I'm Off!

Leaving today and checking into the MTC tomorrow! I can't wait for this adventure to begin!! :)

France Here I come!!!
~Keep Smiling!~ :)
See you in 18 months!

Catch Up

I feel like I haven't written in forever! (In my defense I have been busy preparing to leave the country :) Life is great, life is good and I am super excited. It is only 13 more days till I leave! (That's less then two weeks!!!) So let the countdown commence!

I feel like there are moments in our lives that we think will never happen... and then they do and we are left awestruck, standing just two steps behind and trying desperately to play a game of catch  That's kind of how I feel right now. I thought I had more time, but I don't and now I'm trying to chase after it as it slips through my fingers!

Wow, that was dramatic! I guess that's one of the hazards of loving acting and writing and the arts!

This post is my little game of catch up; an opportunity to flesh out what has happened in the past few weeks and write about where I'm at because writing about things helps me figure myself out.

Get it, Ketchup, Catch up....?!? Ok, not that funny... :) 

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I am almost done with work. I have two more shifts (tomorrow and Friday) and then I am DONE! I am so excited about this because it helps me feel like I'm tying up loose ends and finishing up things in Silverdale so I can move on. I have really loved working at Hallmark and I will miss it and all the cute old ladies who come in and buy birthday cards for their grandchildren.

I am sad about how much my little brothers will grow up when I am gone. They are so cute and fun and I think I will miss them the most (no offense to anyone else here at home) Yesterday I was watching them play upstairs in the bonus room (because they pretty much need supervision at all times) and they were doing something in our big black closet, chatting and having fun. All of the sudden I heard David shriek! The doors of the closet flew open and Matthew ran as fast as his little legs could carry him down the stairs and into the laundry room with David in hot pursuit, wielding a play wooden knife. Once I got everything sorted I discovered that Matthew had bit David and, not wanting to endure the wrath of his older (but smaller) brother, booked it! I love my little boys. I was laughing sooo hard!!! Also, Sunday morning I came downstairs in the morning to find Matthew sitting happily on the kitchen floor with a bag of walnuts from the freezer and a nut chopper. He was merrily chopping nuts and informed me he was making muffins. Again I about died laughing.

Here are the four youngest siblings in a dog pile :) 

I AM ALL PACKED!!! (Well almost all packed) Everything that I could pack has been packed away in my two large suitcases. (I think I just used the word "pack" like five times in two sentences) I now only have my work clothes, a few pj's and a couple sunday outfits out so I've been doing a lot of laundry. It's nice to have that pretty much done because it's just one less thing to worry about. I have an itemized list of the contents of each of my suitcases (and it's color coded) so if I think I've forgotten anything I can refer to my lists without having to unpack my entire suitcase to see if I remembered to bring neosporin or not. Smart right?

Oh and I got a haircut. My hair is must a little past my shoulders now (though I can already see it growing :) and I have bangs. I think I'm going to just let it grow while I'm on my mission. In 18 months it will probably be down to my waist again. Or... I might get tired of it and cut it again. It seems like once I start taking scissors to it, I can't stop!! :)

Here I am when I just let my hair dry naturally (and am wearing no makeup :) 

And here I am when I curl it 

So like I said, life is good and I am doing great! 

October 1st can't come fast enough! 

~Keep Smiling!~ :)

Good Morning

When you get up on the right side of the bed what does it look like? What does it feel like? For me, the "right side of the bed" is a place I rarely frequent since it includes waking up when I want to; gracefully lulled out of my sweet dreams by the taste of sunbeams on my face and the sound of chirping birds in the air. It's that beautiful moment when you are half awake and half asleep and there is nothing demanding your time or attention.
This morning I wasn't lulled from my sleep by chirping birds or sunbeams on my face. I was awoken Sleeping Beauty style; a big wet one planted on my kisser by this kid:

"Good Morning Nina!" this little three year old exclaimed in my ear. (This kid only has one volume: LOUD!) "It's a good morning!!"He cried.

