He Liked It and Put a Ring On It!

Yes, it's exactly what it sounds like :) I'M ENGAGED! Not only am I engaged, but I am engaged

to my best friend. What could be better? Being married to my best friend will be better, but I don't think anything beats that. I'll let you know if I find anything better.

It was a busy busy Friday as we ran around looking for rings. Rob's sisters were coming up that night and we were going to go do something with the family. We went to Rob's Dad's office where they have a movie theater room with a projector and screen to watch a movie. The movie we watched: UP! So good. We got some food to eat and got the movie rollin'. Rob was eating his taco and the wrapper was shaking so bad b/c his hands were shaking. Then everything in his taco fell out! Ha ha. He struggled to get it all back in, but wouldn't let me help. Poor guy. He was so nervous! But that's my favorite detail of the story. So funny.

During the part where they get married and he carries her home, Rob switched to movie screen to a slide on his computer that looked like this:

At the bottom of the picture he added the words, "Tiffany, I love you. Will you marry me?" Of course he got down on his knee and pulled out the HUGE, GORGEOUS, MOST BEAUTIFUL Walmart ring that you've ever seen! Ha ha. Surprise! My ring is being made and we are anxiously awaiting its arrival.

His family was the quietest I've ever seen. It was quite funny. They thought we were playing a joke on them, but the longer it went on and we didn't say, "JUST KIDDING!" They slowly started to believe it. Now they're excited knowing that it wasn't a joke and we aren't just kidding.

We're getting married February 17, 2011 at 11:00am in the Draper Temple. I can't wait to marry my best friend! I am the luckiest girl alive! It's only two and a half months away, but it feels like an eternity. But I am being patient b/c I know that we get to be together for eternity and that is worth everything to me :)

The Way

Everyone gets overwhelmed with the stress of life and the business that sometimes seems unbearable. I have experienced this quite a bit this semester. I'm taking a large load of classes, which includes Human Anatomy. For those who have taken this class- you know what I mean. I am struggling to enjoy my job. I have just found out that I tore my ACL again, that I just got fixed in December. Along with this I have to decide if and when I am going to have surgery. And on top of all of this, I am living 45 minutes from my sweet, supportive, and comforting best friend, Rob.

Each Friday I come down to SL with Rob and do homework while he is in class. As a part of my routine I get my computer out, check my email, and of course facebook. Today was not like all of the other Fridays. What I found was so much more. This week has been a challenging one for more than just myself, but for some that I love as well. On facebook a sweet friend posted a video/mormon message that she has found comfort in when she is struggling. I watched it and was overcome with peace and assurance. It's called "Good Things to Come" by Elder Holland, and you can find it at this address: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8nczw6xHJ0I.

Then to my great surprise I received an email from my anatomy professor. She expressed her understanding of the stress we are experiencing not only with this class, but with life. She shared another video that brought me comfort. It's called "Christ's True Mercy" also by Elder Holland. You can watch it at this site: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u5bUKNYgRi8.

One thing particularly that hit me from this video was the quote saying,

"He knows the way, because He IS the way."

We may feel overwhelmed with stress, with demands and expectations others have for us, the business of life, and many other things, but it is important to know that we can always find comfort in our Savior, Jesus Christ. He knows what to do and how to get there because it is through him that it is possible.

Strength

I have recently been reminded of/discovered a quote by President Hinckley that has given me strength through my trying times. I absolutely love this man and am so grateful for all he did as President of the church, and the example he was to me. He said:

"If Life Gets Too Hard to Stand, Kneel." - President Hinckley

Fall is in the Air

If you couldn't tell... I sure like posting pictures, and not only posting them, but taking them! I hope you enjoy them as much as I do. Well, Fall is in the air! Last Sunday Rob and I went to Gardner Village with his family to walk around and take some pictures. There's not much else to say... so enjoy them!

We were missing our pitch forks to make this picture complete...

Peek-a-Boo

Exposing you to our crazy, weird, wild sides. We have too much fun sometimes.

We've been caught! We kind of like each other...

A BYU Miracle!

A great surprise this weekend! We got to sit on the 4th row in the North end zone at the football game on Saturday, and this isn't the only great surprise! We won!!! It was a football miracle. A good game, good seats, football, BYU, EFY friends, and my wonderful boyfriend made a great Saturday night complete!

I sure do love all of these people!
The fellow right here is a special one... can you tell?

1 Goofy Boy + 1 Goofy Girl= The Perfect Pair!

Celebrating Early!

