Oh that I were a bat...

Since it's still October for 25 more minutes I decided I can't miss my opportunity to post my favorite picture from the original Down's Calendar of 2009

Kelsea, Kenz, Me, and Mr. Downs (High School English Teacher)
Classic people. Classic picture. Classic quote.

current thoughts..

I have hit a slow spot in my life after a few weeks of straight busy... and it's not treating me well. I am bored, lazy, and have gotten off my healthy eating and working out routine.. not good! I have officially had WAY too much chocolate and sweets this week. Every single piece of candy/dessert I had in my apartment is gone now... and I still want more.. haha. I need to do better this week.
Goal- DON'T BE LAZY! workout everyday! and eat like I normally do

Shake Shack. 'Shroom Burger, skip the fries, and a vanilla concrete with Banana's is an EXCELLENT meal. Just FYI.

I am officially a JEWELER! Look what I made in class!

Before-straight rod of metal (yes it was simply a straight plain rectangular rod that I cut, shaped, carved, and polished.)

After-a beautiful bracelet!

Next we are making 2 rings!

NEWS! I got re-accepted to BYU for winter semester so I can finish up my Bachelors degree! Now all I have to do is sell my lease... any takers??? I already told BYU yes... so really I need to sell my lease.

It is funny how things in life are based on such a relative level. For instance, when it was September and we went from 100 degree weather to 75 everyone brought out their boots/sweaters/jeans/coats etc. BUT in October when we go from 50 degrees to 75 people pull out their tank tops and shorts. The same temperature brought out completely opposite clothes, all because of what it was relative to. It happens all the time, it is just interesting to me.

I officially HATE weekend subway transportation! Ugh. So I left class yesterday for work at 12:20 (work was at 1, I figured I'd get there around 12:45 latest, if I had to wait awhile for a train, which was good because I needed to eat my lunch) I get right on the train which is about a 8 minute ride to Columbus Circle but apparently the train was having difficulties... it decide to miss my stop and take me 2 stops PAST where I was suppose to get off where I could transfer to a different train to take me to my stop-which would have been fine since I was early- but.... I forgot to mention that rather than taking 8 minutes it took over 35 minutes before I was dropped off at the WRONG stop. By the time I got to work, a commute that should take 15 minutes took 1 hour. Seriously?!! Not okay. Not to mention I was stuck on a train with a homeless man who was cussing, so some other lady who said she used to be homeless was yelling at him to stop cussing and turn his life around like she did and blah blah blah. It was a LONG train ride.

It's amazing what funny little things the devil does to stand in your path of doing good. Like this morning... it was a chain of mini events that had the potential of really turning your mood around if you let it (I think the devil was particularly on my case because I was giving a talk in church..but that is just my speculation) As I was making my breakfast of champions (scrambled eggs and applesauce pumpkin whole wheat pancakes (which were a creation from a late night homework session earlier this week)and hot chocolate) instead of my usual cereal I discovered first that somehow my hot chocolate had become a solid block... I don't even understnad how that happened.. but it did so as I was reaching for a back up plan (packet of hot chocolate and packet of chocolate instant breakfast) a bag of spaghetti fell over all over my cupboard. As I was trying to clean out the mess and stuff was falling everywhere my container of my raw scrambled eggs fell over. Finally I got my dinner made and was eating when somehow my hair got dipped in hot chocolate and while I was trying to reprint my talk the printer ran out of ink. Luckily we had extra ink! otherwise I would have had to take my computer to the pulpit-just kidding I had another copy printed I could have used... but really, someone did that in my old ward... weird. BUT all things considered I made it! On time and ready to go! Thankfully!

I finally had a project due in one of my classes (nothing worth posting) where I actually had to stay up late and wake up early... even dropped my sleep down to 4 hours for the first time this semester (sad that 4 hours was my regular last year..) And with a pretty heavy work load at the beginning of the week I was tired. I get to class and the first thing I hear is "The project got postponed." WHAT??? are you serious?? And every single person BUT me knew about it. Since FIT runs on a block schedule most kids in my class have all of their classes together, but since I am not in a block this semester I didn't hear about it and the teacher didn't send out an email. Seriously??? At least it is done, but my goodness I was not too happy.

