Happiness

Do you ever have one of the moments where you think, "This is right where I belong"? Somehow, in that moment, all things feel right in the world. And you genuinely know that life couldn't get any better at that precise moment.

I had one of those moments today. You see, I'm taking an Early Field Experience class this semester, which means that 2-3 days a week, I go to an elementary school and I'm assigned to  be with a specific class. In that class, I observe the teacher, and I get to do a fair amount of teaching myself.

I'm with Mrs. Long's fourth graders, and they are the most amazing students ever. :) Today was my first day formally teaching the class. I taught history because I figured I'd be better off teaching history instead of math! I spent this past weekend making posters of the lesson I was teaching, creating Indian headbands, and making a review game for them to play. And I was so nervous, not gunna lie!

But I walked into Mrs. Long's class today with all the props I brought, and before I even started, I heard someone say, "You brought stuff for us?! You're the best teacher!" ...My heart melted a wee bit. :)

So the lesson went amazing! And as I was standing there - teaching these kids - I had this moment where I thought, "This is where I belong...and life couldn't possibly get any better right now." There's just an indescribable feeling when you ask a question and a million hands shoot up....or you ask for some volunteers, and again, every hand goes up. And at the same time, there's something so incredibly special about helping a student who doesn't understand a math problem. There's even something sweet about the little boy who comes up to you after the lesson and turns to his favorite poster you drew and says, "This was my favorite part - the part where the Nez Perce killed the white guys." Haha, I love little boys. :)

...I love it... I just really love teaching. There have been several points in my life where I just felt out of step with my own life - like some part of me was missing. And when I'm standing in front of those fourth graders, it's like that missing part of me is completely filled - a part called complete and total happiness.

My New Passion

So I found out today that my "August 16th" turned to "August 17th." ...Go figure; it would be one day later...just to test my patience a little more! Haha! Normally, that might bum me out. Other things going on could very potentially bum me out, too.

But not after tonight. :) You see, some girls are passionate about chocolate (which I was). Some girls are  passionate about boys, flirting, and dating (which I used to be). The list of passions goes on and on.

But after tonight, I have a new passion: Zumba dancing. :) One of my best friends, Brittney, and I have wanted to go to a Zumba class on campus all semester. It's really awesome because BYU-Idaho has all these free work-out classes offered...like pilates, abs that rock, zumba, kick boxing, hip hop, etc. etc. Brittney and I talked about going to a Zumba class all semester, but we never really got around to it.

But tonight we did. :) And it changed my life! haha :) We were tempted not to go because it was snowing and cold and we had to walk about a mile to get to campus...but I'm so glad we went! :)

We walked into the Zumba class about a minute or so late, and they had already started! What was even more intimidating was EVERYONE knew what they were doing; I swear! I felt kind of completely ridiculous when I started, but it was pretty easy to catch on.

What I love about Zumba is it's kind of a mix between Latin and African dancing on crack or something like that. Haha! What I'm getting at is that Zumba is LEGIT. :)

When I was 16, I used to always tell my dad, "I could date everyday twice a day for the rest of my life and be happy!" HA! Clearly, I was young and naive then! Now, I'm going to say something much more truthful: "I could Zumba dance everyday twice a day for the rest of my life and be happy!"

....And I just might do that. :)

August 16th.

August 16.... you'll notice I put up a countdown on this blog. ...I'm not excited or anything. ;-)

Life is interesting that way... Sometimes you anxiously anticipate something so much that it feels like it will never, ever come. But then the closer it actually gets, the more okay you actually are with being patient and waiting.

Granted, I do have a countdown on my blog...so maybe that's not all that patient. Haha! But really...I'm grateful. Grateful that my patience has been tested. Grateful that I've had the opportunity and the blessing to grow on my own. Grateful for the experiences it has put me through - both the good and the bad. Grateful that I am who I am today because I've had to learn patience.

The saying goes that the best things in life are worth waiting for. I'm a firm believer in that. :)

Life is funny...

Before I start out, I want you to be aware that it is 1:09AM. This story is so hilarious that it cannot wait for morning.

So a few minutes ago, I was sitting in my bedroom with my roommate, Shelby. She was going through old text messages and she came across one from her cousin. She looked up at me and said, "Hey, a couple months ago my cousin asked how I knew Breanne Davis" (he saw on Facebook that Shelby and I were mutual friends). 

"Really? That's weird. Who's your cousin?" I asked.

"Jeff."

My jaw kind of dropped when she said that. "Jeff Thomas?" 

"Wait...you know my cousin?!" she said in disbelief. 

And I do! ...Well, technically, I know of him. You see, my best friend in the whole world, Alex Lindner, is on a mission in Tennessee right now. A few months ago, Alex wrote me and said, "So one of my favorite missionaries, Jeff Thomas, is coming home soon. I told him about you and that you two should totally meet up." So naturally, Jeff and I became friends on Facebook. (because anyone who's anyone adds people they've never officially met on Facebook!) He even emailed me saying Alex had told him about me. Jeff said he comes to Rexburg every now and again and suggested we meet up.

