Lovey-Dovey Day

I’ve been hearing it all week…”I hate Valentine’s Day.”

People are entitled to their opinion. But…

I love this holiday!

And you should too!

What better chance do we have to tell all the people in our lives, just how much they mean to us.

I’ll be honest, Valentine’s Day was hard when Randy was on his mission. I wanted someone to send me flowers and take me out to dinner and hold my hand. But it also taught me that all kinds of love are important, and people need to know that you matter to them!

So I have so many people that I should shout-out to and tell them how much they mean to me. I don’t have time to do that, and you don’t have time to read it, so here’s my love letter to all of my dear friends on this lovey-dovey day.

To my lovely friends,

Thank you for supporting me, loving me, letting me be crazy and random and emotional. Thank you for showing me what friendship means. As you get older, it’s easy for friendships to fall apart, and it becomes obvious very quickly who your true friends are. Thank you for being there as I’ve figured out who will stick around. You mean the world to me.

To my family,

I lucked out, and got the best family known to man. Thank you for supporting me as I’m planning a wedding, loving me when I’m a pain, and always being ready to talk and listen. You all inspire me and make me want to be better. I am so happy I get to spend eternity playing Boggle and eating caramel corn with you all!

And to the love of my life,
Randy, every little girl wants to marry the prince and live happily ever after. Thank you for making every fairy tale, real. It’s a different type of fairy tale, neither of us are perfect and there are times we seriously drive each other crazy, but the best part of the fairy tale is that in spite of all of that, we stay together. You once said to me, “I love you for a million reasons, but I know I want to marry you because I love your ugly. I love the parts of you that nobody else gets to see, the vulnerable and sad, hurt, and upset parts.” Thank you for showing me what love really is.

Now enough sap, excuse me as I finish my work day looking at my new watch, and getting ready for date night in the city!

Happy Valentine’s Day everyone! Spread the love.

To do once you get engaged:

Buy a Feyonce t-shirt. Obviously. 

Get the girls who will help you pick out every little detail, make you laugh, help you fix your hair, and everything in between. 

Spend lots of quality time with your fiance and his guitar. 

Keep studying, working, and anchoring even though all you want to do is pin.
And on the subject of pinning, I’m so sorry to all my Pinterest followers. All I do is pin wedding stuff and everyone is probably so sick of it!
More more more is coming!
XOXO
Happy Thursday everyone! 

Yes, yes, a thousand times yes

So I’m a little behind blogging. I’ve been a little busy, getting engaged! Oops:)

SO here’s the story. 100% unedited, ready for you to read. It’s a good one, super sappy, but super perfect. I’m going to tell my side of the story, and then Randy is actually going to type up his side of the story in a cute he said/she said. We’re thinking of moving my blog to a platform where we can both post regularly, so let me know what you think about that!

Ok, here we go:)

I swear this was us about ten minutes ago. Just reenacting one of our favorite art pieces (American Gothic) while performing in Fiddler on the Roof. Circa 2011.

She says: Randy and I had been seriously talking about getting married for a few weeks now. We’d been praying, going to the temple, spending time together and apart to figure out if it was right. And we both came to the conclusion that we were crazy about each other, and wanted to get married. It was the right decision. We went and looked at engagement rings and I pointed out several that I liked, and told Randy to make the final decision and surprise me. I was waiting, and waiting, and waiting, for him to propose. I knew he’d gone and talked to my dad, but I wasn’t sure if he had the ring, or when he was going to pop the question. I would bug him about it every day, whining and wondering when it was going to happen. He was stubborn and wouldn’t tell me a thing! Which is good because i would’ve been upset if he’d spoiled the surprise. Randy told me he was going to do grand gestures and crazy dates for the next few weeks so I would never knew when it was actually coming.