And then this kid dashes in, yells "Good Morning Sunshine!" and runs out!

Can I just take these boys with me on my mission!? They make the best alarm clock ever (except when it's 5:30 and you really don't want to be awake :)

~Keep Smiling!~ :)

Recruit the Neighbor Kids

Tea Time Three was filmed and edited yesterday and now is ready for your viewing pleasure. This time we recruited the neighbor kids! So it's not just my family that likes being weird!! :) 

Enjoy!

~Keep Smiling!~ :)

You've buttered your bread, and now you have to eat it.

I am making the boys a snack of bread and butter. I cut David a piece, butter the bread and set it on a plate in front of him. As I start to cut Matthew a piece, he runs up to the counter crying:

"Alina!! Alina!! No butter on it! No Butter on it!"
"Okay okay Matthew!" I say, "I won't put butter on it."

Mom looks down at Matthew and asks, "Matthew are you on a diet?"
To which he resolutely states "Yes." And then takes his bread sans the butter.

What a weirdo! :)
~Keep Smiling!~ :)

The Desires Of My Hearts

HAPPY SUNDAY!!!
Seriously, this is the BEST DAY OF THE WEEK!!! I love going to church!
There was a talk today given in Sacrament Meeting that really spoke to me and I'd like to share just a few thoughts with you.

First off we all have wants and desires. A "want" is something that we would like, but at the end of the day it is an empty wish because we are not willing to put forth the effort to make it a reality.  A "desire" is something that we want and are willing to make the necessary sacrifices to obtain it. In a conference talk in 2011, Elder Dallin H. Oaks stated:

"Desires Dictate Priorities

Priorities Shape our Choices.

Choices Determine our Action."

At the end of the day, we are not only judged by our works, but by the desires of our hearts (D&C 137:9)  because ultimately, what we desire is what we become. 

A good way to judge what we desire is to take note of what we do in our free time. I applied this principal to myself and realized I need to work on what I desire! For example, sometimes instead of reading my scriptures, first I get on the computer and surf the net. I am sacrificing spiritual opportunities and growth because I have an unrighteous desire to be entertained by superficial media. Not to say that media is bad but it does have it's place, and it does not belong as one of the desires of my heart. 

We should not leave our desires alone to develop on their own because the natural man will most definitely take over. Desires should be cared for and cultivated, so that they might grow in the right direction. Too often we try to fix the symptoms of our unrighteous desires, instead of going straight to the source and changing our desire. But changing our desires isn't easy, and we are not asked to do it on our own. 

In the scriptures, when it talks about a "mighty change of heart" I believe this is referring to the spiritual state we reach when we are finally humble enough to allow God to help us shape our desires. In the hymn "Come thou Fount of Every Blessing" the ending line is a plea, a supplication to God to help us weak children develop righteous desires 

"Take my heart,

oh take and seal it;

seal it for they courts above"

I love that hymn and I especially love that line. It has always resonated with me, and now I guess I know why! :) When we give our hearts to God, he is able to change it, and we will have no more disposition to do evil, thus sealing up for ourselves the most wonderful treasure in Heaven, Eternal Life. 

God Loves Us

I know this is true! 

~Keep Smiling!~ :) 

No Budget Films

Last week my siblings and I made a movie and we kinda ended on a cliff hanger. So we decided to pick up where we left off and create a sequel!

Seriously this is a no budget film, so try your hardest not to judge us! :)

~Keep Smiling!~ :)

Fashion in the Field

This is going to be a looooong post so prepare yourself for picture overload!!!

One of the great things about preparing to go on a mission is figuring out what you are going to wear for 18 months. Buying dresses and skirts and shirts that fit well, are modest, meet the missionary requirements and are made well enough to last is a difficult thing. Buying just normal clothes is difficult, so you can imagine the added pressure of creating a missionary wardrobe. I do not profess to be an expert but here are a few tips and tricks I have learned over the course of my shopping adventures:

1) Figure out your "style"
If you know what you like it makes shopping easier. What colors look good on you? What type of dresses look good on you? What do you like wearing? Are you a polka dot person, a stripe person, a chevron print person or all of the above? Do you like bright colors or more subdued colors?