Let's see... I have a rather boring life. One day it'll get exciting again.. hopefully. Have you noticed that this month has been the month with the second lowest blog posts (and I've had this blog for 15 months)? Well it's true. All I do is work. and... sleep. And this week, be bored. I wish I was working more. I need to be busy or I might go CRAZY!!!!! I miss my friends and family.

I just have a few quick things to say about church and I think I am done for the day.... first being-I am SO sick of how informal our generation has become, in everything, but in talks especially. Let me ask... is it appropriate to say the word "sleazy" in a talk in sacrament meeting? It happens all the time here for some reason-apparently because we are in NYC people refer to regular habits such as drinking/smoking/sleeping around/etc so easily that it seems fine to talk about them from the pulpit but I don't know, it just seems like it drives the spirit out when we bring such worldly topics into our meetings. Obviously those things can and should be address but in an appropriate manner which isn't always the case in my YSA meetings. Anyways it just seems like we should follow the example of our prophets when giving a talk, they are always so formal and precise, but I feel like it has become so casual and... I don't really like it. Anyway... there's my two cents about it. I have felt this way for a while, almost every Sunday there is at least one talk like this and it really irritates me. I hope that isn't bad to say.... I'm not trying to be rude or anything, i guess maybe I was just born in the wrong era since the formality of the past has been drastically disappearing.

I just want to say congratulations Manhattan 8th ward, you definitely have the most uplifting and inspiring meetings! Seriously all 3 meetings are filled with SO much spiritual nourishment, I LOVE Sunday's because I leave each hour with a renewed desire to do better and with new knowledge and better understanding.

We also had a musical number (piano and flute) and WOW!!!! Seriously, it was the BEST most magical thing I have ever heard. I could have listened to them play ALL day. They played 'My Heavenly Father Loves Me' which is one of my favorite primary songs. Here are the lyrics!

Whenever I hear the song of a bird 

Or look at the blue, blue sky,

Whenever I feel the rain on my face 

or the wind as it rushes by,

Whenever I touch a velvet rose 

or walk by a lilac tree,

I' glad that I live in this beautiful world 

Heavenly Father created for me.

He gave me my eyes that I might see 

the color of butterfly wings.

He gave me my ears that I might hear 

the magical sound of things.

He gave me my life, my mind, my heart: 

I thank him revernetly

For all his creations, of which I'm a part

Yes, I know Heavenly Fathers loves me.

One last thing... Happy Happy Birthday GRANDPA dear!!!! I LOVE YOU!!!!!!!

Oh, and Happy Halloween for all you who enjoy this holiday.. I just wish I was a kid again so I could have a big bag of FREE candy AND eat it all without feeling the least bit guilty. As for me I say, Happy November! Let the winter festive feelings start to kick in!

my talk

I gave a talk to my small ward today... and now I am going to share it with the whole world.. (not like the whole world reads my blog... but it is public so anyone may stumble across it!) It was a good topic and I found some great quotes... so if you would like to read on... here is my message to the world for today!



One of my favorite feelings in the world is going home and being surrounded by the loving arms of my family and friends. That is the one thing I miss most when I am here in the city. But what I have learned is that we all have someone who is here and who will graciously wrap His arms around us, at anytime, if we let Him.

My name is Bree Woolstenhulme and today I am going to focus on the love of our Savior and His arms that are wide open to us and how repentance through Christ’s atonement can help us worthily partake of the sacrament and continually be embraced in the Saviors arms. I will be using many quotes to emphasize my message because I feel like the apostles and prophets of the Lord say things far better than I would ever be able to.

The Lord loves each and every one of us despite our imperfections but as I’ve come to realize, His love is hard to find unless we are actively working to love Him as well. If we are studying and repenting we can feel His unconditional love for us. This fact is reiterated in a talk given by Dallin H. Oaks. "If only we will listen, we can know of God's love and feel it, even when we are disobedient. A woman who recently returned to Church activity gave this description in a sacrament meeting talk: 'He has always been there for me, even when I rejected Him. He has always guided me and comforted me with His tender mercies all around me, but I [was] too angry to see and accept incidents and feelings as such.' " End quote.

