm the Worst at Coming Up with Catchy Titles.

Folks, when I'm just bloggin' about life and not about something extra special, I just can't come up with a good title. Minus, my life actually is extra special, so I should come up with a title. But, I'm busy living my special life and don't have time to come up with a creative blog title. Sorry. Forgive me please and read anyway?! 

Alaska is still wonderful. Yeah, I've gone through moments of homesickness by now. I miss my mom and dad and Livi and nieces and nephews and friends who know me and stuff like that, but I'm doing okay. I'm not homesick because I dislike it here, I just like it at home too. I wish I had a bajillion dollars so I could have a private jet and go home on the weekend or fly my parents up here for a weekend. Or I wish I could invent teleportation so that I could just show up at home one day and then back up here. I like both and this is my life and I like it. 

In the last little bit we've planted over 1000 celery plants, over 300 turnips, about 600 onions, 500 garlics and enough potatoes to feed an army. It's so cool to watch the stuff I have planted, growing and thriving. I think this gardening stuff is getting to my brain and making me my mom. It's great!! My mom's awesome! So the garden work is good. The other day I made a great fashion statement. I wore shorts and mud boots! And I know I'm acclimating to Alaskan weather because the other day it was 65 degrees and I was sweating! Silly! I do kind of miss the hot sun. I'm not getting tan. By the time the sun hits me clear down here at elevation 500 ft., the tanning qualities have dissipated. So, when ya'll see me in the fall with your gorgeous tans, don't compare arm color with me. You'll get knocked out cold! Just kidding. I'm not really that strong or that mean, but I will be grouchy. 

I've also spent some more time selling pies. We had Colony Days this last weekend and I seriously had a blast selling! It was so much fun and we sold a lot! :) And I babysat for Amy for two days this week too. I really liked that because her family reminded me of my nieces and nephews. And I miss my nieces and nephews, so I had fun babysitting them and playing with them. It was a great two days. 

For fun, well every day is fun! This weekend Sadie and Annie treated me to the movies! We went and saw the movie The Fault In Our Stars. Let me tell you, that was a good movie. And some not fun, I spoke in church today about the Constitutional Convention. I think it went well. I made it as entertaining as I could and I didn't see too many people fall asleep. I know that the Constitution was an important thing in church history, because it had to happen for the restoration to happen. I know that those founding fathers were inspired men of God and I am extremely grateful for them. God Bless America. 

I hope ya'll have a great week and try to have as much fun as me! 

 All my clothes. I've downsized a bit to be here, and not gonna lie, I miss my clothes a little, but just a little. I'm not freaky, high maintenance, obsessive or anything.

 On our way to Anchorage for the movie. For some reason the pictures that I was smiling in, just looked gross. So, meet weirdo Elvis lip! 

And the talk I prepared. I was very grateful that Bishop brought this article over for me to use. I marked it up and wrote all over it! I couldn't really do this one by the seat of my pants. I'm finally having to learn how to be a grown up. 

Week One! Living the Dream!