2) Pick a Color Scheme:
It's a lot easier to make things match if you keep within a certain color scheme. For me, I picked a base color (Navy) and then figured out what other colors go with this color. Navy looks good with Coral, Yellow, Red, White, Mint, Light Blue, Brown, Pink.
Now not everything I have matches my navy blue skirt, it's good to have a little variety so you don't feel like you are wearing the same colors all the time, but you've got to have a place to start.

I got this yellow skirt to go with a navy blouse: 

And then I found that the yellow skirt also goes really well with a teal blouse

(And teal doesn't really match Navy)

And the teal blouse can also be paired with my white stripe skirt

 And my Pink Skirt

See How That works? :) 

Also, when picking clothes you have to keep in mind the matching rule. If you buy a shirt, it should go with at least 3 of your skirts, if not more. The same thing goes for skirts. A skirt should go with at least 3 of your shirts. 

3) Use what you already have:

Now this didn't really work for me because I literally came home from college with no clothes. Okay... so I had clothes, they were just old and used and abused. So take better care of your clothes then I did (lesson learned) and then you won't have to start from square one.

4) ACCESSORIZE!!!

You can change up your outfit a lot if you have accessories. Some nice additions to your outfit could include blazers, jackets, sweaters, scarves, and belts. 

I have a basic black and tan blazer (because I learned that in my mission we are supposed to wear blazers for all church meetings) but then I also have a mint green, coral and yellow blazer to add a splash of color. 

Here is an outfit Sans the blazer

And then here I am with a blazer

It's so much more fun!!

You can bet blazers on Amazon here and here and here Just make sure you check the sizing. We ordered smalls first time around (because I am usually a 4 or 6) but they fit my sister Natalie (who is 15) better then they fit me. 

And now a word about belts: 

I am completely in LOVE with belts! I have a black, brown and white one that I pair with almost every one of my mission outfits. They are absolutely awesome because they add a little bling!

Without the Belt

With The Belt

You can get some pretty inexpensive belts here on amazon. 

And now Scarves!

I didn't have a bunch of clothes when I came home from school, but I did have a lot of scarves. In an attempt to figure out which scarves I should take, I went through to figure out what matched with most of my outfits. Scarves can really spice an outfit up.

I got this Yellow Infinity scarf for Easter 

It adds a nice splash of color to my more monochromatic ensembles and is a fun contrasting color to my more lively ensembles. 

I acquired this scarf from my sister a few years ago 

The navy, blue and pink threads fit my color scheme perfectly

My mom found a bunch of skinny lightweight scarves on amazon that are really fun to pair with a collared shirt

If you slip them under the collar like a tie and then make a loose bow around your neck it just makes for a different look and changes your outfit up a bit.

5) Get the Basics 

You don't want to be wearing stiff collared shirts your whole mission. While this does look professional you can look just as professional (and a whole lot cuter) with some basic T-Shirts. T-shirts are also a lot more conducive to layering. They fit better under jackets and blazers. 

A few cute white shirts are an absolute MUST. White goes with pretty much anything so a few different white shirts will make coordinating outfits easier. You should get 1 blank white shirt, a white collared shirt and one or two cuter white shirts. 

I wear this white polka dot shirt with almost every outfit

I got it from Lands End here (and it's currently on sale for 9.99$)

And I've ordered this white lace shirt from pomeroys (a sister missionary fashion online store) so hopefully it comes in the mail soon and fits!! :) 

Also, get a white and black wonder tee from down east basics! They are amazing when it comes to layering! If a shirt is just a little too low or a little too see through, those tee's have you covered! 