The Love of God is so strong that no matter what we may do in this life, we will always be loved by our Father in Heaven. Romans 8:38-39 says ‘For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is Christ Jesus our Lord.’

Some of us may think that we don’t qualify for this great love, that we aren’t worthy of it or that we don’t deserve or want it, but that is not true! I have gathered a few quotes from Dieter F. Uchtodrf which explain perfectly WHY God loves each of us.

"[God] loves us because He is filled with an infinite measure of holy, pure, and indescribable love. We are important to God not because of our résumé but because we are His children. He loves every one of us, even those who are flawed, rejected, awkward, sorrowful, or broken. God's love is so great that He loves even the proud, the selfish, the arrogant, and the wicked.

"What this means is that, regardless of our current state, there is hope for us. No matter our distress, no matter our sorrow, no matter our mistakes, our infinitely compassionate Heavenly Father desires that we draw near to Him so that He can draw near to us.

"Think of the purest, most all-consuming love you can imagine. Now multiply that love by an infinite amount—that is the measure of God's love for you.

"God does not look on the outward appearance. I believe that He doesn't care one bit if we live in a castle or a cottage, if we are handsome or homely, if we are famous or forgotten. Though we are incomplete, God loves us completely. Though we are imperfect, He loves us perfectly, though we may feel lost and without compass, God's love encompasses us completely.

To recognize and accept the love of our Savior we must follow the council given in Doctrine and Covenants 6:20 ‘Be faithful and diligent in keeping the commandments of God, and I will encircle thee in the arms of my love.’

It is easy to forget to read the scriptures every day, it’s easy to forget to pray, and there are many excuses that we justify those acts with. Life gets busy, hard, tiring and we may think that adding one more simple thing to our list will be too much, but in reality we are only hurting ourselves. The Lord still loves us, He doesn’t need our love, we need His. Our mind set should be the exact opposite when life gets hard, we should schedule more time to be on our knees and in the words of our understanding Father. When God knows everything and can provide the most strength why is it so hard to remember that He can bring the most comfort.

Neil L. Andersen sates "The scriptures speak of [the Lord's] arms being open, extended, stretched out, and encircling. They are described as mighty and holy, arms of mercy, arms of safety, arms of love, 'lengthened out all the day long.’”

To fully appreciate and receive the Saviors arms around us we must continually repent for every sin, big or small, that may fall in our path. In the talk Arms of Safety, Elder Jay E. Jensen describes a young man who was able to take the sacrament for the first time after he had confessed and repented of a past sin “I witnessed arms of mercy, love, and safety encircling him as the healing of the Atonement warmed his soul and lifted his load, resulting in the promised forgiveness, peace, and happiness.” As stated faithful repentance, though hard, brings upon us the full force of God’s love.

Sometimes we may feel like there is no hope, that we are in too deep, that we can’t break our habit, Dieter F. Uchtodorf tells us that that isn’t true, He says “Wherever you find yourselves on this journey through life, whatever trials you may face, there is always a point of safe return; there is always hope. You are the captain of your life, and God has prepared a plan to bring you safely back to Him, to your divine destination." God is merciful and understanding, He wants us to return to Him, that is His only plea. Alma 5:33 reads ‘Behold, he sendeth an invitation unto all men, for the arms of mercy are extended towards them, and he saith: Repent, and I will receive you.’

The Lord has given us the greatest gift, the gift of repentance; which ultimately is the opportunity to live with God again because without repentance we are imperfect and therefore cannot enter into the kingdom of God. Have you ever been given a gift and refused to open it, refused to even see what may be inside? What if the gift held eternal joy and happiness? We each HAVE this gift, it is called the Atonement. Our Father in Heaven gave it to us through our Savior Jesus Christ so that we may repent and return to God’s kingdom.

I have found three quotes that together describe the Atonement perfectly. Lawrence E. Corbridge describes the actual event that took place, stating "Jesus Christ entered a garden called Gethsemane, where He overcame sin for us. He took upon Himself our sins. He suffered the penalty of our wrongs. He paid the price of our education. I don't know how He did what He did. I only know that He did and that because He did, you and I may be forgiven of our sins that we may be endowed with His power. Everything depends on that. What then shall we do? We will 'take upon [us] the name of [the] Son, and always remember him and keep his commandments which he has given [us]; that [we] may always have his Spirit to be with [us]' Everything depends on that." Doctrine and Covenants 29:1 says “Listen to the voice of Jesus Christ your Redeemer, the Great I AM, whose arms of mercy hath atoned for your sins.’

