Cookie Night!

Karl and I decided to celebrate the end of finals week by having a delicious meal of chicken, mashed patatoes and an assortment of veggies followed by.......

Sugar Cookies!

I had never made cookies myself before (please don't judge me), but they actually turned out pretty well and we had a good time decorating them before we ate them with hot chocolate while watching White Christmas.

It was a fabulous way to celebrate the end of finals:)



Cookies before decorating and after.

Karl enjoying his cookies.
Me and my cookies!


Two happy cookies makers:)

Enjoy your break everyone who gets one!

AND

Happy almost Christmas!!!

D-O- N-E

I am

DONE!

Finished with finals and feeling so good!

What is my first act of freedom with another semester over?

I am going to read a book,

A book that I actually want to read!

And tonight, I am going to make sugar cookies with Karl that we will then decorate and eat!

Yes, I am one happy girl:)

Mono est Mono

So it has been forever since I last blogged, but I've been a bit under the weather and trying to get on top of studying for finals/surviving my last week of classes.

I ended up getting sick about a month and a half ago with a sinus infection, which then become mono, which then added strep throat to the mono. It's been quite an adventure. And poor Karl has had to take care of me being sick for more than half of our married life now! He is a champion and I love him even more now:)

Who else would sleep on the floor by me for a week because I slept better on the couch, or tell me that I look pretty even when I have broken out in a mono rash that resembles either a bruise or really gross looking hives? Or who else when I ended up getting flu like symptoms right after I started feeling better from the mono would go to the store to get me Gatorade and hold me while my head wouldn't stop hurting? This guy even at ten at night went to his parents house to get a camera so I could film him reading a story I had to interpret for my ASL class the next day! Basically, I don't know how I got so lucky:) Yes, pretty much every post I have put up on this blog I probably make you all nauseated by how much I talk about my undying affection for my husband, but he is a majorly important part of my life now and I want to remember the things that made us grow even closer together in our married life.
(Here is the video of Karl reading If You Take a Mouse to the Movies for me. He's the best!)



Despite me getting sick, we have had some good times during the holidays.

We got to spend Thanksgiving day with the Anderson, Hansen, Peterson clan, which means there was never a dull moment:) Sure, I slept through most of Thanksgiving, but I still had a good time. We got to spend a lot of time hanging out with my siblings, which I love getting to do since we don't get to all be together too often any more. Then on Friday, we spent the day with the Beckert clan. We got to have Thanksgiving left overs for lunch (yummy:)) and we watched ELF, which is hilarious!

Karl and I got our first Christmas tree over the break! It looks great and I love getting to turn on the lights and sit by our tree at night!

Now we are just gearing up for finals and so so ready for a break this holiday season.

Good luck to all of you who are gearing up for finals and Happy Christmas!

New

So tomorrow I am getting a hair cut and I am super excited!

Do any of you feel so energized and excited about life after just changing things up a bit.

Sometimes a little change makes a big difference.

I can't wait!

I have just been bored of my hair and thought to myself, "self, I should change it." So change it I am!

I want to keep it long but I need something to be different about it!

If any of you have good ideas, let me know!

Ode to the Crockpot and the Vaccuum

Dear Crock-pot( the cooking appliance not a person) and Dear Vacuum,
I would be so lost without the both of you.
Crock-pot, you make meals so delicious and easy!
I can't even burn them! Not even the cheesy(?)

Vacuum, the way you take care of dirt and grime,
Truly vacuum is really sublime.

I never had any appreciation for either of you before,
but since you have made my life easier (the past few weeks)
the both of you I truly adore.

Dear people, remember, yes don't forget
to appreciate the little luxuries that make life
less of a....sweat:)

Went to the Temple and I, got myself Maaarrrieed!

Fall Break was marvelous! I finally got to be sealed to my best friend forever! The temple ceremony was beautiful. I didn't think I would cry but being surrounded by family and friends who love Karl and me and feeling the spirit so strongly was an incredible experience.

I have so many people to thank for making this weekend so special! First of all, my incredible mother without whom none of the decorations at the open houses would have been made, photographer and videographer would not have been found, wedding dress would not have been found, the list goes on and on! She put up with my indecisive nature and truly made the whole event so beautiful! Thanks mom! Thank you daddy for being willing to make a bunch of phone calls for me to get a videographer and a photographer as well as help keep mom calm and help me to not be such an air head and make some decisions! You are the best daddy!

My new mother and father in-law did so much to make the luncheon and open house in Logan so much fun and so perfect for the day! The food was so good and the open house looked beautiful:) You guys are wonderful!