6) Consider the Climate 

Are you going somewhere hot, cold, freezing or with various seasons? You have to keep in mind the weather and pack accordingly. If you are going somewhere with 4 seasons (like me) buy things you can layer up with! You don't want things you can only wear in summer and things you can only wear in winter, you want outfits that you can modify to work for both seasons.

7)Develop a reasonable expectation of your finances. 

 I had an unrealistic expectation that I would be able to find skirts for under 10$ and blouses and coats and shoes in the 20$ range. This really isn't going to happen if you are going to purchase good quality clothing that will last you throughout your mission. Just think of it as an investment! It costs a lot more money to buy cheap clothes frequently then expensive clothes infrequently. You will spend a lot of money on shoes if you want to get good shoes. That's just a fact of life. 

8)Amazon is your friend 

If you see something online or at a store that you really really like, check on amazon before you buy it. I saw these super cute boots at pomeroys for 200$ but then my mom found them here on amazon for half the price with free return shipping so I can buy a pair, see if I like them and if they don't fit, ship them back for free. 

Amazon isn't the only place you should check to find the perfect price for you. Oftentimes an article of clothing is sold in various locations. Get the name of what you want to buy and then google it. That little bit of extra time could save you a little extra money. 

I learned this the hard way. I bought this coat from Pomeroys for 180$. A few days later I was browsing through some missionary sites and found the exact same coat here for 30$ cheaper. Oh well, c'est la vie! :) 

9) Figure out stores you like and then watch for sales

Pendleton is a super high end store and their stuff is NOT cheap! I needed to purchase a few warm wool skirts, and they had the best selection however I wasn't about to spend over 200$ on a skirt. BUT because I have an awesome mom who is always on the lookout for me and finding good clothes I have been able to snatch up awesome deals. I found this wool pendleton skirt on Amazon (I LOVE amazon!) for 40$ when it was originally over 100$

And then I found this pendleton skirt for only 50$ when it's usually 150$

When you go to any site, first scroll through the sale items. Another useful tool is organizing your search so the items appear from lowest price to highest price, that way you don't accidentally fall in love with something way out of your price range. :) 

10) Know your size

I have done a lot of online shopping! Knowing my measurements has been a lifesaver! It's hard to tell sometimes if a skirt comes down long enough or if the waist is going to be big enough, so it's important to look at the sizing charts and measure yourself. 

11) Proceed with Caution

Read the reviews before you buy something online! Also, if you find a lot of things you like on one site don't buy them all at once. Purchase one thing, see how it fits and then decide if the quality is good enough and reliable enough to buy more from that vendor. That way if you decide you dislike the shirt or skirt, you are only out 20$ instead of 120$ :) 

12)Keep track of your clothes:

It's good to keep an organized list of what you have and what you need that way you don't accidentally buy double of something. 

So I have bought a lot off amazon but some other great places to find good clothes are:

Land End

Blair

Pomeroys

Sister Missionary Fashion

Christopher and Banks (They have great long skirts, which are actually on sale right now)

Well that's all I've got to say on that for now! Hope this helps!

~Keep Smiling!:)~

Never Apart

Together Forever 

Never Apart

Maybe in Distance

But Never in Heart

It's amazing to me that even though we may not be physically near to someone, their love and spirit can be very very near to us. I've seen this be true in so many ways in the last few weeks and I'd like to express a few thoughts.

My Great Grandma Dollie passed away a few weeks ago, and my Mom and I had the opportunity to go to California for her Funeral.

She was an amazing women who touched many people. As we were sitting in the pews, listening to the beautiful stories about my great grandma, I felt a gentle peace and a beautiful spirit that engulfed me. I was so touched by how very near I felt to my great grandma, even though in every physical sense she was gone, what I felt was very tangible. We speak of the dead in past tense, when we really should speak of them in present tense; she is still an amazing woman, she still touches the lives of many people and she is still a part of my life.

Death is very much like a loved one moving away; you don't get to see them for awhile, but no matter how far they go, you still feel them because they are inside of you.

