the secret

I want to take a moment and try to be a little inspirational. My sister and I are trying to watch more documentaries and then talk about them. We just watched a documentary called "the secret" and it is about attraction. Now, you may be thinking that I'm referring to "ohh heyyy that guy is totally cute" attraction, but I'm not. The documentary talks about how everything that happens to you (good or bad) happens because you attracted it in your life, and that is the secret.

Have you ever had one of those days where something bad happens, it puts you into a bad mood, and then its just one bad thing after another that day?? That is attraction right there. Since something bad happened to you, it put bad and negative thoughts into your head, therefore attracting more bad things to happen to you because you're assuming the worst to happen. I never thought about these types of circumstances being connected to my thoughts. I always just figured the world was out to get me that day and I just had to accept it.

"Your life is a physical manifestation of the thoughts that happen in your head."

How true is that quote? The documentary goes into a lot of detail about how your thoughts rule your actions. Anyone can say that they're going to do something, but unless they truly believe it in their head, and make the effort, nothing is going to happen. Our thoughts and feelings are a source of feedback telling us whether we're on the right track or not, and inevitably guide our actions. 

I keep telling people that I'd like to start a business and make more money on the side...eventually having it turn into a career path, but thats never going to happen unless I spend time thinking and putting together a plan. It's not going to happen on its own, and if I don't change my thoughts now in order to make the change in my life, I'm going to look back a year from now and realize that I am no closer to that dream than I am now.

There are three steps to "the secret" and they are (1) Ask. Let the world know what you want (2) Believe. Believe that what you want is already yours. Picture yourself having exactly what you want and the world will rearrange itself with opportunities to make that happen for you. You will attract the things you want with your thoughts (3) Receive. 

One of my professors in school said,
"You have to be very very careful of what you go looking for in life,
because you're probably going to find it."

That made a real impact on me and it ties in really well with "the secret". The power of your thoughts and attraction is a real thing. It exists. There is only one person that can control your destiny and what you find in life. That person is you. Choose wisely what you go looking for. Take this time in your life to truly figure out what you want. Chances are that what you think you want and what you actually want are very different. It's a journey and a learning process. Your purpose in life is what you say it is. No one else can tell you that. 

"Follow your bliss and the world will open doors where there were only walls."

Everyone deserves to be happy. Everyone is born to add something to this world, to add value. You, just as much as I, are capable of doing so much good, and it starts with your thoughts. Imagine what you can do from this day forward with the life knowledge you have gained up to this point. We all have something different to offer and I am gonna find what that is for me. The last five minutes of the documentary were very powerful to me. One of my favorite quotes from the whole video was,

"No one else can dance your dance, no one else can sing your song, no one else can
write your story. What you are and what you do begins right now."

Regardless of where you're at in your life right now, regardless of your age or your life accomplishments, the moment you decide that you want to be happy and truly live, your life will change. Yes, like anyone you will still have those bad days. Its normal. Don't think that one bad day will ruin the rest of your week, year, life. If you do, it just might. Thats the power of your mind. 

I hope this was the slightest bit inspirational. I wanted to share because there were a lot of aspects of the documentary that I believe. I really do think our thoughts are so powerful and can be extremely enabling but also destructive. It's up to us to decide how we let our thoughts dictate. Thats my food for thought for February. 

thank you february

Well, I cant hide it but the good times have been rollin for sure. I decided that February was going to be MY month and it most definitely has been a good one, but there's still time to make it even better! The power of positive thinking amazes me all the time. I'll get into this a little later, but my sister and I decided we want to start watching a documentary each week together (but separate) and then talk about it every Sunday. This weeks documentary is "The Secret" which talks about...dun dun dun...the secret of life. WHAT? Who knew. It ties into my thoughts about positive thinking. But before I get into that, l want to express how happy with where I am in life right now. I feel very fortunate to be where I am now and so happy with where life has taken me. I am still so young, yet I've had so many incredible experience in my life at this point that I never wanted to take for granted. It blows my mind how much I've accomplished in such a short period of time, yet I have like 4x more years to accomplish and do even more.
Like I mentioned in my last post, I had a really rough January with work and what not. I had a moment about two weeks ago. I had a really good day with work, hung out with a friend that night, and then had a bunch of other friends over in the evening. It was just a solid day. I had a moment when all my friends and I were gathered around our kitchen counter just talking and laughing. There was a small moment where it felt like I froze in a dream and all I could hear were my thoughts but I could see everyone around me laughing and smiling and happy. My thoughts took over and all I could hear was myself saying, "Man, I love my life." It was a really incredible feeling. I have been so blessed with amazing people in my life and I continue to be surrounded by new and old ones. I can't say I kept up with this blog once a week thing. I honestly thought saying once a week was making it easy on myself. But in all reality, we should all be shocked that I'm writing two weeks later and not a year later.