So Monday, February 2nd, my roommate and best friend Rachel texted me and asked if we could go get cheesecake in Salt Lake that night. We had both had a rough weekend, and she said she wanted to go have a girls night out. Randy had told me a few days earlier he was working Monday night, so I said of course! I came home after class and got all dolled up for our night out. We drove to Salt Lake and jammed to our favorite tunes. I was a little suspicious at first, but Randy was texting me from work, and Rachel had been in no rush to leave, and I figured if Randy was proposing he’d want me at a spot at a certain time.

We went and got our cheesecake, it was delightful.

We wandered around City Creek, again removing my suspicion that Randy was proposing, because I was sure he would have a specific plan with a specific time we needed to be there. 

We took some pictures, and then Rach asked if we could go to the Capitol building and take more pictures to document our date-night. Of course, I agreed. 
We got to the Capitol and I was telling Rachel all about Randy and I’s Senior Prom there, pointing to places where we danced, etc. We started walking up the huge staircase at the very front of the building. There are huge pillars near the front door, and we decided to go up there to take pictures. 
Then, Randy walked out front behind the pillars in a suit, with flowers. Rachel disappeared to who knows where! I was in shock, and I think I stammered out “Um….what are you doing here?” Then. It hit me. This was it. He was proposing here. Tonight. Right now.
The city was lit up behind us, you could see the temple and it was so perfect. Randy grabbed my hands, and said some sweet things about how much he loved me, how he had loved me when we had danced there at prom.
Then he got down on his knee, he was so nervous! 
Then he asked me to marry him.
And I said yes. 
I’ve had lots of wonderful and happy days in my life. But the day that I agreed to spend the rest of my life with my best friend,  my high school sweetheart, my returned missionary, and the ultimate love of my life, will go down as one of my very best days. I can’t wait to marry him on May 30th! 

He says: When I got home from my mission, it became very real that I wanted to marry Maddy. We had to start praying and being very serious about the question, but at the same time, I don’t feel like I ever had any doubts that it was the perfect choice. She’s my best friend and I don’t have any interest in searching for someone else. Why would I try to find a replacement for a perfect fit? She’s everything to me.
So I started talking to Maddy’s friends and figuring out how I wanted to ask her to marry me. I also talked to her father to receive his blessing. It was SO scary, but he gave me his blessing and then it was up to me to ask her. Rachel and I made plans to get her into Salt Lake City so I could ask her. I was really worried that I wasn’t going to be able to surprise her because we had talked so much about marriage and we had already made plans to get married. To keep the secret, we decided to tell Maddy that I was working on Monday night and have Rachel take Maddy to Salt Lake.
While Rachel was taking Maddy out to have a good time, I was preparing myself at the Capitol building. It was the place that Maddy and I had prom and one of our most romantic dates we’d gone on. It was the perfect place. I got my suit and some flowers and went to the Capitol and waited. I was pacing around and preparing what kind of things I wanted to say when I asked her to marry me.
I ended up waiting for about 2 hours. I started to get really anxious and nervous. Then Rachel texted me and told me that Maddy would be there in about a minute. I stood behind one of the pillars at the top of the main staircase and waited to hear her voice. I felt pretty confident and prepared. Then I heard her and stepped out to see her. She was dressed up nice with Rachel and looked so beautiful……and my hands started to shake uncontrollably. I forgot all the things I wanted to say to her. I just kinda spit out all the things that I was feeling and then got down on my knee, and asked her to marry me. She gave me a cute smile and said yes. 
It was the best night. It took more to prepare than anyone had ever told me it would be. It was scarier than anyone had ever told me, but it was also more exciting and happy than anyone had ever told me. I still can’t stop smiling. I walk around school with a stupid smile on my face and a little hop in my step. I’m so excited and I’ve never been so happy.

Don’t You Quit

Hello there friends! After a particularly rotten weekend, this has been running through my head today. I could list all the rotten things that happened this week, and this month for that matter. But instead I’m going to keep walking, keep trying.

One nice thing about this week was going to the game with Randy and Rach and Nick! It’s always a blast hanging out with these two, and even better when Rach gets us great seats to a great game!
And serious shout-out to Randy for being my rock. I’ve been sick and he’s been helping me get better, he’s helped me in a million ways and has been there for me as I’ve broken down. I’m not sure why he puts up with me, but I am so happy that he does. 
Happy Super Bowl today everyone! And happy Sunday!