I haven't seen my sister for over a year and when I do get to finally see her, our physical separation will have lasted a duration of 3 years. That is a long time for me and sometimes thinking about the time that must elapse before I am with her again makes me sad. But though she isn't physically with me, she is still very close to me.

Her being away has helped me understand how inconsequential distance is. She has been able to give me advice, tell me what I needed to hear and express her love to me from afar. Even when there is no way she could know what I'm struggling with, she has the ability to say just the right thing to uplift me. Which leads me to believe that when we are drawing closer to our Heavenly Father and strengthening our relationship with him, we are able to develop deeper connections with those we love because our spirits are able to commune with their spirits. That unspoken communication is a very beautiful thing. It feels like a blanket being wrapped around you or someone giving you a hug.

Today I felt touched again by a few of my family members who are physically distant from me, but very spiritually close to me. One of them was my sister. She sent me a package for my birthday which touched me. I felt that hug, that warmth of her love and realized how blessed I am. Her words of advice and encouragement were just what I needed and her gift was so thoughtful.

I think Heavenly Father enables us and encourages these spiritual relationships with each other that we might be his hands, his earthly angels to uplift and aid each other; for as we learn to love one another we learn a little about how our Heavenly feels towards us. I have experienced this first hand! Today I received a gift that was an answer to my prayers, which made me a little more aware of how mindful my Father in Heaven is of me and my specific needs.

We did not begin our spiritual relationships in this life, they began long before we were born. We knew each other before birth and we will continue to know each other after we die. We truly are stuck together forever, and no amount of distance can change that.

I am grateful for my Savior Jesus Christ. I am grateful for his gospel and for the light and love I feel on a daily basis. I am grateful for the love of my family.
The Gospel makes us feel at peace and brings us true joy, it's one of the main reasons that I am able to Keep Smiling :)

Lights Camera... ACTION!!!

Sometimes Natalie and I like to fiddle around on the piano and come up with different melodies. As we were sitting around this morning, we determined that some of these compositions were actually quite good and sounded kinda like something you'd hear in a movie.
That's when the lightbulb went off in both of our heads and Natalie and I determined right then to make a movie with one of the songs I'd written. And here are the fruits of our labors!

We were kinda going for an old fashioned black and white silent movie!
Basically all the shots you see in here are filmed by myself, Natalie or Elizabeth (the six year old preacher) which is why you get a lot of close ups and never see all of us together. Also, we were kinda short on people so I had to double up as the love interest who dies and the bad guy... It's kinda confusing because I look too much like myself when I'm playing someone else (we don't really have a huge costume and makeup department...everything pretty much comes from what we can find in our closet)
Anyway, you can see it was definitely a low budget film! :) Plus it only took like an hour to put the whole thing together.
But we sure had fun making it!
Hope you enjoy it!! haha :)

~Keep Smiling!~ :)

Constant Companions

So all Y'all know I'm goin on a mission right? Something kinda cool about being a missionary (aside from teaching the gospel, having the spirit 24/7 and bringing people unto salvation) is that you get to spend a lot of quality time with your missionary companion. One of the mission rules is that you have to be within sight and sound of your mission companion at all times, so in 6 weeks you get to know someone REALLY well!
I leave in October for my mission, (which I am rather excited about) and even though that's a few months away, I have acquired my very first mission companion:

OGIO!!! :) 

No matter how many transfers I go through, Ogio will stick with me. It's nice to have that consistency when so many things change over an 18 month period.

Not only is Ogio an attractive companion but she comes fully equipped to meet my needs. She's the perfect size for scriptures, missionary pamphlets and all other mission type things I might need. Plus her many pockets are labeled so I know exactly what to put in them! Totally saves me time and energy because without these useful labels I would have to come up the purposes of these pockets all on my own!

Theres a pocket for my camera

A pocket for my pens

AND a pocket for my Diamond Rings!

What other purse do you know of that has a pocket specifically designed for all those diamond rings you have lying around?

Okay, so maybe that pocket is actually for sweets or mints, but it looks an awful lot like a diamond ring to me! 