I've never been a huge fan of Halloween. I don't like dressing up, I don't like scary movies, I don't like Haunted Houses, I don't like the dark, I don't like monsters.... I guess Halloween and I just weren't meant to be. But there are a few things that I DO like about Halloween! I like carving pumpkins, I like eating candy, and I like doing these things with friends, and a special boy:)

Kaitlin and Jordan were kind enough to invite a bunch of us over for a group date to celebrate Halloween a little early! We made homemade pizza which was incredible, carved pumpkins, dug through pumpkin guts to save the seeds for a delicious treat later, and we even had a donut eating contest which got messy!

Rob and I put our creative minds to work, and we ended up with a pirate!
Enjoying our pumpkin a little more... oh, and we also enjoyed Matt too :)
You just couldn't see the eye patch from far away, so here is a close up for you to admire! Rob sure does carve a mean eye patch!

We had so much fun with Kaitlin, Audge, Emily, and their husbands! We had so much fun that we are thinking of making this a holiday tradition! Getting together to celebrate each holiday with these friends is just heaven on Earth! Sure do love you guys! Thanks for a great weekend.

Duck, Duck, Goose?!

No geese, just ducks! Sunday was a great day for us! I guess I'm speaking for both Rob and I. But I take full responsibility and think he'd agree that it was a good day filled with some great church meetings, general authorities galore, including President Packer, Elder Holland, Elder Snow of the 70, and Elder Scott, dinner with Audge and Matt, sugar!, and feeding the crazy ducks at the duck pond.

If you haven't ever been to the duck pond, and you are in Provo, ever, then I highly suggest stopping by. They are quite entertaining and it's a cheap activity! Let me rephrase that... it's a FREE activity! So get on over there and have yourself some fun :)
Rob admired the ducks. JK. He fed them, I'm just too slow with the camera. This particular duck was one of a kind. You will see why this is so later in the post.

Feeding the ducks! It was great fun as long as they kept their distance! And they seemed to know what was good for them b/c we didn't have any problems.

Who knew that ducks could do cool tricks? Maybe this duck was mistaken and thought he was a dog. Silly duck. He would just sit at our feet and wait for the bread. He must have thought we liked him or something. I guess he was right cause I just couldn't help but feed him continually b/c he would perform! What a talented duck. Lesson to learn from this blog: go to the duck pond when looking for some good entertainment and find this duck! And sorry, I have this bad habit of filming sideways thinking that it'll film tall and stay that way.

The Man on the Street

It's sometimes the tiny little things that others do which make the biggest impact on a person. Today it was a little old man walking his dog down my street. He didn't see me or even know that I was there. But as I drove behind him and then parked in the driveway I couldn't help but continue to watch him. Every single time a car drove by in either direction he would smile and wave. I'm sure he didn't know all, if any of these people, but he didn't seem to care.
Sometimes all we need is a little kindness from a stranger to put a smile on our face and change our day from ok to great. Even though I personally did not get a smile and wave from this old man, he brightened my day through the kindness he showed others. It was simple, but influential. Thank you to the man on the street. Show a little kindness today. Smile at a stranger, hold open the door for someone, say hello while passing on the street or in the store. You never know the impact you may have on someone today. Don't let it pass you by.

Tender Mercy

So I just had to publicly thank my two angels that saved me this week. On Monday evening I had a class that was literally at the complete and utter opposite end of campus from my apartment. It's usually about a 20 walk to get there, if you're going fast, but that day it was at least a 30 min. walk for me b/c of my knee injury.
As I was sitting in class I got a massive stabbing pain in my stomach area. It progressively got worse to the point where I was hunched over in my seat, couldn't sit up straight, and occasionally it felt as though someone were taking a knife and stabbing my. I would literally jolt b/c it was so excruciating. I text a friend who I thought would be able to pick me up, but no luck. I tried to call someone on the walk home to take my mind off of it, but no luck. I only got to the crosswalk outside of my class bldg. when someone honked at me. Kaitlin and Jordan. I waved and forced a smile as I walked on. Jordan then yelled at me and asked if I wanted a ride. I was overjoyed with relief and gratitude. My two little angels had no idea the situation I was in or the tiny prayer I had said that I wouldn't be in pain and walk all the way home. I don't know if they knew of the sacrifice it was or how much it meant to me, but it was a tender mercy in my life. I am so grateful for tender mercies and for those who take the time to listen to promptings or kind thoughts. Thanks Kaitlin and Jordan! I sure love you :)

Summer Catch-Up

So I have been horrible at updating my blog, but it's all in good reason. I have had quite the busy, but best summer ever! I thought instead of writing a bunch of long blog posts on every event I would just catch you all up on what I have been up to. You can probably see the rest for yourself ;) However, these pics are in no particular order. In fact, they are very much out of chronological order.