  Alaska is awesome yo! I woke up about 4 times in the night my first night here and thought it was time to get up! The sky was light and it was 3 a.m. It was the strangest thing. I go to sleep in the light and I wake up in the light! Wow! So, we'll start at the start with my night of light. Then it was Sunday. It was a great day, and my list of things that I've never done before started right after Sunday School. My feet hadn't been on Alaskan soil for 10 hours and a lady approached me and asked if I'd go on a blind date with her son. Well, I've never been on a blind date before and I was a little stunned and tired and said, well, sure. 
  Then onto Monday. I had my first day at work for Aunt Carol in her garden! During the week we saran-wrapped a lot of ground! They put this plastic called IRT on the ground in rows with a tractor deal and it keeps the weeds from growing and keeps the plants insulated! It's crazy cool! I felt like we were saran-wrapping the world! It was cool! I also planted a TON of garlic, onions, turnips and potatoes! It was a good week at work! To keep my mind busy while I'm planting I listen to a book or music and I even made a friend in the garden. My cousin Lori's dog, Kenzie, is staying with Aunt Carol and she'll sit by me or at the head of the row I'm working on for hours and then when I get up, she spits a tennis ball at me and at the end of the day, I finally indulge her with a 5 minute session of fetch. It's pretty fun. Anyways, this isn't really going in chronological order, but whatever. 
  Monday night for FHE, I joined Willardson's and Uncle Barry gave us a great lesson on using For the Strength of Youth to help guide our lives and we talked about that when we come across something that might make us question our faith or something, that we need to turn to the scriptures and conference talks and words of our Prophet to find the answers to our questions. I know that the leaders of the church that have been called of God will not lead me astray. After our lesson, we went to the driving range for some golf practice. Ha. I tried golfing once, I scored 75 points on a mini-golf put-put. It was bad. But I went in with a good attitude and Uncle Barry did a mighty fine job coaching me! (Austin--next time we're together, we'll go golfing, but you better bring a pen and paper or a video camera because I'll be givin' you a clinic! Be prepared!) That was Monday. 
 Tuesday was work and then that night me and Sadie went and practiced golf again. I set my ball up and said, Let's see if I'm still good (which was a silly thing to say "still" because I was never good), and I hit it about 10 feet and said, Nope. But hey! I'll keep practicing and then I'll hit it 15 feet! haha. It's fun though! And after we played golf, we went to the church and played basketball with some old men. It was a little intimidating, but it was fun! 
  Wednesday was work and then Park Night for the YSA. So we went to the park and met some friends! It was a good time! 
  Thursday was my date. It was good. We hiked the Butte and chatted and then came down and that was that. 
  Friday was a little different. Instead of working in the garden, I went into town and worked for Sweetie Pies. My Kenley cousins have a business at the Friday Market and they sell deep fried pies. Talk about heaven in your mouth and belly! Awesome! I felt honored to be working with Amy and Rita because me and Sadie have always talked about the "cool set of cousins" which is pretty much anyone older than like Brett and Tyson and Keith. All my other cousins are cool too, but those girls around Katie's age, they're like the "cool" cousins that we never dared talk to and stuff, and here I was at the Friday Market working with Rita and Amy, two of the cool cousins and they were like talking to me and it was great! And we sold like 600+ pies! It was busy! 
  And then Friday night, me and Sadie and Devin and Michael and Marika went and hiked Hatcher's Pass. I thought we'd stay on a nice trail or something. Wrong. We went straight up the mountain and were whackin' through trees and going up steep stuff. Every step I took, I was thinking, I'm not going to be able to come down this, it's too steep. I'll die. And I was picturing Grannie and Grandpa waking up and reading the paper at breakfast like they always do and seeing the headline "5 young hikers found dead at Hatcher's Pass" and then going and seeing and empty bed and then finding out that I was dead. And I almost texted Olivia a picture of what I had to hike down and tell her that if I didn't live, that she should know that I love her and to tell all the family that I love them too, and how Dad and Mom would be like $500 richer because I once wrote a will that willed them all my money when I died, which is only $500 at the moment. There were times on the hike when we were hanging on to branches to keep from falling to our deaths and times when we were scrambling crab style or sliding sideways and stuff. It was an adventure if I've ever been on one. And then we thought we were home free and were taking it easy when we started thinking about how bears could so easily be hidden in the bush that we were going to have to whack back through. But, we lived and I realize I was being a little dramatic, but it was scary! Oh well, nobody died and we only had a few bumps and bruises. It was a success after all. 
  Saturday was another good day! I went and helped clean the church in the morning with the YSA and then we went to the Sutton Playground (A Playground that the community is helping to build) and did some construction work. But I'll be honest, I'm a little dumb in that field, so I held boards and sometimes screwed the screws in and I ran the sander belt. I did get good at the sander belt though. I left there early to go and join Grannie and Grandpa for our Memorial Day weekend picnic lunch/dinner at Uncle David's cabin. That was fun! I got to visit with Heidi and Dave and Kathy and it was a good time. Saturday night was also a good time! Sadie and I went out to Devin's lake house and hung out there. It was like my dream of summer. I was with friends, and we had a fire, and water and ice-cream and we just visited into the night. It was great! 
  Today I went to the YSA ward and requested my records transferred up here and I like the ward and life is really just so great!! And along with all my daily things, living with Grannie and Grandpa is a joy in itself! They are the funniest and nicest people in all the world! They say some funny stuff and they just love me and I just love them! You guys, even if I didn't do anything else fun the rest of the summer, this would be a ROCKIN' summer in the record books! I love it here!! 

Home

Home: A place where someone feels comfortable, loved and accepted. 
--Tessa's brain dictionary.