And somehow...his cousin, Shelby, ends up as my roommate! Shelby and her friend think it's hilarious, and they're convinced that this is a sign that I should marry their cousin, Jeff Thomas.

On top of this, I actually have a video Alex sent me a few months ago. It's a video of him and his district basically having a big sleep over. haha. Anyway, Jeff Thomas is in the video, so I pulled up the video and showed it to Shelby. She's like, "Oh my gosh! That's my cousin in your video!" haha!

Shelby decided to text Jeff (at 1am, remember) and tell him the story. Jeff ended up calling, and he was thought it was great! He said he's going to try and come visit. He also said Alex was pretty much his favorite missionary. :) That doesn't surprise me a bit. :)

But anyway...what a ridiculously small world! Life sure is funny!

Bucket List

I've been thinking a lot lately about the things I want to do with my life. I decided it was fit for me to make a bucket list, a list of things I want to do before I die.

Each day, I realize how precious and beautiful life really is. Especially my life. As I think back, my mind reflects on the good times I had, the challenges I went through, and how all those things impacted my life. I wouldn't change a thing. The only thing I would change for my future is to live life more fully.  I hope this list will help a little with that...

My Bucket List

1)      Visit every temple in the world …  or at least every temple in the United States.

2)      Converse with Elder Jeffery R. Holland.

3)      Get married in a temple to my eternal companion for the rest of forever … and be worthy throughout my life to be with him forever.

4)      Raise a family in the light of the gospel of Jesus Christ.

5)      Travel to Jerusalem and visit all the sites pertaining to Christ.

6)      Go on a couple’s mission with my husband when we’re old and wrinkly.

7)      Get my Bachelor’s Degree in elementary education and become the kind of teacher that doesn’t just teach, but inspires.

8)      Ride a horse to the top of some sort of beautiful hill/mountain overlooking an incredible view.

9)      Go fishing in Canada and/or Alaska.

10)  Try all 31 flavors at Baskin Robins.

11)  Stand atop the Eiffel Tower.

12)  Run a half marathon…even if I’m dead last!

13)  Go back to Hawaii and scuba dive again. Without being terrified of dying this time.

14)  Go to a Jack Johnson concert while in Hawaii.

15)  Publish my own children’s book.

16)   Speak another language fluently.

17)   Be a part of having a dramatic impact on someone else’s life.

18)   Learn how to play the guitar and compose my own song.

19)  Go to Africa (or someplace like that) and teach children there.

20)   Be kissed at the top of a Ferris wheel. 

Valentine's Day: Beware

So I decided I wanted to start my blog out right ... with a story that's guaranteed to make you chuckle, giggle, or at least smile. :)

Attending BYU-Idaho has been the best decision of my life so far. I love everything about this place - the cold, the snow, the people, the Spirit, the teachers ... the list goes on. Towards the top of the list is, of course, men. ;-)

But more specifically, FHE brothers.

Let me explain. About a week ago, my roommate, Katrina, and I were hanging out with our FHE brothers at their apartment. After some good ole videos games, we decided to watch a scary movie. Interestingly enough, it was actually Valentine's Day.

I won't go into the nitty gritty details of the movie for your sake, but it was ridiculously intense and scary. Needless to say, our FHE brothers enjoyed seeing me and Katrina jump after all the scary parts.

After the movie, Katrina and I were terrified to walk home. But clinging to each other's arm, we quickly walked home without seeing any dead creepy people, werewolves, or any weapon-devised lollipops (I'm pretty sure only people who have seen this movie would get the lollipop reference!).

As I was getting ready for bed, my other roommate Brittney came into my room at 1am saying she heard something at the door. When the doorbell rang, I thought nothing of it; I just assumed it was one of my roommates getting home late...

Little did I know. Words can't really capture the legit horror I experienced as I opened the door. So I'm going to let this video explain it (and please take note that the screaming continued loudly once I slammed the front door closed).

http://www.facebook.com/video/video.php?v=822369183593&subj=723087037 (Unfortunately, I can't post the video directly on here...so hopefully you'll be able to watch it.)

....Terrible, right?! It terrified me!  And in case you were wondering... here's what my roommate Morgan and I did to "get them back.":

Just so you know, the reason Mark, Jason, Blain, and Trevor got the pumpkin-headed dolls is because they were the ones who scared me and my roommates. (Chris and Tyler were the nice ones who didn't - thus, we made them heart cookies.)

So two things:
1) It's clear that we're girls since our revenge tactic was to make cookies.
2) The moral of the story: Never, EVER watch a scary movie with your FHE brothers on Valentine's Day.

Inspiration

So I won't lie...

Sometimes I sit around and look at people's blogs. Don't worry; they're people I know so I'm not a complete creeper. Let's just say if I know you and you have a blog, I've seen it. :)

Anyway, I've always been inspired to make a blog after seeing some really incredible ones, but I've just never taken the time to do so.

Well, I finally am. We'll see how it goes. :)