Richard G. Scott referred to the result of the event, "Only the life, teachings, and particularly the atonement of Jesus Christ can release us from this otherwise impossible predicament. Each of us has made mistakes, large or small, which if unresolved will keep us from the presence of God. For this reason, the atonement of Jesus Christ is the single most significant event that ever has or ever will occur. This selfless act of infinite consequence, performed by a single glorified personage, has eternal impact in the life of every son and daughter of our Father in Heaven—without exception. It shatters the bonds of death. It justifies our finally being judged by the Master. It can prevent an eternity under the control of the devil. It opens the gates to exaltation and eternal life for all who qualify for forgiveness through repentance and obedience."

And President Packer explains why we should use the Atonement, “(The atonement of Christ) is an ever-present power to call upon in everyday life. When we are racked or harrowed up or tormented by guilt or burdened with grief, He can heal us. While we do not fully understand how the Atonement of Christ was made, we can experience ‘the peace of God, which passeth all understanding’”

In order to have the desire to repent one must love the Lord, accept His gift, and want to receive His blessings that can only come through faithful service. Elder Wirthlin says that “When we do so we become refined, pure, and holy. When we love the Lord, the benefits of the Atonement can wash away our earthly stain. Though our sins be as scarlet, they can become white as snow (see Isaiah 1:18), and we can become new creatures, filled with new life, new thoughts, and a renewed desire to do good continually."

Each week through the sacrament we have the opportunity to renew our covenants we made at Baptism. When we come repentant and worthily partake in the sacrament we will feel the arms of our Savior. Elder Jensen suggests “We should each come to sacrament meeting prayfully, hungering for spiritual healing, hoping, pleading to hear in their minds and hearts these words: “Behold, your sins are forgiven you; you are clean before me; therefore, lift up your heads and rejoice.”” To continue, Dallin H. Oaks says, “There is a spiritual healing associated with the sacrament: “The sacrament of the Lord’s Supper is a renewal of the covenants and blessings of baptism. We are commanded to repent of our sins and come to the Lord with a broken heart and a contrite spirit and partake of the sacrament. In the partaking of the bread, we witness that we are willing to take upon us the name of Jesus Christ and always remember Him and keep His commandments. When we comply with this covenant, the Lord renews the cleansing effect of our baptism. We are made clean and can always have His Spirit to be with us”

Our Savior is here for us always, He loves us and His arms are stretched out to us continually. It is simply our choice to receive His embrace. He has provided a perfect plan for us, a perfect path to return to our Heavenly home. When we fall from that path we must simply open up the gift He has graciously given us. He atoned for our sins so that we may repent and receive the blessings that come with partaking of the sacrament. We need Him! Julie B. Beck said "It is not possible to make real change all by ourselves. Our own willpower and our own good intentions are not enough. When we make mistakes or choose poorly, we must have the help of our Savior to get back on track. We partake of the sacrament week after week to show our faith in His power to change us. We confess our sins and promise to forsake them.”

I hope that each of us will feel the arms of our Savior this week and that when times get hard we remember that God is the only one who can provide refuge, comfort, and safety.

Wedding Dresses for DAYS

Bridal Market.

Like I had said it has been a CRAZY busy week with Bridal Market and work... though I am very tired, it is all so worth it!

What is Bridal Market? Every season (twice a year) designers come out with new dress collections and they show at 'Bridal Market' which is a weekend devoted to buyers looking and buying dresses from designers for their stores. I was able to participate in this amazing weekend because of the lovely people at Avenia Bridal-located in Provo, Utah. They come to NYC every market and since I've been here they have taken me on as their intern-for a youthful perspective. Visit their website! http://www.aveniabridal.com/

Last weekend-Saturday
We had appointments with Sposa, Lis Simon, Angelina Couture, Rina diMontella, Pattis, and other designers we met with briefly. We also had the Rivini and Priscilla of Boston Runway shows. The day was packed full of beautiful dresses, morning to night I was constantly inspired. It was also my halloween.... free candy at every booth plus other goodies too. A few fun pictures..

