My fam bam

I came across this lovely quote last night by President Spencer W. Kimball. He said, "Oh brothers and sisters, families can be forever!  Do not let the lures of the moment draw you away from them! Divinity, eternity, and  family -- they go together, hand in hand, and so must we!"

These past couple of weeks have been sad as I have been away from my school friends, but I am so happy to be able to spend time with my beautiful family.

Tonight was family home evening, and it didn't start without Hayden throwing in his witty comment (or several), Christian flexing his muscles, asking us to "check him out," or Amanda being teased about her main squeeze. The highlight of the evening, of course, was the Cottle jam session with Santana and Queen.

I'm really missing the Tennessee, Missouri and Salt Lake Cottles lately. I'm so blessed to have such wonderful older siblings. I look up to each of them so much.

Oh, how I love this family of mine.

Look at my hubba hubba brothers.

A bittersweet day

Today I finished my freshman year at BYU. I cannot believe it. My mom is picking me up in the morning, and I will live in St. George for 4 months. I am so excited to be with my family... SO excited. I've missed them so much.

But... my heart is aching today, too. I am in love with BYU. Seriously. If you would have told me in September that I would feel like this today, there is no way I would have believed you.

Sure, I've had tough days. I've felt homesick, lonely and inadequate, but this is been one of the best years of my life.

First of all, my roommate has become one of my very best friends. I had to say good-bye to her this morning before I went to take a test, and I walked onto campus crying my little eyes out. When the test was over, I cried even more. And when I came back to an empty dorm room.... I cried a lot. She has been such a good friend to me, and I can't believe that I have only known her for just 8 months. I'm going to miss her so much over the summer.

My ward this year was phenomenal. Honestly, I feel so lucky that I was able to have such an awesome bishopric and to go to church with such inspiring people.

My FHE group

117th Ward

I loved this year. I love learning. Especially about myself. I have discovered so many things about myself that I would've never known if it weren't for my experiences this year.

However, if I have learned anything this year, it is the fact that we do have a Heavenly Father that loves us, and He did send His son Jesus Christ to atone for the sins of the world. Jesus is our only hope. He is the only way back. I love the gospel of Jesus Christ. I am thankful for a Heavenly Father that leads me to places where I need to be. I know that BYU is where I am supposed to be. I love it with all of my heart, and I am excited to come back in August!

But until then... give me some St. George sunshine!! I can't wait.

Kindness

Yesterday, in my American Heritage lab, my TA said something that was really powerful.

He started talking about how we are always told to care for the poor, the needy, the down-trodden... you know.

But then he said that sometimes we think of the poor as the orphans in Africa and the needy as a family in South America that struggles to make a living. While all of these are definitely worthy of our efforts as well, what about the poor and the needy in our own daily spheres? What about the girl in our ward that is aching for a friend, the sibling that is hurting, the friend that needs someone to talk to, or the individual who just needs someone to smile and say hello?

We don't need to embark on some huge humanitarian project or donate a fortune to an organization to be kind. We can become more and more like Jesus Christ when we serve those that are closest to us. I think that those are the people that we oftentimes forget, but they are usually those who need us the very most.

"There is a serious need for the charity that gives attention to those who are unnoticed, hope to those who are discouraged, aid to those who are afflicted. True charity is love in action. The need for charity is everywhere."

-President Monson

.

Finals, here I come

Well, I figured that I would quickly do a blog post. This is probably going to be my only breather until after finals week. I will only be in Provo for about two more weeks. I can't believe it.

This semester has been wonderful. I took 18 credits.... it was busy, super stressful (I think I lost half of my head of hair), but I wouldn't trade what I've learned for anything.

I only went home once this semester. Sounds silly, but it was a huge accomplishment for me (compared to the six times I went home last semester!) How embarrassing.

I know I'm just an inexperienced freshman girl, but I have learned so many precious things this year at school.

Sometimes I think back to my high school days and think about the things that I thought were hard then.... usually it makes me roll my eyes and laugh at what used to push me to my breaking point.

But really, at the time, those things seemed brutal.

I think that's how Heavenly Father works. He knows what is going to challenge us at the time to push us up to the next level. When we embrace challenges and allow Him to shape and mold us, we can be better prepared for the next obstacles in our paths. Our Father in Heaven sees the big picture; He has a plan for each of His children.

Also, I'm not quite sure how I would have handled my first year of college without the things that I learned (and am still learning) from my parents. They are my heroes. Both have seen hard, dark and miserable days. I am so, so, so eternally grateful for the faith they held onto. I don't know what I would do without them. What a lucky girl I am to be able to call them Mom and Dad.

I'm so thankful for the beautiful people that I met here this year. It's amazing how quickly friends can be made. I feel like I've been with these people my whole life...

I'm also grateful for: late-night runs, the salad bar at the Cannon Center, Pinterest, General Conference, the temple (right up the street!), indian food, my visiting teachers, my siblings (Todd, Brittany, Kent, Allison, Brock, Amanda, Christian, Hayden), Justin Trapp, country music, birds chirping in the mornings, the sound of trains, the fact that summer is in the air, my lavender oil that I douse my pillow with and the tulips that are blooming on campus.

And... I'm thankful for the sight of a cozy bed that is calling my name.

A little bit old, but it made me happy today.

And this. Miss you, chili beans. (Sorry for choking you, Hay man).

This makes me happy, too.
Very happy.