my life

The Richards

August 8, 2014 — 1 Comment

Boy, do I love my family.

Earlier this week we gathered in Salt Lake to have one last HUZZAH dinner at the Roof before my brother and sister-in-law move to Boston to take on Harvard Law.

Um HELLO gorgeous. No filter needed on the temple my friends.

Awww just a boy and his mother…too cute.

We needed a picture, so we thought “ask the missionaries, they can help you!” Yeah…they don’t take the best pictures. But we’re having fun, can’t you tell!
Friends I have one crazy week coming up. Working, internship, moving out of my apartment and cleaning it, having nowhere to put my stuff for six days, going to Boston, saying bye to Ben and Kim, moving into my new apartment, more work and more internship, plus a day to celebrate Randy Low. HOLY COW. I’ll get it all done, right?
The more important thing is, I have one incredible family who are so supportive. Lately I’ve been going and doing some news stories on schools, and seeing kids whose parents don’t care, or aren’t around, breaks my heart. I’m sure lucky. 
Happy Friday everyone!

Adventures in AZ

August 4, 2014 — Leave a comment

Well friends, one of my best friends in the whole wide world is married. Can you believe it!

Sarah and Matt are so perfect for each other, and I couldn’t be happier for them! I know they’re going to have a wonderful marriage, and I can’t wait to see what’s in store for them. Love you both!

Sarah and I have been friends since freshman year of college. She’s seen me laugh, cry, laugh until I cry, been there for me when good things happen and when bad things happen, she’s truly helped me become the person that I am. I’ll forever cherish our Fat Five memories, eating nutella together, crazy Sarah, dance parties, mega-bed, and a million other things that perfectly punctuate our friendship. I love you Sar bear! I’m so happy for you.

This is us. 

So Rachel, Hannah and I drove to Arizona to be there for the wedding. 
Our trip went like this: Driving, singing, eating, driving, sheep crossing the road, pictures at the boarder, Flagstaff loving, car dancing with strangers, driving, eating, sleeping, figuring out what songs mean, laughing, driving, looking oh, so lovely, beautiful houses in Mesa, heat, the wedding dinner (complete with jokes, a video of Matt dancing.. 
Sarah’s dad explaining the REAL story, and lots of love), sleeping in the most beautiful house in the world (Darcy is wonderful!), relaxing, heat, getting ready, present exchanges, the temple, the most BEAUTIFUL bride EVER, heat, Dutch Bros milkshakes (five times)…
tacos, more getting ready, the reception, dancing like crazy, Wop, delicious food…
missing Al and Lau, sparklers, love, goodbyes, driving, eating, laughing…

Elk in the middle of the hotel district
the Grand Canyon, driving, driving, driving, crying mental breakdowns, and finally getting  back home. 
All in all, it was an incredible weekend. 

No good deed goes unpunished

July 30, 2014 — Leave a comment

Holy cow friends I am behind! So many wonderful things have happened lately and I need to get to blogging about them! Here’s the update according to my iPhone:

July 23 was an AMAZING day. I met my awesome family in Salt Lake City, went to my FAVORITE restaurant (seriously. It’s so good. Go try it.)



And then to my FAVORITE musical!
Aren’t they too cute:) 
Seriously, Wicked is AMAZING. I started legitimately tearing up when Elphaba sings Defying Gravity just before intermission. They raise her up in the air and BAH. It’s too good. 
Then, Pioneer Day! I had so much fun hanging out with Brooke during the Days of ’47 Parade, working for KSL and making sure everything went smoothly. 
I didn’t get any pictures of the rest of my Pioneer Day but it was wonderful! Here in Utah we have a day to celebrate our pioneer history, and the reason why Utah is the great state that it is! I got to spend lots of time with family, eating delicious food, and hearing my mom read pioneer stories. It was a great day:)

Rachel, Kayla and I went to Banana Leaf here in Provo which has BOMB Sri Lankan food! Curry and pa’an and mango chutney for DAYS. Plus an avocado shake! 

And then…Train! This concert was INCREDIBLE. 
Sorry my pictures are horrible #sorry.
But seriously. They are so incredible live! The concert was SO hot and crazy but it was awesome! I got to go with some wonderful friends and make some wonderful new friends, all in all it was incredible. 

Annnnd this is a sunset in Naha, the city where Randy is living. Pretty incredible. I was having one of those no-good-dirty-rotten-terrible-horrible-really-bad-bad-days on Monday when he emailed. He knows just what to say to make me happy and remind me who I am 
“Remember who you are, and who God expects you to become.”
I have a lot of amazing friends who have boosted me up lately when I’ve needed it, plus my incredible family. I love you all so much! 
Happy Wednesday everyone!