Angelina Couture

Rivini

Priscilla of Boston

Sunday

After church we went to Kelly Chase Couture (she did the one-year program at FIT as well!) then we stopped by Tara Keely and Badgley Mischka, after seeing some other designers we went to the St. Pucchi Runway show (again...free food everywhere-love it). I had to miss the Junko Yoshioka Show because I went to a ward dinner at my Bishop's house and then had dance practice.

Badgley Mischka

St. Pucchi

Monday

We stopped in at MANY booths looking at dresses and refreshing our minds about what we've seen all weekend. It is so lovely to be surrounded my so many beautiful creations. Most importantly we stopped at my favorite designer, Rivini's, showroom for another runway show and some up close and personal time with the most exquisite dresses on earth.

Rivini

Tuesday

Appointment at Lian Carlo and Junko Yoshioka (two designers I also like very much!) In between we stopped at Victoria Nicole who handed out the cutest cookies ever (pictured below), we stopped at a lace store and that was the end of my Bridal weekend. 9 am Saturday morning straight until 4 pm Tuesday evening! Oh, how I LOVE wedding dresses!!!!!!!

Lian Carlo

Junko Yoshioka

Victoria Nicole-Cookie

The rest of the week....

-I worked 27 hours between Wed and Sat.

-My dance team had our homecoming performance on Thursday. It was a hip hop dance so I am not going to post the video.

-I worked out everyday but Friday! 

-The lovely Emily Carr visited the city yesterday and we visited Magnolia, naturally. 

-SCORPIO's had a birthday! Recap on your sign. (P.S. if this is your sign we get along well-Scorpio is Pisces perfect match)

OCTOBER 23-NOVEMBER 21-Keyword: Idealism.

You are imaginative, passionate and emotional, subtle, persistent, intense, obstinate, and unyielding. You DESIRE. You are strong-willed and flexible, you don't accept defeat. Nothing is worse for you than to feel swept away by outside forces. You try to find a deeper purpose in life. Moderation, restraint, and certainly casual are not in your emotional vocabulary.
Happy Birthday!

Coming up this week...
-Speech in class
-Project due in another class
-Between 28-33 scheduled hours at work
-Talk in church on Sunday
... it is going to be another busy week!

P.S. sorry this post is rather dry. I am just tired and need to get to sleep but knew if I didn't get this post done it would be on my mind forever and I wouldn't be able to get my homework done tomorrow, so this is all I got for tonight! again if you want to see the pictures bigger, just click on them and it will open them up in a window for you.

P.P.S. Happy 200th blog post to me!

P.P.P.S. The new J.Crew clothes for November are AMAZING! The catalog is gorgeous... just fyi

preview of...

Bridal Market Fall 2010

My dream dress... if only I could spend over $10,000 on my dress... 

 (detail up close)

This is why Rivini is my favorite wedding dress designer

more to come...

I'm working on the Bridal Market blog post.. but this week is just as busy as last week so it will be a little while longer. It was an AMAZING weekend and opportunity though and I can't wait to post pictures and share! I hope I don't forget too many of the details between now and when I have time to write. For now.. Here is a picture of my best friend and his cute self along with his companion!

busy busy busy

FINALLY a BUSY week!

My schedule this week:

MON:
7:00-11:00   reading-morning routine/workout/grocery shopping/eat
11:30-5:30   work
6:30-9:20    class

BEST day at work EVER. It was so busy due to the holiday and all the promotions that we had going on. I have never been so busy ever, I had at least 4 customers I was helping at a time constantly. LOVE IT!!!!  I got to pack a cute little lunch and dinner and had a wonderful day.

