L-O-V-E

One of my favorite scriptures... 

John 13:34-35
"A new commandment I give unto you, That ye ^alove one another; as I have loved you, that ye also ^blove one another. By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have ^alove one to another."

Here are some ways that I am going to apply this scripture...

Be more observant to those around me.

President Dieter F. Uchtdorf "In the end, the number of prayers we say may contribute to our happiness, but the number of prayers we answer may be of even greater importance. Let us open our eyes and see the heavy hearts, notice the loneliness and despair; let us feel the silent prayers of others around us, and let us be an instrument in the hands of the Lord to answer those prayers”


This quote really stood out to me because how many times am I sitting next to somebody and do not open my mouth to talk to them. Who knows all of the opportunities I miss out on to either make a new friend, learn something new, or brighten somebody's day. I am going to make a special effort to be more outgoing and take advantage of the many opportunities I have to meet new people and help those around me. You never know the difference you can make in somebody's life or the difference they can make in yours.

Be a better missionary.

John 21:15-17 Jesus said, "Lovest thou me? And [Peter] said unto him, Lord, thou knowest all things; thou knowest that I love thee. Jesus saith unto him, ^aFeed my ^bsheep." 


I can't think of a better way to show our love for people than to teach people of Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ. Everybody should get the chance to know that they have a Heavenly Father and Savior who loves them and wants the best for them.  

The Jones side of my family:

We took this picture over the Thanksgiving break at the St. George temple... definitely one of my favorite temples! Thanksgiving was a lot of fun and we had a grand ol' time hanging out with family and friends in Cedar City, UT!

Institute Winter Ball 

-Chris Lewis and I-

12/4/2009

On 12/12/09 I crocheted my first beanie!! :) 

Yeah, I know you are probably thinking... "Oh my goodness! She can crochet?! That is the coolest, most trendy/ hip-happenin' thing ever!" haha... something like that at least. This is Chris, Danny, and myself breaking down the stereotype that only old grandmas crochet. :) We had a little crocheting get together and Chris taught us how to make beanies! You have to admit, that kind of event doesn't happen everyday! Honestly, I think they are the only guys I know that can crochet... and more power to them! I think that's awesome. Overall we had a fun time with this project and are planning to learn something new at our next crocheting "party"! If anybody would be interested in learning, let me know! 

Finished product:

Christmas is coming, the goose is getting fat!

(Random song I learned when I was in elementary school. lol. Does anybody really eat geese for Christmas? That's just weird! It's all about turkey and ham.)

My AMAZING roommate, Jeevan, and I trying to get into the Christmas spirit! :)

[This semester has been awesome with her! We are a friend/ roommate match made in heaven! We share everything from chores, food, random stories, youtube videos, music, boy drama, and much more! Somehow we can start with some small talk and end up talking late into the night about ANYTHING and EVERYTHING! haha. We have some very entertaining conversations, to say the least. I am grateful for the amazingly smart, kind, and beautiful girl she is!]

Aaron and I

Thanksgiving is on it's way!

I am thankful for...

• My family for loving me and always being there for me.
• Aaron Brown being a part of my life and for his service, patience, and love.
• My friends for caring about me.
• The opportunity I have to go to school, even though it's not my favorite thing in the world. lol
• Four parents that support and encourage me.
• Eight siblings that I look up to and admire... no matter the age or household they live in.
• The gospel and the role it plays in my life.
• The temple and the opportunity I have to perform baptisms for the dead.
• Home teachers that visit me, teach me, and eat my cookies. 
• My awesome guy friends who are serving missions.
• Acquaintances that know/ remember my name and say hi at school or wherever it may be. 
• Strong, simple, and sincere testimonies.
• People that smile.
• Old and new friends.
• Institute.
• Inclusive people and those that help me to be a better person.
• The baby rhino (my car).
• My experiences and the things that I have learned from them.

Missionaries: So long, farewell!

Lately it seems like my friends have been leaving left and right to go serve their missions for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. It's pretty crazy to think they are all out serving in different parts of the world including Argentina, Honduras, England, Hungary, and the United States. It will be fun to see everybody when they get back and witness how much they have changed and matured. Here's some of my guy friends that are currently serving their missions...

Jeremy Taylor- Argentina - reported to MTC 11/4/09

Spencer Brooksby- Australia- reported to MTC 10/21/09

Daniel Risenhoover- Argentina- reported to MTC 10/14/09

Stuart Thomasson- Argentina

Joey Gamez- New Jersey

Brandon Zeigler- Australia

Nick Garrison- Tennessee

David Goss- Texas

Halloween!!

Aaron and I dressed up as Jack and Jill :)

Party at the Ganems! 

Elise, Noelle, and Jenn

Jill, Mario, Luigi, Lady bug, and Nurse!

Legally Blonde Musical!

Legally Blonde Musical:

Sooo Good!

It's such a fun and happy play! I knew all of the songs and was singing along with everything in my head the whole time! haha. Definitely one of my favorites!

Favorite Musicals:

1. Wicked

2. Lion King

3. Legally Blonde

4. Les Miserables

(That is in order of the actual performance and entertainment, it would be a different order for how much I like the songs alone.)

Our beautiful masterpiece before the play.

This is Lex, myself, and Noelle at Legally Blonde! :)

Great song

Last week during a forum that was held by the LDS institute, the choir sang a song that really stood out to me. It sounded so familiar but I don't recall ever hearing it before. The only words I could remember afterwards was, take time to be holy. That small part of the song has been going through my mind all week, so I finally looked it up today. I have already listened to it many times and I LOVE it!

Check it out...

Here are the lyrics:

1. 
   
   
   Take Time To Be Holy
   Take time to be holy, speak oft with thy Lord;
   
   
   
   Abide in Him always, and feed on His Word.
   Make friends of God’s children, help those who are weak,
   Forgetting in nothing His blessing to seek.
2. 
   
   
   Take time to be holy, the world rushes on;
   
   
   
   Spend much time in secret, with Jesus alone.
   By looking to Jesus, like Him thou shalt be;
   Thy friends in thy conduct His likeness shall see.
3. 
   
   
   Take time to be holy, let Him be thy Guide;
   
   
   
   And run not before Him, whatever betide.
   In joy or in sorrow, still follow the Lord,
   And, looking to Jesus, still trust in His Word.
4. 
   
   
   Take time to be holy, be calm in thy soul,
   
   
   
   Each thought and each motive beneath His control.
   Thus led by His Spirit to fountains of love,
   Thou soon shalt be fitted for service above.
5. There are so many truths in this song. My favorite part, "Take time to be holy, the world rushes on; Spend much time in secret, with Jesus alone. By looking to Jesus, like Him thou shalt be; Thy friends in thy conduct His likeness shall see." Whenever I get caught in the "rush" of school or become worried about my future, I know I just need to step back and put things in perspective. In doing so, I remind myself that my main goal is to become like our Savior and faithfully endure through this life so I can return to Him. Just thinking about that brings peace and comfort that all of those minor details in life that I tend to worry about, will all work out in the end. Something that also really stands out in that phrase is how it says to "spend much time in secret, with Jesus alone." The word secret, in this instance, seems to have a very intimate meaning. What a blessing and great opportunity we have to be able to have such a close relationship with our Savior!
6. Those are a few of my thoughts. :) I just really like this song and it gets me all happy and excited whenever I hear it! My hope is that it might have the same effect on you, so that's why I'm sharing it! ENJOY!