Fishing and friending

July 21, 2014 — Leave a comment
Friends, family time rocks. This past weekend I was lucky enough to go to Idaho and float the Teton River with my cute fam bam. We’ve floated the Teton a bunch of times and every single time it’s still wonderful. We caught SO many fish and got to spend time hanging out, laughing, and getting just a bit sunburned. If you’ve never done something fun and out-doorsy like this, DO IT. I love fishing and it’s so fun to be with my grandpa who is a master at it. It’s also fun to get a little dirty, take fish of the hook, get bled on like crazy, and walk in cool river water. What a good time:)
My parents WERE there, they just aren’t pictured.

Also. This gem of a best friend of mine had her farewell on Sunday. This also shows our personalities quite well. Courtney gave a FANTASTIC talk and if you haven’t seen my instagram/facebook/twitter post about her….well go check it out. It explains exactly how wonderful this girl is. Kill it in Hungary Short! Miss you already. (Expect updates on this blog about how much I miss Courtney. Realization that she doesn’t live with me anymore number one? The plush, comfy rug is no longer in the bathroom. Also, the “Seriously let’s make out” pillow. Gone.)

This week is busy and full of fun folks! Look forward to more family time as we go see Wicked, celebrate the 24th of July, and experience what it’s like for Maddy to go to the dentist! Should be a good one;)

Happy Monday everyone:)

One day at a time

July 17, 2014 — Leave a comment

Last weekend we went camping and then I got to hang out with my fam-bam in Logan for my cousin Zack’s farewell.

 
Camping was quite an adventure and I loved every second of it.
And darling Kayla is the sweetest friend I could ask for. Talking until 2:00 AM in the bed of a truck? Yes please.
Courtney is leaving me soon, and I’m really sad. But I’ll wait and post about that on Sunday. 

Life is on the verge of changing friends. My brother will be moving away, friends are getting married and leaving on missions, I’ll be moving apartments, I’ll start my last year of college, Randy will be home soon….it’s just all a little crazy.

So I’m enjoying one day at a time. It’s a nice way to live.

Happy Thursday everyone (and happy off to float the Teton River for me!)

Treat

July 14, 2014 — Leave a comment

Randy has been officially gone for 18 months. Wow. He’ll be home before I know it!

Thanks to Treat by Shutterfly, I get to send him a little something so he remembers that I’m here, supporting him and caring about him.

Treat is an AMAZING new Shutterfly line JUST FOR CARDS. They seriously have every kind of card you could ever want, with the option to personalize it just for you. They have all kinds of amazingly cute templates, with great options of how to make it your own.

Not to mention, you get a good price. Each card is about $3.50. Such an inexpensive way to show people you care.

We don’t use real paper enough anymore. Everything is electronic. Let me just tell you, nothing in the world is as wonderful as getting a handwritten note/card in the mail. I love any reason to check the mail (since that’s my primary method of communication with Randy) and it’s like my birthday anytime I get a note or card (especially when it actually is my birthday. haha)

So this is the cute little card Elder Low will be getting here in a few weeks. Needless to say, I’ll be using Treat.com for all my greeting card needs. Just look how cute this card is!

This is us re-enacting American Gothic by Grant Wood. We are art history nerds.

Seriously cute right?? Visit Treat or the Thinking Of You section to make your card! 
Happy Monday everyone!

God Bless America

July 8, 2014 — Leave a comment

Hi friends!

Whoa I said I’d be better at blogging, and I’m struggling! Here’s a quick game of catch-up showing you all the fun things I’ve been up to lately!

 
Earlier this week we hit the Provo Freedom Festival Days Fair and had some DELICIOUS chicken, and had a great time hanging out!

 
Back to good ol’ Kaysville for some hometown fun. It all started with the parade

Then some “pool” time

 
And finally some Davis High fireworks. I love my hometown:)
Can I just say I love the Fourth of July. I love this beautiful country more than anything and I feel so blessed to live here. And not just during this patriotic time. One of my favorite moments in my life was when I got back from Europe and we were going through customs to get back into the U.S. The customs officer looked at my passport, and said “Miss, welcome back to the United States of America. Welcome home.” Thinking about it still gives me shivers!
My friends and I maybe went to an old mine and burned a couch. It wasn’t my idea. Cool nonetheless.

And today for my internship I spent some time on the water. I have the best job.
Other than that I’m working and doing my internship, playing with friends and spending lots of time with my fam-bam. It’s been a delightful summer so far and I can’t wait to see how the rest of it goes.
Happy Tuesday everyone!

Duckies and puppies

June 26, 2014 — 2 Comments

We’ve had a few animal visitors lately.
Two ducks who my good friend found on the freeway and saved.
And Otis, this adorable puppy we rented for a while to cheer up a rough day.
Other than that, I work, go to KSL, work, go to KSL, eat, and sometimes have fun. It’s a pretty sweet deal if you ask me!
Happy Thursday everyone!