Thanks Mom for being amazing and purchasing this lovely bag for me for my mission! :) It's AWESOME!! :) 

~Keep Smiling!~ :) 

Brunch With Bronte

Have you read the novel Jane Eyre? It was written by this incredibly talented woman name Charlotte Bronte and it is truly one of my favorite classics. It's a great story with excellent conflict, strong characters, and lots of romantic tension. Let me give you a brief synopsis:

• Young girl named Jane (yes the novel is named after her) is an orphan, her aunt doesn't love her and sends her away to school
• Jane has a friend named Helen who helps her become a better person. 
• Helen dies
• Jane stays at the school (which is an awful school by the way) for about 8 years
• She leaves and goes to Thornfield Hall to be a governess to a little girl named Adele
• Adele is the ward of Mr. Rochester, a dark and brooding man (who doesn't love a man who knows how to brood) 
• The house is full of mystery (i.e. maniacle laughter at night, bed curtains randomly catching fire and some very suspicious comments from Mr. Rochester)
• Inevitably Jane falls in love with Mr. Rochester but she is just a plain governess so of course that union would never work out 
• Mr. Rochester invites a bunch of rich people over to stay, one of them being a very attractive lady named Blanche Ingram
• Everyone is certain that Blanche and Mr. Rochester will get married
• Jane is upset
• Jane decides to leave
• Mr. Rochester reveals that he only invited Blanche over to make Jane jealous and that he loves her and he wants her to marry him
• Jane agrees
• a few weeks bliss ensue
• The wedding day rolls around 
• And then everything is revealed

Not gonna tell you the end, or what the whole mystery of the house is because that would totally ruin it if you ever decided you wanted to read it. 

Anyway, there are several movies made of the novel (my favorite is the one starring Timothy Dalton as Mr. Rochester, boy does he know how to be brooding and passionate!)

Isn't he attractive? He also played James Bond once upon a time. Mmmmhmmmm!!! :) What a guy!

So, we discovered a few years ago that there was a musical adaption of the book! We bought the CD, fell in love with the music and then were horrified to discover that it's a musical that no one does anymore. I guess it hit theatre's at the wrong time, a time when people weren't interested in watching plays with amazing music and talented actors, so it had a very short run. I resigned myself to the fact that I would never get to see it and live out the rest of my life comforting my aching soul by listening to and memorizing the soundtrack.

But then one fateful day, we got the mail! Well we get the mail almost everyday, but on this fateful day there happened to be a flyer inviting us to come watch a musical version of Jane Eyre! My Dad almost threw the flyer out but my sister Rachel convinced my father to save it and show it to Mom.

Once we established that it WAS the same musical that we were so in love with Mom secured tickets and I got work off!

And today, Rachel, Natalie, Mom and I drove to Seattle to watch this play!

My Lovely Mother in the Drivers seat 

Natalie and Mom walking the Streets of Seattle

We then stopped for lunch at the Cafe in the theatre. It was DELICIOUS!! Such good food!

I had wedding soup 

and an English Chicken Mushroom Pie. I don't like mushrooms but I ate around them and enjoyed the authentic European Dish

 Mom had Berry Pie

And Soup and Salad 

And Poor Natalie had no food at all :(

 Actually she did get food eventually but for a few minutes we were worried that she had been forgotten about. 

 We completely cleared our plates and bowls! It was seriously delicious food! 

 Then we watched the play! This is what the theatre looked like before the show began. We were up in the balcony looking down on the actors. 

Overall the show was awesome! I loved the music and the acting. Mr. Rochester was a little bit too passionate for me (but then again he's marrying Jane not me, so I don't have to worry about it :) 

Me and my lovely sisters waiting for the show to start

 Then we drove back home 

And Rachel Fell Asleep... Like she always does

Oh and we saw this random knight in shining armor on someone's apartment balcony :)

That's not something you see everyday :) 

~Keep Smiling!~ :)