TUE:
6:30-9:30     reading-morning routine/workout/eat
10:00-7:00   work (originally my shift was only til 4:45 but a manager asked me to stay longer!)
8:00-10:45   dance

It was very slow today, very different than yesterday but still a pretty good day, selling wise. It is finally getting cold so people are buying their sweaters/cashmere and coats. Another day with a packed lunch and dinner. Straight from work to dance. It was a good day at dance, we did jazz today instead of hip hop. YAY. AND the dance I choreographed last year we are doing again this year for Parent's Day at FIT so we got to to the dance and... IT FELT SO GOOD! It is my style, my choreography and it made me SO happy!!!!!!! I am VERY tired though. 

WED:
6:00-7:30     reading-morning routine
8:00-5:15     work (originally my shift was only til 12 but a manager asked me to stay longer.. again!)
7:00-10:30   Carrie's birthday dinner


Another REALLY early morning! Yikes. No time for workout this morning. (P.S. I found a cardio trick-Elliptical is perfect cause you can read while you do it... I recommend conference talks! It makes it bearable! Because if you think of your cardio time as your conference talk time you feel way to guilty to not do it! haha) For Carrie's birthday dinner we went to a Korean restaurant. There were four of us, I told Carrie to order whatever, I'd eat anything.. SO... I tried Sushi. For those of you who don't know me well.... I don't really do fish... or really anything remotely fishy (except crab legs.. odd I know) and I DON'T do sushi. But I did. I tried it. It was a California roll, so only crab meat and it was really good actually. Dip it in the spicy sauce and soy sauce and it wasn't bad. Oh and chop sticks are difficult, just fyi. I also tried a seafood pancake that was good, a little too seafood-y for me though, I then tried sushi with salmon... well I picked out most of the salmon-as much as I could. I didn't like that one as much, probably just because I knew there was raw fish in it. For our main course we had fried chicken and WOW, it was delicious. yum yum yummy. The meal was a new experience for me, and it was a good one! The restaurant was awesome, it had great service and an amazing atmosphere. They kept giving us free shots haha... obviously I gave mine to the birthday girl! We had chocolate cake to top off the meal. HAPPY BIRTHDAY CARRIE! (I'll post pictures when I get them from Carrie)

THURS:
7:00-9:30     reading-morning routine/workout
10:15-12:30 class-field trip to Queens
2:30-3:30     nap
6:30-9:30     work (a girl asked me to take her shift)

My first trip to Queens (only the first stop into Queens haha) we went to an embroidery business and it was incredible. All these antique sewing machines, I can't even explain how inspiring and AMAZING this company is. It was such a remarkable experience. I was DEAD tired though and desperately needed a nap. So I took one! Then I watched Glee before work. We are suppose to 'close' from 9-11, refolding etc. BUT we didn't have many customers so we got most of our folding done during store hours so we got out in record time, 9:30! Awesome but I wouldn't have minded the extra money.. haha I'm turning into a workaholic. I watched One Tree Hill though since I was home earlier than expected.

FRI:
9:00            woke up (finally got to sleep in a little bit)
9:00-now     reading-morning routine/workout/homework/blog
4:15-11       on-call for work... they didn't take any on calls today. boo. No work tonight.

I'm rather lazy today... but I figure it's okay, it was a busy week and I have a crazy busy weekend as well!  Should have done more homework than I did... oh well

I got an extra 10 hours this week! 27 hours.. if they took my shift today it would have been 34. Best week ever! LOVED all the scheduling and not being home all day and all the work. Not to mention the lovely pay check! Love being a working girl again.


This weekend is Bridal Market. I get to intern for Avenia Bridal and go around with them to all the runway shows/showrooms/etc. of wedding dress companies. A weekend FULL of wedding dresses. Pure heavenly perfection! I am SO excited. I did this last Fall and Spring as well but this time around I can do a lot more because I don't have class to hold me back. I will be with them all day Saturday/Sunday/Monday. I can't wait!

So far I've been able to watch General Conference Sat AM and PM (I am hoping to watch Sun AM tonight) and oh how I LOVE conference. I missed the smell of cinnamon rolls that filled my home in Utah, and I missed the experience of 2 days straight in a row of constant inspiration BUT it doesn't matter, it is still so amazing! The Spirit is still there no matter where or when or how you watch it.