This month has brought a lot of good things for me. While I cant say it was easy, because life isn't easy, certain things have happened that allow me to appreciate what I do have and the people I love the most. I spent President's Day weekend in St. George visiting my grandparents with my cousin. I'm so glad we made the trip down there. I take for granted how close I am to so much of my extended family. Everyone and their mother was in St. George that weekend and I was able to meet up with some friends for some much needed adventuring as well.

I made a realization this month and that is how OBSESSED I am with a solid view of city lights. While I was commuting from Sandy to Provo every day for school my last semester,  my favorite part of any day was when I would be driving home from a long day late at night. I'd drive around the point of the mountain and BAM its the most incredible view of the city lights of Draper and beyond. It always made me so happy. While in St. George, both nights I was there, I spent a good chunk of time on top of dixie rock or D mountain just soaking in the air and beauty of the city lights. It's so cheesy to say but it makes me feel so alive. Like "Helloooo world, I'm here, I'm alive, living a great life with beautiful views!"



February brought a lot of new adventures and firsts for me. Ali and I went tubing at Soldiers Hollow, I went to my first Jazz game with my Rec Management crew, and I went night skiing up at Sundance Ski Resort for the second time with Lindsay! How have I not done these things before? I don't know. School got the best of me I guess.

I've definitely been taking advantage of the free time to do whatever I want since I don't have homework anymore! While it truly feels like I've been finished with school for a lifetime, I also realize it has been a bit of a transition in lifestyle for sure. Although I don't work or do nearly as much as I did while I was in school, I get wiped out way faster. I don't know why that is, but its a real thing. Regardless, this life has treated me pretty dang well.

Thank you, thank you, thank you February for being so good to me. To think that this is only the beginning of the post-grad life excites me. I love to think about all the great adventures I have yet to go on and be a part of. This is the start of something so so good and I am so happy with where my life is at right now. 

Bring on MARCH. 

let the good times roll

I cant believe it is already February. Although I love the snow and winter, I can't say I'm mad that it has been 65 degrees and sunny for the last week. I never got around to finishing up my New Years post (not surprised) because life got the best of me and once the holidays were over it was back into the daily grind.

I'm not going to lie, 2015 got off to a really rocky start and I never expected that. The title of this post is a little deceiving to being with, but has good intentions. I thought "this is going to be my year". I just graduated from college, I'll make lots of money working full time, I wont have to do homework, I'm moving to a new place with new people, I'll have way more time to date, life will be great, this is my year.

Although I had plenty of things to be grateful for in January, there were a number of things that went wrong and made me overlook the things in my life that were good. Long story short I went unemployed for about 6 weeks, which were the longest days of my life. I thought I'd be able to find a job in the first week after finding out that I didn't have a job but that wasn't the case. If there are a couple things that I learned from that experience its that (1) It is SO important to have a savings account in case of emergency, and (2) More often than not it really is more about who you know and not what you know.

January was a huge financial crisis (definition of) since I wasn't working but still had expenses in order to live. It was stressful because I didn't know how long I needed my small savings account to last me. I finally started my full time job the last week of January and started to get back into a daily routine again. Thank heavens for that because I was starting to go crazy.

Setting January aside, I decided that February would be a good month. I have plenty of things to be thankful for; I have a job, a house, a car, family and friends surrounding me, and finally an income to keep me grounded. How could anything go terribly wrong again?? I kid you not the FIRST Monday of February, the start of the second week of my new job, I get in my car to leave for work aaaand...I had a flat tire. It was all fine and dandy until the guy a Big O Tires told me that the hole was too big to patch and I had to pay $110 for a brand new tire instead of $15 to patch it. Keep in mind I just bought this car 4 weeks ago...not exactly an expense I wanted to have, especially when I hadn't had a paycheck in 2 months.