To my siblings, both Anderson and Beckert, who made the luncheon truly memorable by giving Karl and I each a fabulous kit of survival for living with one another.
My Kit for living with Karl was full of things karl "loves" (can't stand):

-A card game from Tori

-A second place ribbon from Emily

-And a butterfingers from Brent (good thing I at least love those)

Karl's kit for living with me:

-A bike horn so when I get lost (which happens a lot) I can beep it until Karl can find me from Shae

-A coloring book and pencil pad for Karl to draw an imaginary friend so that when I'm playing with mine, Dead Fred, he can have one to (Thanks G!)

-And last but not least, the fabulous book I'm Glad I'm a Girl I'm Glad I'm a Boy from Talon and Nicole in memory of an unfortunate anatomy fiasco in which I struggled with the different male and female parts on the cadavers:)

This was hilarious and I loved having you guys there to spend the day with us! For putting up with me through my moody stressed moments of the wedding planning and for helping things turn out so great! You all are wonderful!

The day was beautiful and life just keeps getting better:) I'm grateful for the temple and for the blessings it brings.

I love being Mrs. Beckert and am even doing an ok job in the cooking world (except for when I burned our lunch and made our apartment all smokey, but that had to happen at least once right?)

Life is great!Picture from Shae's blog

Focus

I am having a very hard time wanting to focus right now.

I am sitting at work in a not very busy lab and have the ability to be getting ahead in some classes, but of course...I keep thinking I can do that later, I have plenty of time later, but really, when do I ever have time later!

I think I need to fix this problem before it gets out of hand. Gah!

One thing that has been on my mind though is what an awesome family I have. I really can't say it enough! I feel like I don't tell them enough how grateful I am for them. I got to be in the temple with most of my family members on Saturday and it was the most incredible experience knowing that I get to be with them forever! They have been so great to put up with me recently terrible communication skills and lack of showing how much I appreciate everything they do!

My parents are incredible! They have given me so much! My dad gave me a last father's blessing yesterday before I get married and I don't think I told him how much that meant to me. My dad is a spiritual giant! I look up to him so much and know that I found my own testimony by following his example. My mom is a saint! She has worked so hard to make my wedding day special and never stops being there to help me out when I stress or panic or freak out. My mom is such a great example to me of faith and righteous living. I love my parents very very much:)

I am very thankful for the Beckert family for how they have taken me in as one of their own. They are some of the most genuine, kind, hilarious people I have met. I love being able to spend time with them and I am so grateful that I get to be a part of their family!

Family is wonderful! I have no doubt in my mind that we are placed in families for a reason. I couldn't survive without mine!

I am very excited to get to start my own family unit in only 5 days!

YAY!

Happy:)

I, Tara Julene Anderson am going to be
..........

An AUNT!!!

YAY for Talon and Nicole and soon to come in April

little baby Foot Anderson (not it's real name, but we love it so much it already has a nickname)

That is all

Communication

"Oh, the comfort, the inexpressible comfort of feeling safe with a person having neither to weigh thoughts and measure words, but to pour them out just as they are-chaff and grain together-knowing that a faithful hand will take and sift them, keep what is worth keeping and then with the breath of kindness blow the rest away."
-Anonymous

Yes, I have been wasting approximately the past, oh 2 and a 1/2 hours blog stalking people (my new favorite past time) and I found this quote which I instantly loved!

I have been learning that sometimes breakdowns are very therapeutic.

I like to keep things inside, and cry about it later, but it's been very nice to have people I love around me helping me know that it's ok to breakdown.

Karl has helped me a lot with this.

Even though I know how frustrating it is for him that I can't just let things out, he is patient.

I cried in front of him for the first time a few weeks ago and he just held me and let me cry.

I could probably count the people I've cried in front of (for matters not pertaining to things of a spiritual nature) on one hand.

I am thankful that I have him:)

He is becoming the person this quote describes for me and I love that! I am trying to do the same for him. (I'm a work in progress)

In other news....

My family is coming today!

Yep, the Anderson clan will be all together for the first time in quite awhile.

I AM PUMPED!

Yay for Friday!

American Sign Language

"I don't speak ASL, but my hands do."



Can I just say I think the most beautiful language is ASL.

It is so expressive!

Of course, all language is expressive, but I feel like I have been able to connect to Sign in a way that I can't always connect to English.

It's really hard for me to express how I'm feeling sometimes, but sign language is allowing me to do that in a different way.