Back track to Sunday. I love church. I love testimony meeting. I love feeling the spirit. I have a few little spiritual thoughts to share.
-Jacob 4. Read it.
- I want to express gratitude for my Savior. I love that term, Savior, because truly that is what He is, His purpose is to save us and to love us. I KNOW that He loves me and all His children and that He guides each one of our lives. As I have put the Lord first in my life, as I have studied and come closer to Him this past month I can literally feel His loving arms around me continually, constantly, every single day, and it is what gives me strength. He is my soul comfort right now, He is my friend and surviving force. His love is what keeps me going. The Lord knows us, He knows our needs, He knows how to help us. When no one is around He is. I am so grateful that I know that I do have a Heavenly Father who loves me, and I KNOW that He knows I love Him. I LOVE this gospel, and I know it is true.
-The 2 most important things to ALWAYS have 1. faith in Christ. 2. faith in YOURSELF!
- No matter what may be on'es handcaps or limitations in life, by purging himself he may become "a vessel unto honor, sanctified, and meet for the master's use, and prepared unto every good work." (2 Tim. 2:21)
-In Marvelous Work and a Wonder the chapter on the word of wisdom is amazing, everyone in the world should read it.
"The Lord has made it clear that our bodies are the tabernacles of our Spirits. We cannot abuse and offend the body without offending the Creator...Drink has brought more woe and misery, broken more hearts, wrecked more homes, committed more crimes, filled more coffins, than all the wars the world has suffered...Know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you,, which ye have of God, and y are not your own? For ye are bought with a price, therefore, glorify God in your body, and in your Spirit, which are God's (1 Corin. 6:19-20) Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you? If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are. (1 Corin. 3:16-17)"
-The most POWERFUL source of courage and strength is our Faith in Heavenly Father and His Son, Jesus Christ.
-"Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed; for the Lord thy God is with thee wither-soever thou goest." Joshua 1:19
-Jacob 6:5 (new favorite scripture) "..come with full purpose in heart, and cleave unto God AS HE CLEAVETH UNTO YOU. And when his arm of mercy is extended towards you in the light of the day, harden not your hearts."
-Sweet talk from YW GC session last spring. Sister Dalton. "Each of you has inherited a royal birthright. Each of you has a divine heritage. "You are literally the royal daughters of our Father in Heaven." Each of you was born to be a QUEEN....There is no more beautiful sight than a young woman who glows with light of the Spirit, who is confident and courageous because she is virtuous."

Just would like to conclude with the lovely sweets I craved all last week (yes.. who craves sweets when they are sick except me...)
Peanut Butter Pie-Magnolia Bakery (I was craving peanut butter SO much for some reason) SO rich and delicious one slice lasted 3 days

and a Pint of S'mores Ice Cream-don't worry, that lasted a few days too!
This week was a bad week of cravings too but I didn't eat anything too exciting, I was too busy and I was trying to have a healthy week coming off of my sick week...

In case you don't know how.. FIT is there to help you out. haha!

my week..

I am on my 3rd box of kleenex's and am still recovering from strep throat but I am getting better which is the important thing. Working from 3-11 yesterday probably didn't help but hey, I need the money! I also think it was my best selling day which is kind of funny-but dang good because I missed out on a 5 hour shift on Tuesday due to my lovely throat. Not much has happened this week. A lot of netflix and bed time...P.S. it is NOT fair that medicine and necessities for sickness cost money...not fair at all!

Congratulations to my best friend Elder Wilkins who just passed his 17 month mark! YAHOO!

AND a shot out to my roomie Nicole who landed her first dance audition!!! Her agency sent her on an audition on Wednesday and SHE GOT THE JOB. She rehearsed all day Friday and Saturday to preform with KANYE WEST on Saturday Night Live!!!!! She even had a solo part. AMAZING!

A few quotes that keep me going..
"The gospel has a long and successful record of guiding people to happiness."-Elder Schuitzer
-In relation to the Millennium Rev. 21:4 "And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain; for the former things are passed away."
-"The gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ is given unto man to prepare him for Celestial Glory."
"Remember, remember that it is upon the rock of our Redeemer, who is Christ, the son of God, that ye must build your foundation; that when the devil shall send forth his mighty winds.. he shall have no power over you to drag you down.. because of the rock upon which ye are built.."
-"Two men can do anything as long as one of them is the Lord."
-"Look to the lighthouse of the Lord. There is no fog so dense, no night so dark, no gail so strong, no mariner so lost but what its beacon light can rescue. It beckons through the storms of life. The lighthouse of the Lord sends forth signals readily recognized and never failing."
-"The Lord is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer; my God, my strength, in whom I will trust;... I will call upon the Lord.. so I shall be saved from mine enemies."