The one where I chime in about leggings

I didn’t even want to honor this topic with a post, but as I was listening to conference talks this morning, this one came on. I couldn’t not share.

Lord, Is It I?

Here’s to being a little less judgmental and a little more understanding, kind, and loving.

There are so many bigger problems than leggings. Like members feeling left out, looked down on, and inadequate.

I have opinions about modesty. But to me, modesty is about the way you live your life. And living a modest life includes respecting yourself and those around you, but most importantly, loving your Heavenly Father.

You shouldn’t choose your clothes based on who might be looking at you, but based on your desire to prove to God, every single day, that you love him and you’ll do what he asks you to do.

That also means you shouldn’t tell other people what to wear because you know best. Everyone has a very personal relationship with God. Let them talk to him about what to wear.

Instead, we should all focus on ourselves, and on showing others that God loves them.

When others feel the love of God, they’re more likely to listen to his guidance and counsel, right?

So let’s be done with the posts that are pulling people down, let’s be done arguing over what not to wear.

What They Won’t Tell You About Having Them Come Home

Ok dear friends, it’s time for this post.

Before I say anything else, let me start with this.

Randy and I are very much in love. Things are delightful, we love spending time together and having him home is the best thing in the world.

But having him home was also incredibly hard.

That sounds super ridiculous, right? I mean, we just spent 2 years apart, we should be OVERJOYED to be together again. And we were. But that doesn’t mean it’s easy.

We spent 2 years making new friends, meeting new people, living in two different countries, figuring out how to communicate with email and letters, growing up, making goals, having happy and sad experiences. And we got really good at doing all that. There were days when I actually LIKED having a missionary. It was never easy, but it got comfortable. Routine.

Then he came home.

We had to figure out how to communicate instantly, with words and tones and body language. Talk about weird.

I had to try and introduce him to new friends that knew a different part of me, and he had to introduce me to mission companions that meant the world to him.

I had to try to explain twerking (RIGHT?!?!?!) and why everyone is obsessed with Frozen.

He had to try to explain companionship inventory and couldn’t remember words in English.

So here are a few things that I wish I had known about having a missionary come home:

1. It’s ok to feel overwhelmed. They’ll feel overwhelmed, you’re going to be overwhelmed. Just enjoy what you can when you can. The overwhelmed parts will fade away soon enough.
2. It’s ok to fight. I think Randy and I were both so nervous about fighting that it only made tension worse. Couples fight! It’s ok!
3. It’s ok to not want to be together constantly. Randy and I loved being together, but for some people a little space is crucial! Don’t feel bad!
4. It’s ok to want to be lame. I felt dumb for wanting to stay in and cook dinner together instead of rushing out to parties and movies and dances. But honestly, it’s ok to sit down and chat for hours. I promise!
5. It’s ok to be different. I was so worried we weren’t adjusting the same way my friends, and their cousins, and their sisters best friends brother in law had adjusted. It’s ok to be different from everyone you see blogging and on Facebook!
6. It’s ok if it doesn’t work out the way you wanted. This is hard for so many people. For Randy and I, we’re dating and it’s been working out just fine. For other people, it doesn’t work or takes longer to get figured out. Sometimes things change and plans change, and all of that is ok.
7. It’s ok to communicate. There were some things that were bothering me and I didn’t want to bring them up, I didn’t want to offend Randy. In the long run, it’s better to have a conversation than a fight later.
8. It’s ok if it’s not ok. There are days when just straight up, having a brand new missionary in your life is hard. And it’s hard for you to be in their life too. Just trust me when I say that the bad days pass and better days are ahead! There are still perfect moments in misunderstood days, and it’ll all work out how it should.
9. It’s ok. In the end. It will be fine. That much is absolutely certain! 

