Off to Australia!

Hey everyone!

The last few weeks have been Capital Crazy!! I have given 2 farewell talks and they actually went really well. For my first talk I spoke about discovering the will of God and doing it. I spent a lot of time preparing and I learned a lot. The next week I spoke about striving to have the  spirit in our lives. Something i needed a little reminder about. I barely had any time to prepare and i ended up pretty much winging it when i stood up to speak. haha Scary! But it was a good reminder that I am going to have to do that on the mission and i can remember that i CAN do it! :)
I have had so many friends come over, call, text, skype reminding me how much I am loved and how great my support group is out there. I am so blessed to have so many wonderful people in my life.

 My crazy florida girls that i LOVE!!

 My Hood boys :) well part of them. The rest are on missions.

 My amazing friends i made in my singles ward. SO BLESSED.

 My best friend Amjad :) who received a Book of Mormon from Chaz and I this day :)

More exciting news!
My cousin and best friend Heather just got married on saturday in the Logan temple. And might i say that the ceremony was.... beautiful. My Grandpa Flanary performed the sealing and the spirit was so strong. I am so incredibly happy for her and Zachary McGregor and the the life they have started together :)

It's tuesday and I have been packing like crazy!! I've got all my bags packed but I've gotta box up my room :/ Not fun. Kenzie and Sammy Zahn came over last night! Sammy and I caught up while Ken and I decorated best friend stuff! I am certainly going to miss Ken so much. She has been there for me through thick and thin the last 4 years and we have many more years of that to come!! :)
And even more exciting news!!
My cousin Shane Adams is heading to the Peru Arequipa mission the same day as me! He was set to go to the Peru MTC but his visa hasn't come yet so we are entering the Provo MTC together tomorrow!!! SO EXCITED!!


Okay well i'm off the preach the good word!! Love you all! Check here for more updates!

"but a small moment"

Almost immediately after receiving my call I was bombarded with trial after trial each one being increasingly more difficult. After I would think that I finally made it through one and so many good things were happening and amazing people were coming into my life, another trial would hit me like a sack of bricks. Life has been the toughest it has ever been for me.
Most recently I was dating someone and things seemed to be going great at first, but then everything started rolling downhill and everything was an argument and we both weren't really happy anymore as much as we both want to deny it. Fast sunday had come and i needed to know what Heavenly Father wanted me to do about it. I got my answer but I really really didn't want to do it. So I fudged it as much as i could and said let's date till I leave then we will break up for the time of my mission.... that didn't feel right either. :( I was trying so hard to make the best of it. I really was but from my point of view it didn't look like he was. One day it hit me even harder that when it ends... that's the end. No more us. I cried for days. My heart hurt so much, but even then I knew that I needed to show my Heavenly Father that I would do whatever He wanted me to do. So i knew what I had to do.

But first here is a little advice if things are tough in a relationship:

1. Don't have serious conversations over text.
                        I wanted to talk in person and he didn't. I finally caved in to what he wanted. So no matter how much they don't want to see you or you don't want to see them, force it to happen in person.

2. Don't have serious conversations in the middle of the night.
                        Things get tough in a relationship, whatever that relationship is. If things are getting heated and its late, remember, IT'S LATE! Emotions are heightened when you are tired. If you have to, go to bed angry. Your head will be clearer in the morning.

So needless to say our relationship ended on the worst note possible and my heart was completely and utterly broken. He just stopped talking to me and gave me no closure. I've been trying to find closure myself but it is difficult. I apologized for the way things ended and I still have yet to hear from him. But you know, if this is how he needs to get through this, I need to respect it no matter how hurtful it is.
It doesn't matter how many times you apologize to someone. If they don't want to be in your life, they'll make sure they aren't. But you can't let the tears that come from losing that person bring you down, let them make you strong in the realization that God will mend your heart and make it whole again. A broken heart is real. But it isn't permanent.

I plead with God everyday to take this pain from me and everyday he sends someone to help me, or to cheer me up :)

I know that our Heavenly Father hears and answers each and everyone of our prayers. Ultimately, I know that He has something great in store for us. We just need to submit ourselves to the will of our Heavenly Father, maybe give up something, and remember that He knows what is best for us and read what is said in Doctrine and Covenants section 121 verse 7 and 8:

"My son, peace be unto thy soul; thine adversity and thine afflictions shall be but a small moment;"

The Lord is with you :) Trust in him :)

Mission Bound

I don't even know where to begin!

So let's start in September. I decided in September that I was officially going to serve a mission. After much prayer I knew that was what I needed to prepare for :) It wasn't easy getting everyone on board in my decision, which made life difficult. But I pressed forward anyway. And on October 3rd my bishop dropped of a packet of papers to begin.

I was going to have to wait till March to turn them in because my birthday is in June and you have to be 21 to serve a mission as a Sister Missionary :) Little did I know that only 4 days later the Prophet Thomas S. Monson stood up in General Conference and announced the lowering of the age change for girls to 19 and boys to 18!! I didn't have to wait to turn my papers in! I was overcome with joy at that moment knowing that God was preparing me for this in what I thought was "early" and ended up being perfect.
The Lord's timing is perfect.