  Cokeville is my home. I love it here! I have so many friends and teachers and my parents and siblings and other family here that totally support me and love me and I feel absolutely comfortable being here. I love Cokeville because I can be 100% me and never feel embarrassed or feel like I need to change my personality. I love Cokeville because I knew everyone in my grade, and the grade below me and the grade below that and I was darn good friends with the 7th graders in PE when I was a senior. I love Cokeville because everyone watches out for everyone. If I saw Jonathan outside playing, it was okay for me to just run over there and Mom knew I was there and Mrs. Fiscus was happy for me to come play and she took responsibility for me as much as my mom did when I was over. I always felt safe and I knew that everyone was my friend. I love Cokeville because I had so many opportunities that other people didn't get. A lot of 5'2" girls don't get to start on the high school volleyball team and basketball team or have the opportunity to be three sport athletes. A lot of big schools require specialization. It's volleyball or basketball or track. Don't even think about adding band and choir and show choir and the school musical and student council and National Honor Society. I love Cokeville because I had the opportunity to do it all. I love Cokeville because I could excel in all those things and be a part of all those things, but I had people keeping me grounded and making sure that I knew that those things weren't as important as school and church. My teachers always kept me encouraged to do well and I respected them all so much that I didn't want to get a bad grade. I didn't want to disappoint them. And I feel so lucky that I grew up with teachers and coaches that were all the same religion as me, members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. It was great to go to practice and start with a prayer and to have our coaches encourage us to go to mutual and to read our scriptures. And the teachers were the same way. They didn't ever ask us to go to things on Sunday and they taught good values. I love Cokeville because I can walk to The Store and they know my mom's account number and they know how the teams did and they are my friends. I can walk to the Library and the ladies there know me and I can easily check out books without my library card that I think I lost when I was like 10 or something. I love Cokeville and I thought that I'd never be able to call another place home.

 Our House

Our Town

  I went to college and I was kind of a stinker about being there. I wanted to be home with my friends and my teachers and playing sports and I wanted to be with my parents. I wanted to go Home. The whole first semester, Provo was not home. My apartment was my apartment. I went to my apartment, not home, at the end of every day. Home was only Cokeville and that was that. And I spent the whole semester like that. I wasn't miserable by any means, but it was hard and I was always wanting to give up and go home. Second semester I cried when I had to go back to Provo and leave my home. Then about 3 weeks into the semester something started changing. I realized that I didn't like that I was constantly wanting to be somewhere that I wasn't and couldn't be. I decided to let Provo be home. I didn't replace Cokeville by any means. When I would leave on the weekends to come to Cokeville I said I was going home. But when I left Cokeville at the end of the weekend, I was going home to Provo. And while I was in Provo I would say, I'm going home, which meant my apartment, not Cokeville. And I enjoyed college so much more after I decided that Provo could be home too. I was happy to go home to Cokeville when I got the chance, but I didn't dread going back home to Provo. I love Provo because I had roommates and friends that were excited to see me and I was excited to see them. I missed them when I was away. I love Provo because I had a bishopric, that even though I was only with them for 8 months, I felt more support and love from them than I could imagine. I love Provo because I could meet so many friends in all my classes and even though I didn't have a personal relationship with most of my teachers, they picked darn good TA's that I did develop relationships with, that really cared if I got good grades and helped me to get those grades. I love Provo because I could go to BYU sporting events. I wasn't participating, but I could go and love it! I love Provo because it was so warm... In March! I love Provo because I decided to love it. It is a great place and in the fall, I'll not be leaving home to go to Provo, I'll be leaving home to go home to Provo. 

Provo--That big red brick building was mine!

  This week I am leaving home to go to Alaska. I have been there a few times in my life. My longest trip was 17 days and it was a great trip! This time I'm going for the whole summer! And I'm not going to do what I did with Provo. I'm not going to let myself want to come home, back to Cokeville. From the moment my plane lands in Anchorage, I will be home in Alaska. Grannie's place will be home, not Grannie's house. I'm going to plant myself in Alaska and bloom! I'm going to immerse myself in the single's ward and get to know people and make memories with my cousins and Grandparents and aunts and uncles. Palmer, and Grannie's house are going to be home. I'll leave my home in Alaska to come home to Cokevile. 

Some Alaska family the last time I was there

  For me, Home is where you can feel love and support and safety and be happy and that's all about attitude. It's incredible what the brain can do. I know that I can make a decision to like something and then do all I can to live that decision. I'm always going to call Cokeville home, but there's going to be a lot of homes in my life. The chances of me not living in Cokeville are pretty high. I know I'm going to have to have a good attitude about my location and even if I get planted permanently in Rich County or somewhere else like that (haha), it may be hard, but I'll find all the good and call it home. Life is a happy time and with a good attitude it's easier to be happy. I'm sad to leave home in Cokeville this week, but I'm excited to experience home in Alaska and all the other homes that I'll live in in my life. 