Rob and I met at EFY as counselors, and the rest is history :) What you see is all you need to know ha ha. One night we couldn't decide what to do, and then decided to go to a Bees game! It was so fun! And we ran into Brooke & Adam (another EFY couple, and good friends!). It was Rob's first baseball game ever, can you believe that?
We also went boating. What an adventure! We pretty much just rode the tube the whole time, but did a little water skiing and wake boarding. Let me rephrase that... I tubed the whole time and others did skiing and wake boarding. I tried skiing, but just couldn't get up! At least I tried.
Real Salt Lake soccer game! I bought 10 tickets for $50.00 thinking that I'd use them all this summer. I then did EFY and never had time to use my tickets! So here we are enjoying at least one game. Go Real! Also a first for Rob.
The zoo! And not just the zoo... but the new baby elephant, Zuri! She is soooo cute. If you haven't gone to see her, then you must! We sat and watched her for probably 15 minutes just being a baby and playing in the mud. I officially want to play in the mud now.
My last 2 weeks of EFY I had the chance to work as a BC (building counselor). It was a blast! For our service project we were known as the service 5, and here we are in our masks. We were on a mission for service!
Another picture of our great team :) Cute family, eh?
My last week as a counselor and I got the best co in the world... AGAIN! Someone was looking out for me :) What a great week! Sure do like him!
In Taylorsville, Rob and I discovered a secret door to the roof. And the guy working on top let us take a glance!
My best friend's wedding! Audge and Matt finally sealed the deal :) And I got to be a bridesmaid! She was a gorgeous bride, and I loved being able to be a part of it! Love you Audge!

Well, I did much more than just this this summer, but these are some of the highlights. I had the best summer imaginable, and it turned out so much better than I had ever hoped! Thanks to all those who helped this to be possible. Now it's back to school, homework, work, and responsibility. Yuck! I want to be a kid forever!

EFY Taylorsville 1 & 2

Goodbye to Sandy Institute for a few weeks! We were off to SLCC in Taylorsville. I actually was not suppose to be working this week b/c I didn't get offered it. Monday morning at 8 am I got a phone call from Brooke, my coordinator asking if I could work b/c one of the counselors got sick. Miraculously I was able to shift my schedule around and work! This week was a blessing to me b/c of a special someone in the next picture.

This picture has a lot of significance to me. Long story short- Dallin (second from right) complained to the team one night about people not picking up their forks at meals and leaving them on the grounds. I leaned over to Christina (far right) and said that I wanted to fork Dallin's backpack as a joke! A few days later I found at least 15 forks in MY backpack! What?! I thought this was my prank that I so cleverly thought up? Rob (far left) said he knew who did it. I found out later it was Christina. The little punk. And Rob helped! Lucky for him I already liked him or I would've had to reconsider ;) jk.
The pictures are a little out of order, but these are my girls from Taylorsville week 2. Love them!
This is our company from Taylorsville 2! Alex was my co. Unfortunately he had been sick all week and wasn't full strength. Everything worked out anyway.
This is our company from Taylorsville 1! Adam was my co and he rocks my socks. First time I saw him he ran up to me and gave me a huge hug! Then he stepped back and said, "I'm Adam." ha ha, just a funny, funny, character. One whom everyone loves! And a crazy dancer with some mad skills :) We sure loved our company. It's amazing to see each individual's circumstances, backgrounds, where they're at in their life, and where they're going. We had some incredibly strong and courageous youth! I can't believe what they go through, and they are still firm and steadfast in the gospel. Great examples to me!

EFY Sandy 2

Week two of EFY in Sandy! Don't tell all my other participants but.... this was my all time favorite week of the summer. Everything about it was great! I had the most amazing co's in the world- Rob and Katie :) I had some of the greatest participants, and I think I learned the most about the gospel, and about myself during this week. We are always teaching the youth how they can develop and strengthen their own testimonies, scripture study, prayers, and every day lives, but this week I think they taught me more than I taught them, and I learned more from my scripture study and all of the great firesides and classes. I just can't describe how great it was.