Always a ballerina

June 22, 2014 — 1 Comment
Hello friends:)
First of all, thank you for your sweet response to my last post. It was wonderful to get such positive, loving feedback from everyone. You are all amazing!
Second, KSL internship has officially started. It’s insane. I love it, it’s so busy, overwhelming, and wonderful. Watch carefully! I’ll be either writing stories or be helping work on interviews for the 5, 6, and 10 o’clock shows on Channel 5!
I got to go see this beautiful sister of mine dance this weekend. I miss being the one packing my bag full of water and fake eyelashes, I miss jumping in rosen to make sure I wouldn’t slip, jabbing another bobby pin in my hair just to make sure it wouldn’t fall out, being exhausted and out of breath, but so happy. But I realized this weekend as I watched the recital, that I’ll always be a ballerina. Because of the toe shoes hanging on my wall, because of my urge to throw my leg up on any surface like a barre, because I stand in first position, because I sometimes I notice I’m doing ballet hands, because dancing is home to me. 
I’m so happy I got to dance with my two beautiful sisters for a few years, and even luckier that I got to spend my growing up years dancing.

After a weekend of running around and some relaxing, I’m ready for another week of work and KSL!
Happy Sunday everyone!

Why I won’t be serving a mission

June 18, 2014 — 6 Comments

*Disclaimer* This post is not meant to be rude, controversial, or judgmental. It’s just my thoughts that I’m hoping will help others.

In recent months, I’ve heard lots of talk about LDS girls and missions. I’m sure you all have too.

For those of you who don’t know, I’ll break it down for you!
In my Church, we have the opportunity to go on missions. This allows us to go to a different state or country and teach other people about our religion, give service, and grow as an individual. They go by Sister and Elder, serve for 18 months or 2 years, talk to their families only weekly through letters and emails, and devote all their time to God. For boys, this mission service is a requirement. For girls, it’s an option. In October 2012, a major announcement came out about the age at which men and women could serve these missions. Boys can go at age 18 or after high school, and girls can go at age 19. 
This obviously lead to a huge surge of people wanting to go on mission, including me. I thought serving a mission would be wonderful, a great opportunity for me to learn and grow, and especially serve Heavenly Father and others. I decided to make it a matter of prayer and study.
I was shocked with the prompting I felt after praying.
The answer was no.
I kept thinking, praying, waiting, studying, hoping, and the answer was still no. I decided to stop asking and live my life, telling myself maybe the timing was off or I needed to learn patience.
Right before I came back to school this year, I was very confused, wanting to ask again if I should go on a mission, wondering if going back to school was the right move.
I won’t share the experience, but I’ll tell you I am certain that the answer was still no. I was supposed to stay here in Provo, Utah, go to school, and stay on the path I was on. 
I’m not supposed to serve a mission. I’m quite sure I will be more blessed for being obedient, than I would be for leaving when I’m not supposed to.
I’ve heard things from boys saying they won’t marry a girl who hasn’t served a mission, I’ve heard people say “A mission is for everyone, you should go!” and “You’ll be so blessed for going on a mission. You’ll never have another chance to be that close to the spirit.” I’ve heard people speculate about why certain girls weren’t going, they didn’t love the gospel enough or wanted to get married, I’ve heard people say that God will never tell you not to do a good thing.
Don’t get me wrong, I am so happy so many girls are going. I love that people are hearing the gospel because of missionaries. Some people may say I hate missionaries, and that’s not true. I hate the pressure that is being placed on every, single person to serve a mission. I am all for boys serving missions if they are worthy and healthy. I am all for girls serving missions if they feel they are supposed to. I am all for leaders and teachers helping people make the decisions, and learning how to share the gospel regardless of if they serve a mission or no. And classifying it as that. 
But I will not be going.
And let me just clear up why I won’t be serving a mission.
Because I asked, and the answer was no. And that’s good enough for me.

This doesn’t mean I don’t have a testimony of my church, this doesn’t mean I don’t love God. In fact, it means I love him enough to obey him, even when I don’t understand. It doesn’t mean I’m not good enough to serve a mission, it doesn’t mean I wouldn’t be good at sharing the gospel, and it doesn’t even mean that I don’t want to go. I do want to. But I’m not.

I know I am supposed to be doing good things here. I know I am supposed to be learning things here. I know Heavenly Father will give me the trials, blessings, experiences, people to help, things to learn, knowledge, spiritual strengthening, and anything else I could get on a mission, right here. 

And that’s good enough for me. 
*If you have questions about my religion, comments about your thoughts on LDS missions, or any thoughts at all, comment below or email me at mrose.richards@gmail.com*