Three weeks later I submitted my papers to the First Presidency and Quorum of the 12 Apostles to receive my assignment. I was soooo excited! Luckily I only had to wait 2 loooong weeks for it to come haha The day it arrived I spent the day with my  good friend Courtney Cox who was also receiving her call that day! We went to the temple, studied the scriptures, cleaned, ate and freaked out :) and it came!!

After another loooong day everyone gathered at our separate homes to watch us open our calls :)

I read carefully:
"Dear Sister Adams:

You are hereby called to serve as a missionary of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. You are assigned to labor in the Australia Melbourne Mission....You should report to the Provo MTC on Wednesday March 27, 2012... English language."

I FREAKED OUT!!! Australia had never crossed my mind! I surprisingly enough did not cry. I was just so overcome with joy :)

Courtney and I will be entering the MTC on the same day!!

I went through the Logan Temple for the first time to receive the Endowment on November 23rd 2012 :) One of the happiest days of my life so far. The spirit is so strong in the temple :)

I now only have 35 days till I become an official missionary of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and I cannot wait for that day :)

Changing my Heart

Where to begin. I have been sitting here the past 10 minutes staring...

Oh! It looks like Easter is where i last left off :)
Well this year since i wasn't home with family I decided a way to make this Easter special was to make my own dress for church on sunday. Wearing my best work and using the gift God gave me felt really good!

I was a beautiful Easter Sunday :)

I tried a new work out! I totally kicked my butt to the max! But it was totally worth it. I feel so much stronger. Now if you are going to do this I would reccommend starting slow and not doing the full 100. Maybe half it first then work your way up. But it truly is amazing!!

I did the leg lifts wrong...I didn't know what they were!! haha so the way I did them worked out my butt and OH BOY!!! HARD CORE!!

On a more serious and life changing note, here is a snipit from my journal the other day,

"Today I woke up and got ready to meet with the missionaries. It seemed like it would be a great day. As the missionaries arrived in their car I all of a sudden got a sick and uneasy feeling. I had never felt this way before, meeting with the missionaries, so I said a quick prayer in my heart for comfort even though I don't know why I was feeling this way. The Elders walked up to me and you could tell that something was off and he asked if I had heard the sad news... I said no? I dont know.. And He continued to tell me that the hit and run that happened outside of my apartment complex last night involved Lydia, this sweet Chinese CP and member of the church. She passed away. I didn't know what to say. I didn't know Lydia very well, but for the time i did have with her and what i did know I had grown such a deep and everlasting love for her and I began to cry. We were supposed to talk about the bible study I'm going to the next day, which we did but only for a moment. Then we were able to talk about the Plan of Salvation for a while. It helped me a little but it was still a little too much to take in so fast. Of course I know the plan of Salvation is true, I know it, but for some reason I could not stop crying. Heather came and joined our lesson. I finally composed myself and felt peaceful. The Elders asked what they could do for us and we actually said that we would like a blessing. But i had to rush off to work. I got on the bus for work and as I got to Hollywood studios and was about to step off I got a call from my mother and she told me that my grandpa Adams passed away. ... I broke down crying and went in to talk to a manager so I could go home. I texted the missionaries and told them what happened and asked if they could give me a blessing as soon as I got back. It was a miracle they were still at vista and were able to give me a blessing right there. Elder Hanson gave me the blessing and through the priesthood told me that i would be blessed with comfort in this trying time of my life, that i have such a burning testimony of this gospel and that I am going to be an anchor for those around me. I will be able to remember the Plan of Salvation and of Gods love for me. 
It has been such a bitter sweet day. I mourn that I won't see them on earth for a while but I am happy to know that I will be able to see them again and that they are in a better place."

Looking back it is so cool to see how perfectly everything worked out. I know I was given that uneasy feeling so that i would recognize that i needed comfort today even though I had no idea why yet. Also I needed to leave the missionaries to go to work so that i could have some time to myself on the bus talking to my family and pondering alone. The missionaries were still at Vista Way not by chance to give me a blessing when i got home. Heather called off work not only because she was in a weird mood but because I needed to be with a friend the rest of the day.

It is so hard to see the big picture when we go through our trials, and I still don't see the big picture as to why all this happen and why it happened now but i do know that God is looking out for me and He is looking out for you too. He knows what you are going through and He knows how to help you. Whatever the trial is we can go to Him for help.

Orlando Florida Temple

He knows you. Let Him change your heart. He's changing mine each and every day.