But thats ok, right? because February is going to be MY month. To say that was the only hiccup or financial crisis/issue I've had in the first week of February would be a lie, but I already told myself that this would be a good month and Im not going to let these things get in the way of being happy.

In my New Years post, I was going to put down some resolutions and goals I had for the year. I've never been good about resolutions or whatever so I decided to change it up this year and have monthly goals instead of the year thing people do. In February, I will:

• Go through all of my junk drawers. Im trying to de-junk my life. 
• Read an entire book. I just started Dave Ramsey's The Total Money Makeover. My parents got all of the kids in my family a copy of it for Christmas and I've heard its really good! 
• Complete my B&W photo project. I'll post photos when its done. 
• Post on my blog at least once a week.

So even though its already February 8th, I'm going to make sure this is a
good month. So my friends...

LET THE GOOD TIMES ROLL

(here are some 2014 recap photos for good measure)

I ventured to Mexico with 10 complete strangers on the best road trip of my life.

I turn the ripe and quite unexciting age of 22.

I graduated from BYU.

 

 

I drove to California with some of my favorite people for Emily and Nate's wedding.

I obviously made the best purchase of the year on a churro at Disneyland.

 I visited the most picturesque city in the world, Venice.

I traveled through 10 countries in Europe with my study abroad group. 

I paraglided in Interlaken, Germany...worth every penny.

I went to the most beautiful place me eyeballs have ever seen, Iceland.

I saw John Mayer at the O2 Arena in London. 

I visited JT with my mom and Sierra.

My entire family was in Utah for Thanksgiving..and the boys never seem to make it into photos.

 I celebrated the last day of the best job at BYU by caroling through the TNRB.

 I spent Christmas with my family in Arizona.

I bought a car!

Thank you 2014. 

Berlin, Germany

I met up with the group in the Paris airport to catch the last connecting flight from Paris to Berlin. We arrived in Berlin on the 13th around 5pm. From there, our bus driver Willem picked us up and drove us to our hostel, "the corner hostel". It was nice, nothing special, but that night we went out and explored the town. We were all starving so we went to dinner and got a typical German dish, a Doner. It was so good. Its very similar to a gyro with the lamb meat in the inside! After that, we didn't really know where anything was or how to get there so we literally just walked for 4 hours until it got dark and we headed back to the hostel. The next morning we woke up early to see the Berlin wall, Checkpoint Charlie, and some other popular spots. We weren't in Berlin long enough to really go on talking about it, but it was a beautiful city! This will mostly just be an explosion of photos but for each city we go to, Im going to write down at least two things I learned (in general). So...first the photos and then what I learned:

In Berlin I learned:

• Avoid bike lanes. I cannot tell you how many times someone had to pull me out of the bike lane on the sidewalk before getting mowed over by a biker. They do not stop. Its actually really smart that they do that in Europe because its a lot safer to have a designated spot for them instead of just wherever they want on the street or the sidewalk. 
• Not everyone is going to speak English in Germany, unlike my experience in Holland and Belgium. It may be difficult to get your point across sometimes, but you have to learn to be patient with people and they will be patient with you.

The Netherlands & Belgium

As you may or may not know, I am currently in Europe on a study abroad with BYU. I arrived about two weeks ago and I am finally getting around to updating and writing about it. I write a little here and there in my journal, but Im trying to make it a point to write a lot on this trip so that I can remember as much as I can.

On my flight to Amsterdam I had a layover in Detroit which was way more chaotic than it should have been. I kinda forgot to tell the bank that I was leaving the country so my card would be used abroad. I had to call them on my 30 minute layover while running through this huge airport to get to my new gate and not miss my flight. The guy I was talking to literally had no idea what he was doing. It was stressing me out. And he didn't know Austria existed. I had to tell him which countries I was going to and he would repeat it back to me and he kept saying Australia. I was so frustrated. I literally feel like Im taking my frustration out on my keyboard right now because I remember those moments so well. Im over it.