Mom

(Me and Mom after "muddin" through town)

So, I know ya'll are just now skimming over everyone's thanks and praise of their moms, but it's awesome that everyone is showing such appreciation for their mothers! I want to add my thanks as well. I love my mom! She is the best mom for me! She does a lot for me! She makes me clothes and she feeds me and even when I'm trying to cook and making a mess (like today when I was making dinner for Mother's Day and I dropped a spoon that was covered in sour cream all over my foot) she doesn't freak out and she lets me clean it up and learn how to be a better and more efficient cook. She's really great! She taught me the most important things in life: family, the Gospel, the Book of Mormon, being nice, serving, and much more. She also lets me call her at random times and sometimes multiple times a day while I'm away. I will never stop needing my mom and I'm glad that she's not ready to get rid of me. I really love her so much! And now, my three favorite Mom videos! 

My mom is very awesome! I love her so much and I know that I was fed and clothed and happy and taken care of and supported and was allowed to dream because of my mom! I love you Mom!! 

The Randomness that is Me

  Sometimes I just think about random things and I wonder if anyone else wonders about these things too. So, I will tell you about my two latest random thoughts and then you will all be thinking about them too, and then I will share some other stuff as well. 
  First, all my life I have used the word "way" synonymous with so or very in sentences like, "I am WAY excited!" or "I want to do that WAY bad!" Then I went to college and my roommates that aren't from around these parts told me that "way" is not used in that way anywhere but at BYU. So then I got to thinking, for quite a while, what is the definition of the word "way"? I knew it was a direction, like "that way" and I knew that there was a "way to do things." I had come to the conclusion that I was using the word "way" in totally the wrong way. (I've typed the word "way" so many times now, it just sounds "WAY" weird to me!) So, today the wondering ended. I looked it up on dictionary.com. The dictionary had examples of "way" as a noun. It was what I expected to find. Way is a direction and how someone does things. But as I scrolled down I ran into "way" as an adverb. The definition was "at a great degree; at a great distance." Then it gave the example of "way heavy" and "way down the road." So, indeed, "way" can be used to show something to a great degree. I am WAY excited about this new bit of information that I have found. And now you are all informed of the uses of the word "way."
  Second, I went down to the BYU Track Meet this last weekend and when we were driving through Heber I saw a crane in a marsh and it was standing on one leg and I was impressed at the balance of that bird! And then one word popped into my head--Ostrich. I don't know where it came from. But for the rest of the ride to Provo I was wondering where in the world ostriches come from and where they live. When we got into the track meet I asked Coach Toomer if he knew where ostriches live. He told me he wasn't sure where they came from but he knew that near Kemmerer there was an ostrich farm. So ostriches can live in Wyoming. Well, I wasn't satisfied. I just don't often, well actually, I never see ostriches running around wild in Wyoming. Today, I answered my question. I googled ostriches and where they live. According to National Geographic, a renowned magazine, ostriches originate in the deserts of Africa. They are omnivores and get most of their water from the plants they eat. They stand around 6 feet tall and have huge eyes--2 inches across! That's the largest eye of all land dwelling animals. There, now you've learned about two cool things today! 
  And on a more serious note, at Relief Society today we learned about how to be a good visiting teacher. It was a great lesson and for the closing song Brother Leon Pope sang a beautiful song called "His Hands." I felt the spirit so strong. I was already cold, but the shivers I got when he was singing were not related to the temperature. The song was beautiful and his delivery of it was perfect. This is not him singing, but this is the song:

  It's beautiful and I love it. I love my Savior and I'm so thankful for all He's done for me. He has made it possible for me to return to my Heavenly Father and live with my family forever. He loves me and He did a lot for me. I need to remember to use the great gift that He's given to me. I'm so excited that I can be forgiven for all the things that I do wrong and I can always try to improve and be more like Him. 
  And because you're all wondering about my latest adventure to New York, you can visit my sister Olivia's blog and find out! She took all the pictures because she has a smart phone and I have a really cool flip phone, so her story will be more entertaining because blogs with pictures are always better, so sorry this one has none, but it does have a video! Anyways, visit her blog to learn about how we totally ROCKED the Big Apple! 
http://www.lifeaslivi.blogspot.com/