My Sign class is the best form of stress relief!

My teacher is hilarious! He looks like the biker version of Santa Claus:)

This is also one of the only classes where none of us really know each other, but we feel like we are all good friends just because of all the hands on experiences with sign we are having together.

I love it! I hope one day to be fluent in ASL.

That would be wonderful:)

Only in Logan

So I am walking up to campus today and I notice a police car parked in the middle of the road and I thought to myself....that's a weird parking spot...

When all of the sudden I heard a loud honking noise behind me.

When I turned around, I saw a parade of at least 50 tractors coming up 8th East honking and having a splendid time.

This isn't the strangest thing I've seen this week though.

What other school would have various farm animals around campus all week including cows, pigs, and ponies?

Welcome to Cache Valley!

Isn't it awesome!

Birthday Party!

Karl's birthday was yesterday and we had a great time celebrating!

First of all, this guy loves his birthday. He was so excited about it all month!

His family has a lot of fun traditions for birthdays.

First: Family breakfast including bacon, juice, and french toast smothered in a delicious secret sauce.

Next: Family dinner. The birthday person gets to pick whatever they want for dinner. Yesterday the birthday boy decided to have pasta a la carbanara (his favorite). Accompanying dinner is one of the Beckert's favorite birthday games: Favorite Moments with the birthday person. Everyone describes their favorite moment with the birthday person! I learned a lot of fun things about Karl like:

-For his 13 birthday, he and some friends watched Jurassic Park in French because the dinosaurs roar differently

-He was very protective of his sister Tori when she was first born. He is right next to her in every picture:)

-He was OBSESSED with Ninja Turtles and used to have a Leonardo cake every year for his birthday

- He got his siblings lost while riding their bikes a few times in Arizona

and one of my favorite new pieces of info on Karl is.....

-When he was a toddler, before his dad put him to bed so he could watch whatever game was on, Karl would have his dad pitch a baseball to him which he would hit, run after and bring it right back. His dad never had to take his eyes off the game:)

I just love him more and more!

Third: Opening presents time!

The best part of this segment of birthday awesomness was when his cousins Gabriel and Patrick came over. Gabe made Karl a way cool pop up birthday card. Patrick ran up to Karl, gave him a hug, and said, "You're a pansy and Happy Birthday!" It was funny because Karl and Emily are the ones who taught Patrick to call people pansies:)

It was so much fun getting to spend time with him on his birthday and get to hangout with his family.

I just love that boy more and more all of the time.

He always knows when to make me laugh or when I need to talk seriously about something and he even handles thing so well when I need to cry.

Last week was the first time I cried in front of him and although I absolutely hate crying, it was a very therapeutic experience.

He just held me and let me cry and when I was ready to talk about it, he let me talk.

I am one lucky girl:)

Only 3 weeks and 1 day until we are married for forever!!!

Bridals

Oh!

And my bridals are finally done.

You can see them here:)

.....

Sometimes it's hard to remember that I am a daughter of God.

I'm sure all of you have felt like that at some point.

Things like, how do I look, what do people think of me, I'm not pretty enough, or I'm not smart enough start to creep into our thoughts and make us wonder what we are worth.

This talk I found by President Faust helped to remind me of how wonderful it is to know I am a daughter of God.

When I remember that fact and trust in it, life becomes so much more meaningful.

Comparing myself to the people around me becomes less of a temptation.

I see more of the purpose I have in this life and am able to see that purpose so much more clearly.

I am so thankful for the gospel!

It would be so easy to forget how much we matter without really knowing who we are and who we can become.

My dad told my siblings a story yesterday of about an English prince. A group of men wanting to overthrow their current form of government captured this prince and tried to corrupt him by exposing him to every sinful, vulgar behavior. After weeks of not being able to bring this young man down, these men asked him why he had not fallen to this lifestyle that no one else they had exposed to it had been able to withstand.
The prince replied that he was born to be a king and that was not the behavior of a king.

My dad reminded us that we all have the potential to become kings and queens. We were born to become kings and queens. As a daughter of God, that is my destiny if I follow a righteous path.

All of us daughters of God must be worth a lot if our Heavenly Father has promised us that we can have all that he has by following him and living up to our divine potential.

It's good to remember who I am and where I am going.

My lIfe is Average

Sometimes, you just need something to make you laugh. I love the little things. It doesn't take much to make me happy.

Like the other day when Karl and I were walking to the library. As he was drinking his pop, he proceeds to tell me how much he likes pop. Why you ask? Because it makes him burp!