My flight from Detroit to Amsterdam was actually really nice. I sat next to a nice Dutch man who talked to me about all the places I was going. The plane and like 100 movies to choose from so I ended up watching Gravity and The Secret Life of Walter Mitty. Boy has technology improved. You used to have to just be stuck with whatever movie then ended up playing, but now you can watch whatever you want!

The flight went super fast and I landed in Amsterdam in no time! Birdy picked me up and we immediately ventured out into the city. We dropped her car off at her Aunts for free parking and then took the metro to the main square where we walked around, accidently walked through the red light district, went to the Anne Frank house (amazing) and ate a hot panini in the Anne Frank cafe. I say hot because we had to stand in line to get into the Anne Frank house for 2 hours in the cold windy rain (keep in mind its like midnight to me, 9am in real life). All we wanted was some hot food at that point because we hadn't warmed up even after touring the house for an hour or so. After eating, we drove back to her place which took about an hour. I passed out so hard on that drive home. I was exhausted. When we get to her house I slept some more and then we went over to her friends to watch a movie and then went to bed.

If there is anything I can say about Amsterdam, it is that I was obsessed  with the canals! I love how people live on boats in the canals and now the they are surrounded by skinny streets and multicolored buildings! The next day we went to Efteling in Holland near Breda. Efteling is kind of Hollands version of Disneyland but much smaller and targeted towards little kids. We spent most of the day riding rides and walking around. It was raining that day too so it didn't bother us too much to go on all of the water rides since we were already wet. The park closed at 6 so we left around then. We went to the main square in Breda where Birdy's school (or should I say castle) is. She gave me a little tour, and then we went to a little Italian restaurant for dinner. That night we went over to her friends again and watched another movie.

The next day was my favorite of the days that I was there with Birdy. We drove to Brugge, Belgium and walked around all day. Honestly, it is one of the most beautiful places I have ever been in my life. I am still obsessed. I thought Amsterdam's canals were cool, but they didn't even compare to what we saw in Brugge. I mean look at it! I probably have 100 photos of the same thing because I couldn't get enough of it. We bought some Belgian chocolate and proceeded to take a boat tour throughout the city. Best idea ever! Not to sound cheesy or anything but it was seriously magical. After the boat tour we walked around and explored different shops. We got Belgian waffles with ice cream, and we climbed to the top of the bell tower to get the best view of the city! At the end of the day we sat down at a restaurant, basked in the first sunny day we had, and people watched in the main square. It was so nice to just relax and enjoy the moment without feeling like we had to do anything.

On the drive home I completely passed out...again. Literally every long drive we had consisted of me sleeping and Birdy driving. Ok I didn't sleep the entire time. I was awake long enough to see the gorgeous  scenery that Belgium has to offer. Im honestly obsessed. Rolling green grass with flowers and the occasional brick house for miles and miles. Just like I imagined! I asked if we could stop by the store on the way home and I surprised Birdy with some flowers to thank her for letting me stay with her! The trip was short, but I loved being able to visit Birdy and catch up. It was so fun to stay up late talking about the different memories we shared in Peru and reminiscing on funny moments with the group or things that happened while we were in Peru. Im so glad I was able to explore her hometown with her and spend 3 days visiting.

Utah - California - Arizona

The last week of the semester and the week leading up to my trip to California were probably some of the most insane days of my life. I literally averaged like 2 hours of sleep a night. Finals are crazy enough, but the week after than I immediately started my International Business class. Instead of doing it throughout the study abroad, we knocked out an entire semesters worth of class in one week. Class was from 9-3 basically every day, and on top of that...I worked 3-11pm Monday - Thursday as well. That already is me being gone from 9am-11pm every day that week. On top of that, I had to pack for California, Arizona, Europe, AND pack up the rest of my stuff to move into a new apartment by friday at 7am. I honestly don't know how I did it. Actually I do, its called going to bed at 4am and waking up at 6am. Once I was on the road to California with Travis and Aria, all was well and I finally felt like I had a break and time to breathe for 2 minutes. Im pretty sure I slept most of the way except when I was driving.

We left Provo on a Friday at around 3 to get to Arias house in Vegas at around 8 or so. I don't actually remember. We stayed at her place overnight and woke up the next morning to be on the road to the San Diego temple at 4am. 