This is the whole group! Aren't they a good looking bunch?
The infamous three! Nobody called us that... I just came up with it. These are my co-counselors, and I love them both oh so very much! Much of the success of our week is attributed to them.

Gretchen and McKenna:) I loved all of my participants, but these two were extra special! It was an instant bond. I was their "Mama Bear", and they were my "children". Since EFY we have even gotten together to catch up! These girls amazed me everyday. What incredible girls!

EFY Sandy 1

Oh boy! What have I been up to all summer that has made me a slacker in the so-called blogging world? That would have to be EFY! This summer I was able to be an EFY counselor at the stay-at-home sessions. It was a blast! My very first week ever was incredible. I immediately fell in love with the youth, the EFY program, dances, firesides, silly games, and so much more.

This is my first group! My co-counselor was Dallin Lewis- also known as the weather man. He is incredible! I was so lucky to have such a great co in my first week :) Yes, Dallin is going to be a weather man someday! He even brought a little weather device to the dances and tracked the humidity changes from beginning to end... I'll spare you the exact numbers b/c you would wish I didn't tell you!
Me and a few of my participants working on tying some fleece blankets for the service activity.
My first group of girls! They were angels, and they made everything about my first week wonderful and smooth sailing. I owe a lot to them. I sure love these girls! First week of EFY= success!

Upcoming Events

This summer is not like any other that I have experienced, but it brings on some fun, new adventures!

Things I have already done:

1. Babysit nieces and nephew Memorial Day weekend

2. Start working at CFC

3. Girls' weekend in St. George to see Bryan Regan

4. New calling as R.S. President

5. Best friend coming home from mission

Things to come:

1. 4 fun-filled weeks of EFY!! Starting this next week. Any suggestions on what to do for devos or games?

2. Camping

3. Bridesmaid in best friend's wedding

4. Family reunion at the most gorgeous cabin in Heber City

5. Hike Timp

Oh the fun things that summer brings! I've already done so many fun things, and there are more yet to come :) I hope you are all enjoying your summer as well!

Girls' Weekend

This past weekend I had the opportunity to escape the unpredictable Utah Spring weather to the wonderfully pleasant weather and atmosphere of St. George! It was great to be able to spend the weekend with family, and even better, all girls :)

I am in love with the St. George temple. Mostly because of the temple grounds. Red rock, green grass, palm trees, and as you can see, an assortment of beautiful and colorful flowers!
I would like you to meet our friend, Coyote. He came everywhere with us! And never once did he complain or gripe about anything. He was a complete joy to be around. Here he is at the temple!
All us girls at the St. George temple. Kristen and Carrie were able to go to the temple earlier in the week, but the rest of us got to go on Sunday in place of church. It was great weather, and it was fun to go in the visitor's center. A great spiritual experience. I am continually amazed at all that the pioneers sacrificed and went through.
One of my favorite highlights from the weekend. Can you blame me? Turner was very well behaved and pleasant :) And boy was he spoiled with all the attention.
One of the other highlights of the weekend was hanging out at the pool working on our tans. Pasty Winter white is not a good look for me. It was a little bright for Turner... he went swimming for the first time, and liked it for a little bit!
Oh! Here is coyote again at the Tuacahn theater to watch Brian Regan!
All the girls at Brian Regan. The red rock background and atmosphere was absolutely gorgeous. Especially with the green trees and accents of color in the flowers around. Brian Regan lived up to all my hopes, dreams, and expectations! Lots of laughter and great jokes. All in all it was a great weekend and I loved being with Mom and my sisters! I wish we could get together more often!

Rising to the Call

I am just barely breathing again, and it feels good! For those of you who have not heard, I am the new Relief Society president in my BYU single's ward. In short, this was an unexpected and overwhelming answer to many of my prayers. It has been very overwhelming, and I have been so incredibly busy, but I have already seen many blessing come into my life resulting from this call. I have never been in any presidency other than Y.W., so I am completely new at all of this. If any of you are ever in the same position that I have been experiencing, I have a few words of advice:

1. Breathe, it's a lot to handle, but it gets easier and you don't have to do it alone.

2. Pick your counselors and secretary prayerfully- they are going to be your greatest support.

3. Use your counselors! You don't have to do everything on your own. They are called to support you. Utilize them.

4. Delegation. I have learned through many callings that delegation can work wonders!

5. Pray for the sisters of you ward. As I have been doing this it is amazing how much closer I feel to them and how much better I have come to know them.