Be your best You

Well first off, the reason i have not posted in so long is because my laptop has passed away :( At first it was hard not having my laptop, and well it is still an inconvenience because i can't update my blog as easily (a big thanks to my roommate Erin for letting me borrow hers :) ), I can't save pictures and videos on a hard drive so i can erase them off my phone, I can't watch my TV shows on hulu like Modern Family, New Girl, or Parenthood! And I can't skype my family on a big screen without asking to use someone else's computer. But I CAN borrow a laptop to update my blog, I can save pictures on facebook and email them to myself because I have a smart phone, I don't need to watch my tv shows i'm doing fine without them, and I have skype on my amazing iPhone! So I actually have some ups to these downs :)

A LOT has happened since I last posted.
My best friend came to visit me!!!! We had to much fun going to the parks and staying on the beach in Daytona! I got almost no sleep at all while she was here and it definitely showed hahaha which I apologize for :/ But nonetheless the Lord knew what he was doing sending her to me when He did because I could not have gone through the things I did without her there.
Everything had finally just come crashing down on my at once. I felt so sad, and alone. And to my surprise either of those feelings didn't stay for very long. The day I had a major meltdown the opportunity to speak in church came along. I agreed to do it but then thought, "Am I ready to give a talk in church?" "Am I going to be able to say what they need to hear?" Life just didn't seem right up until that moment. I wasn't being the best me I could be. But i went through with it anyways, and it was probably, no it WAS the best thing i could have done for myself. Because of that talk I prayed more than I had in a long time. I was listening to uplifting music everyday and  I felt so good! I also had the sweetest experience in giving that talk :) Lets just say I was able to have the spirit speak right through me to a specific person in a big way. After that life has only been up hill. I know that that is because I am staying close to my Heavenly Father and doing His will in being an example of the believers and bringing the gospel to others :)

A LOT HAS HAPPENED!!!!

Best friend came and visited!!

Laura got baptized!!

I got to spend time with Sammi while she was here vacationing!
WE WENT TO UNIVERSAL STUDIOS AND.....HARRY POTTER WORLD!!!!!

Brittany, Debbie and I have a new game called SPOT THE MISSIONARIES where everytime we see them we have to take a picture and send it to each other :) haha this was #1 and set the ball rolling :)

^Elder Hanson and Elder Mortenson have been an incredible strength to me :) They are great missionaries! I love meeting and learning with them :)

And last but not least CONFERENCE!
Conference was absolutely  amazing :) I love our Prophet Thomas S. Monson and all the Apostles!
We are so blessed to have them on the earth with us today :) Their guidance is exactly what I need in times of trouble or discouragement.

^Conference, a way to stay on the straight and narrow^

Well I hope this shall suffice for now!!
Remember there is Always room for Improvement.

Be the Best You that You can Be!!

You're not the only one

This week has been a little tougher than normal.
I spent a good amount of time crying and being down on myself.

But i certainly had a wake up call today going to church.
It was fast Sunday so during sacrament meeting  the members are invited, if they want, to bear their testimonies of what they know and believe. Almost every single person bore their testimony on how they are going through a hard time. It was incredible to me see such a large group of people going through their own individual trial but all coming together with one main thing in common, our love and testimony of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. So cool! It made me realize how you are never the only one going through a tough time. We all come to this earth to experience trials and hardships and we are all here to help each other. What a great thing to know!

Anyways, so pretty much i realized i am a horrible blogger but i'm gonna keep going!  Thank you to all my readers!! I love you!

So I have had the past two days off from work and it has been wonderful!

I started going to the gym and have discovered..... I LOVE IT!!! I love the way I feel when I do and for the rest of the day following. I am incredibly sore but i am absolutely enjoying it :) I stretch for 10 minutes, do weights for 15 minutes, then the elliptical or bike for a half hour, then stretch for another 10 minutes.

On Leap Day I met a couple Characters that are so stinking cute!!

  TinkerBell!!!

  Winnie The Pooh!

Monday Night I FINALLY made it to Family Home Evening. After FHE Debby and I met with the missionaries and that was great as always.

Tuesday I went to the gym, and you'll never guess.... One of my amazing roommates decided to come and see what all the hullaballoo is about!! (I technically had to beg her to come haha) But once she got there she was so happy and that made me so happy! We're going to meet again on Friday! Can't wait!

I sent 3 Letters to Missionaries and a package to my family! I've finally memorized my address!

This was quite a boring post. I will be sure to make the next VERY INTERESTING and enjoyable :)

Enjoy each and every day!

Little Pick Me Ups

If you have a family like mine (crazy, fun, loud beyond reason, and just plain BIG) then you know that is hard to leave them behind and miss out on all the birthday parties, weddings, baby showers, baby blessing, dinners and game nights.
This is my amazing BIG amazing family a few years ago... we've definitely grown since :)

But you know what? There are ALWAYS things around you, places to go, experiences to be had to cheer you up, and you just gotta grab hold of every chance you get to have a little pick me up :)


Like,

Find a local free activity like.....Free Pancake Day at IHOP!

Go to a Water Park with some great friends! (or snowboarding if you are in Utah ;) haha)

Giving out your address so you can recieve unexpected letters from your sweet cousin Mckenzie :)

Do something that reminds you of home that makes you happy :)

Serve your Roommates/Family and make them a cake :)

Mani Pedi- Treat Yourself!!

I hope when you are have a bum day you can use these pick me ups or find your own pick me up! Feel free to share your pick me ups! I can use all that i can get, though, can't we all? :)

Good Luck! :)