My New Best Friends...

• Chicken Noodle Soup
• Tylenol cold multi-symptom severe drinkable blue stuff
• Herbal tea with lemon and honey
• Halls menthol drops
• Mentholatum
• Puffs plus vicks (should have got plus lotion.. I thought this one had both)
• and good old Duane Reade for being open 24 hours
• oh and my loving dad who helped get me a prescription when FIT's health services turned me away

happy OCTOBER

As predicted it was a good week, before I start my post I am going to ask a question..

HOW MUCH DO YOU THINK I PAID FOR ALL THIS????

2 pairs of knee high leather boots (one flat, one with heel)

1 pair of ankle boots, high heel

6 pairs of heels (suede, leather, metallic)

1 pair of flats

1 set of earrings

1 bracelet

2 necklaces

The answer will be at the bottom of the post, remember all are in perfect condition and all are J.Crew brand.

I had 2 BUSY work days this week that were excellent. On Wednesday I had a shift from 2:15-6:15 and an on call right after from 6:15-10:15. I was there from 2:15-11:15. Dang straight. 9 hours. Apart from the fact the my feet hurt a tad bit and I missed Magnolia Wednesday it was awesome! AND while at work I got asked my a co-worker if I could take both of her on-calls from 10:15-3 and 3-7 for Thursday and guess what, they took them. 9 hours again, by this point I was WAY tired and my feet hurt REAL bad but 18 hours in 2 days!!!! LOVELY. Oh, and I also got asked by one of my managers if I would like to take an extra 7 hour shift that I was originally not scheduled for, um YES please!

I have one more 4 hour on-call tomorrow and next week I am scheduled 3 times with 2 on calls. Hopefully this work schedule keeps up like this! It has been so nice having something to do and being busy, the week flew by.

Here is just a lovely lunch I had one day this week. YUM. -oh and when I was making eggs one time this week I had TWIN YOKES!!!! Two of them in the same egg. SO sweet! I tried to take a picture but my the time I found my camera the white had already covered the yoke...

On a more spiritual note, some things I loved from my studies this week...
MWW- God is the Father of our Spirits, even as we are children of our earthly fathers in the flesh. 'For in Him we live, and move, and have our being..'(Acts 17) We once lived in the presence of God, our Father; that we are, in very deed, his spirit children; and that we may attain something of his attributes nd accomplishments and ultimately enjoy is eternal companionship and association in the beautiful relationship of Father with sons and daughters.

Quote by Joseph Smith "Therefore,...let us cheerfully do all things that lie in our power; and then may we stand still, with the utmost assurance, to see the salvation of God, and for his arm to be revealed."

We must be engaged in the work of the Lord, for the Lord must have instruments for the accomplishment of his purposes.

Today is a very special day for a few reasons
1. it is my DADDY'S BIRTHDAY!!! Happy Birthday daddy, I wish I was home to spend it with you! I LOVE YOU!

2. if you didn't notice... I have NOT had a sweet since last SATURDAY when I ate my little pie. I never had time to get any so today I took myself to Magnolia and treated me to this...(I also have banana pudding in the fridge for tomorrow)-I ate my cupcake with my dinner of butternut squash ravioli, such a FALL meal. I LOVE the fall, happy October!

pumpkin cupcake, with maple frosting-DELICIOUS 

3. J.Crew SAMPLE SALE!-which means about 75% off of J.Crew merchandise, it is open to the public, and today the sale was for jewelry and shoes. As an associate I also get an additional discount, so back to my original question, how much did I pay for all of those shoes???

GRAND TOTAL (without tax) $186.25

YES, you read correctly. Please click here to get an idea for the normal J.Crew pricing. Yes, this is why I will ALWAYS always ALWAYS work as an associate for J.Crew, as long as I live! period. As I always say, PURE perfection! Thank you J.Crew!