6. Ask the Lord for help frequently. The Lord qualifies whom he calls.

So far things have been absolutely wonderful. It's only been 2 weeks and I know every girl, and I feel like I've known them for quite a while. I have the best counselors and secretary, and I have never felt closer to my Heavenly Father. I'm so grateful for this opportunity! I don't know what it is that the Lord needs from me at this specific time, but I hope and pray that I can serve to my greatest potential.

A Cry for Help

Dear Friends and creative people,

So I am officially frustrated with my style. I want it to look cute, and I want my title and picture to look creative and fun like everyone else has been able to do with theirs. I would love suggestions on how all of you do your creative little things! Font, Pictures, Frames around the pictures, websites you get them from, etc. Please help me change to cute! Thanks.

Love,
Tiff's Blog

Diaper Cake

I don't usually brag about things that I accomplish, but I do have to say that I am very proud of my finished product! Siri and I threw a baby shower for Heather, my old roommate. I have seen lots of pictures of diaper cakes that people have made for baby showers, and I was SO excited to do it! I googled instructions for the diaper cake, but I ended up making up my own directions. I think it turned out quite cute :) It was fun to get all the girls together and we can't wait to see Heather's baby! Here is the finished product!

Accomplished

I just wanted to document my excitement for the goal that I recently accomplished! I have made a goal since last April's conference that I wanted to read the Conference Ensign that comes out a month after each conference. I have made a goal to study this and finish reading it all before the next conference starts. A few weeks ago I was talking to my Mom and realized in a panic that I was only half way done with the past edition!

With conference approaching ever so quickly, and with a lot of other stuff under my belt I told myself that giving up was not an option. And you know what? I did it!!!! As of 9:00 am on April 3rd (just one hour before Conference was to start) I finished it! I have officially accomplished my goal two conferences in a row. I have learned so much in doing this, and it has been a great blessing in my life! I have really enjoyed studying the prophets of old through scripture study along side modern day prophets in these Conference Ensigns.

If you are looking for a challenge and a blessing I would encourage you to try it! I promise you will be blessed.

Discombobulation!

The reason for the title of this post? Not quite sure. I guess it might be because of the hectic life I have been living for the past two months. Did I say it was a bad life? No. It has been wonderful, but just like everyone else, at times I feel like I may just collapse from exhaustion because of all the demands I am facing. I however, don't want to dwell on the busy and unpleasant parts. In the midst of the chaos I have done some fun things and had some pleasant surprises!

First of all, I got a scholarship! Yes, you heard me. I feel that it is almost impossible to get a scholarship at BYU, but I did it! It's an RMYL departmental scholarship for $1,000. Can I get a hoo ha? It was a last minute decision to apply and I literally turned my application in about 2 hours before the deadline, but I'm ever so grateful for my decision to go through with it. I get to go to a banquet on Tuesday, April 6th with my parents and all of the other scholarship applicants. I sure do feel special :)

Secondly, I had the best weekend! It was filled with friends, $3.00 80's bowling night, the Festival of Colors, "Did you Hear About the Morgans?", and family. The highlight of it all- my first time at the Festival of Colors. I went with my roommate, Kat, and her sisiter, Chelsea. It was a blast! Granted, it took us a while to wake up, but when the fun began, it didn't stop! For all of you who are unfamiliar with this, I'll give you a little background. At the Hindu temple in Spanish Fork, UT they celebrate the coming of Spring by burnin the Witch of Winter. This is followed by throwing colorful chalk. I would have to say that most of the crowd there is from BYU, but we are taught to become familiar with other religions, right? Just doing our duty, and having fun in the process! The only unpleasant experience I had was the initial throwing. I think I till have chalk filled in my lungs. No clean air for about a minute to breath... the longest minute of my life. But alas, I am alive. Here are some picutres from it!

Rubbing the elephant for good luck? Sure! Why not?

Can't forget the llamas! Kat was just a "little" scared of them. Don't worry, they just spit!

After watching many dance and yell chants we saw this cool altar! Very intriquite.

Before we were tainted with other people's colors!

The kids behind us got excited and couldn't hold onto their color. I got orange dumped all over me...
The throwing of colored chalk still has NOT begun, but yes, we were the victims of many others.

The end result! Don't we look beautiful?

We were most proud of our faces. What art...

This is how I felt about having chalk up my nose, in my ears, and down my throat. It was supposedly scented, but not a good scent!