We got to the temple at around 9am and then went across the street into an office building to change and get ready for the day. We got to watch Sam and Randy walk out first and then shortly after was Emily and Nate. I loved being able to see both friends come out of the temple after being married and sealed! Such a fun experience. We had a couple hours to kill so we went over to a beach house that some friends were staying in, went to the beach for literally 30 minutes.

After the beach, we went back to the house and got dressed again to make it to the dinner and receptions of both weddings. Let me tell you, Emily's wedding was THE most extravagent and beautiful wedding I have ever been to. I would expect nothing less from her and her mother. I with I took more photos of the location and decor and what not, but just trust that it was beautiful.

 I gotta say...I've got some good looking friends. I love these people so much, and it was especially fun to be all together celebrating in California. Not only are they good looking, but they are some of the most genuine people I have ever met. Im honestly so lucky to be friends with them and share so many fun memories over the last couple years.

After the weddings, Travis, Aria, and I stayed at a Marriott in Anaheim Hills. We did 2 days at Disneyland because Aria got us in for free one day and a discount the other day! I hadn't been in 4 years, so it was definitely a good time. This is my obligatory "I love churros" photo.

Following Disneyland and California adventure, we got up and headed out. I flew to Arizona and Travis and Aria drove back to Provo.

I wasn't able to spend as much time in Phoenix as I would have liked but it was enough time to do all the essentials: spend time with my family, cuddle with my dogs, go to Last Chance, eat a machaca burrito at Carolina's, go shooting with dad, and visit friends. No AZ trip is complete without those things. Honestly.

 Friday morning I woke up early and headed out to the airport to fly to Amsterdam! One of the hardest parts about leaving home is saying bye to my pooch Ghandi, knowing that it could potentially be the last time I see him. He has been the best dog anyone could ask for. He's getting old and has a hard time getting up, so its especially hard to say bye. The day he dies will probably be one of the hardest yet, but Im hoping that wont be any time soon. My dream would be that he sticks around until my future husband can meet him (which sounds silly but that would honestly make me so happy). I love my pooch! Don't know what my childhood would have been like without him!

Hope.

I received the best news today! For the last two months, I have spent a lot of time volunteering at the orphanage here in Piura. We helped teach girls volleyball during their PE class a while back and there was one girl that stuck out to me the most. I've mentioned her before, her name is Andrea. Andrea was the most athletic out of all the girls by far and continued to show interest in the sport. As you know, the last month or so I've been coaching soccer at 6 different schools with a couple other volunteers. Andrea once again stuck out to me. Since the first day I met her, I instantly felt an emotional connection to her, almost like she was my daughter. I wanted someone to adopt her so bad. The last time I talked about her on this blog, I secretly hoped that someone seriously considering adoption would somehow come across this post and ask me about it. I want nothing more than to make sure she has a bright future ahead of her but how exactly can I ensure that when I obviously can't adopt her myself? I think about her often and wish that I could do something to ensure that she has a good future because I see so much potential in her. Last Saturday at our tournament, I met a guy who was watching all the games to pick out girls for the national team. He pointed some girls out from a different team that I knew already were good and had a lot of potential. This afternoon, I was informed that ANDREA is also being considered for the national team! I wanted to jump up and down with excitement, but I controlled myself. Although she is only being considered and nothing is official, it gave me hope. Andrea is such a sweet heart. I'm not sure if she even knows about this, but I really hope she is chosen. I can only imagine what it could do for her future. Like I said before, even if all it did was get her into a University to get an education...imagine what that will do for her life! Especially being an orphan, she needs to know that there is hope for her. 

It's really starting to sink in that I am leaving so soon, 3 weeks from today to be exact. I wish I didn't have to leave. The people here are so amazing, and I feel extremely blessed every day to have this opportunity to be here. I often compare this summer to previous years and just think about how I've been living all wrong! Being here has opened my eyes to so many things. It makes me want to continue to travel the world and enhance the lives of others where needed. The time I have spent here has been incredible, and the day it ends with definitely be sad. As I think back on my life, I realize how luckily I was to have been raised by a stable family, something that many people don't have. Im grateful for what I do have and to be able to spend my free time giving other people hope for a good life as well.