So maybe that’s a downer, but I want it to be a glimpse at reality. Too many girls post that everything is 100% perfect right when their missionary gets home, which might be the case for them. For me, it was a little bit of an adjustment, one that I’m so happy we made and got through. But still.

Come what may and love it, right?

Happy Saturday everyone!

Black and White Photos

Again, another sappy post. Sorry…
Sometimes I’ll look over while we’re eating dinner or while we’re driving, and this feeling comes over me. I’m so lucky. This guy is the best thing that has ever happened to me, and every second with him is a dream come true. Things have been stressful for both of us lately, but somehow he still manages to make me smile every day. Thanks for being the best boyfriend in the world Randy Low.

Also, today was my first time anchoring for BYU Eleven News! So much fun, and such an exciting thing to be a part of. You can check it out Monday through Friday at 12:00 on channel 11, or online! It’s going to be a really fun semester, and I’m so happy to be working with the amazingly talented people that are part of the Eleven News crew! 
Anyway, coming up soon on the blog we’re going to have “What Happens When They Come Home” and others. Should be good!
Happy Monday everyone!

On Remember To Breathe

 January is proving to be one of those months. 
You know what I mean, right?
One of those months where the time ticks by slowly, but you look back and aren’t sure where the days went. And you look ahead and see so many things coming, and you’re not quite sure how to prep yourself. 
Don’t get me wrong, January has been loads of fun. There’s just so much coming with graduation and having to be a real-life adult. 
And then I bumped into this tonight. What a perfect reminder. 
So here’s to enjoying the bumps and unexpected turns, to embracing all the crazy months ahead, and walking fearlessly into the unknown. 
Happy Saturday dear friends.

2015 so far…

Hello, where have I been? If the past week is any indication of what the rest of of 2015 will be like, I have a crazy year ahead!

Too busy to take pictures or update the blog, so here’s what I have for ya today!

A look at 2015 reallll quick.

A glimpse at my perfect New Year’s Eve that included dinner at the Low’s, hanging out with my fam, Fresh Market Chocolate Chip Cookies, Wendy’s chicken nuggets, and falling asleep during a movie so Randy had to wake me up for midnight. Pretty great if you ask me!

The last first day of school. I’m not sure how it crept up on me like this, but I am so excited for what this semester has in store! I’m taking some final classes for my major, a religion class, and my last class for my minor! It’s insane!

So far 2015 has seen me doing lots of reading and Netflix watching, but also lots of scripture study, homework, cooking, time with Randy and other people that I care about, all in all it’s been a great year so far! Can’t wait to see what else is ahead!

2k14

A whole year, come and gone. What a roller coaster of a year it was. I had lots of adventures, worked hard, and loved (almost) every minute of it.

I remember last New Year’s Eve very vividly. It wasn’t a great one to be perfectly honest. There were lots of changes happening in my life, things bringing me down. I was a little worried that was how my year was going to be. And while 2014 wasn’t perfect, there were so many picture perfect moments.

I only have time to share a few here, or we’d be here for another year;) But my whole year is cataloged right there on the right in neat little blog posts under the year 2014.

SO this year found me chugging through school and absolutely loving my classes, changing my minor to Digital Humanities, doing an internship at KSL, working at KSL and at BYU Radio, spending a fun summer in Provo where I finished the hardest class in my major, and then had a blast doing all the summer things there are to do in a college town, watched several of my good friends get married and was a bridesmaid for a few, saw the Grand Canyon, spent a blissful two weeks in California and Disneyland with my amazing family, headed to Boston (officially my favorite city in the US) for a way fun week with my family and helping my brother and sister-in-law move in, found dozens of new places to eat, became more of a grownup with rent and bills and buying big things for myself, discovered my love for the Food Network, became better friends with people who turned out to be my people, had incredible wards and callings I loved, kept blog-friendships going strong, celebrated holidays and weekends with my family, dated some non-Randys, missed that missionary more than words can describe, and then had him come home to me. I learned about myself, about my Savior Jesus Christ, about my family, and about who I can become.

Yeah, you could say 2014 has been a good year.