Gross maybe, ridiculous yes, but I laughed for a good twenty minutes and it made my entire day!

Whenever I need a good laugh I go to mylifeisaverage.com. A lot of the stories are ridiculous, but if you read long enough, they all sound hilarious! Here are a few gems I found today:

Today my friends and I went to a country club. We were bored, so we decided to walk by people and say random things really loud. When we walked by one family, my friend said to me, "So how's your new medication working?" I said back, "It's working well, but I'm still hearing the voices." The looks on their faces? Priceless. MLIA

Today, I looked up strange laws in the state of Oklahoma. It turns out that whaling is illegal. I have no idea how someone would manage to go whaling in the inland state of Oklahoma. MLIA

Today, I was at the mall shopping in Urban Outfitters with my friends. I called out one of my friend's names which so happens to be Marco. At least three people said "Polo" and one person jumped out from behind a clothes stand and ran away saying, "YOU CAN'T GET MEEEE!!!" MLIA.

Yesterday, I got my wisdom teeth taken out. My mom told me that when we left the clinic I "ran" and belly flopped on top of a bush, attempted to do the breaststroke all while screaming at the top of my lungs, "the British are coming, the British are coming!". I have no recollection of this, but I really wish my mom had videotaped it. MLIA

today my 7 year old sister slapped me across the face screaming "this is for narnia!" then looked at my cat and yelled out" hermoine! you left your cat at our house again!"HerLIA

Today, my grandma picked up the TV remote and asked 'Whose cell phone is this?' MLIA

I have no idea if any of the stories posted on this website are real, but I always find something to that makes me laugh every time.

Ever since I started reading this website, I find myself noticing random things that happen every day and appreciating them so much more. Yay for my life is average!

Help For the Overwhelmed

I can't take credit for this post because it was the inspired feeling I felt when I read Ashley Benjamen's blog post about feeling overwhelmed and needing to sort out priorities that made me decide to write it.

I know a lot of us are feeling overwhelmed with school already and it's only day three!

My emotions have been so up and down the past couple days of school. I was excited to start my new Communicative Disorders classes, overwhelmed by my new work load, and I have just felt like something hasn't been quite right.

After reading Ashley's post and reading a talk by Elder Ballard about focusing on priorities (read it!), I feel so much better. It put things back into perspective for me.

I haven't spent enough time making sure I put the Lord first. Everything else falls into place when I remember to put him first.

He is with me in everything I do when I spend time with him each day.

Elder Ballard gave these six suggestions for prioritizing our time.

1-Think about your life and your priorities always keeping in mind the covenants you have made with the Lord as you write down your daily schedule.

2-Set short term goals that you are able to attain and pray about what these goals should be.

3-Create a wise budget for yourself to ensure that your needs are met and wants don't trump needs.

4-Stay close to family and friends. Honest, open communication with the people you are close to brings happiness into life and creates a good support system.

5-Study the scriptures. There have been many times in my life where turning to the scriptures brought a comfort and peace into my life that I couldn't get from anywhere else.

6-Pray. That lifeline is so important! Talk to your Father in Heaven. He loves you and he wants to help you.

This talk has really helped me refocus my goals and priorities for this semester.

I know I am feeling better already and I hope you are to!

Good luck with school!!!


On a side note....my engagement pictures are done!
Check them out!

Ending and Beginning!

Today, I completed my last shift at Farmington City Pool

Yay!

Monday, I am moving to Logan where I get to move in with my brother and sister in law for a bit, start my old job again, start new classes, and I get to see Karl every day!

Life is great!

When Horses Attack!

Taking engagement pictures will definitely be a memory I won't forget.

We took some very fun pictures at a park (of course! Where else would I want take the pictures?) in Pleasant Grove and then our photographer wanted to take some pictures in a few open fields close by the park.

We drive a little ways and pull off the side of the road where some lovely fields are, climb under a barbed wire fence and go sit on some logs in the middle of the field.

Our photographer was having a good time getting pictures close to sunset when my dad tells us we have company,

Eight very large horses to be exact,

walking in a semi circle towards us. Apparently we were invading their territory and they were not happy about it.

So as we quickly hurried back to the fence, these horses followed us, tails raised and hoofs stomping, just to make sure we were gone for good.

What and adventure!

I am excited to see how these pictures turned out:)

Family: Isn't it about....time

The Anderson Family Reunion this year was most excellent! We got to go to Island Park Idaho and spend three days chilling in the mountains with the family. There is something kind of magical about being in the mountains. I loved having the sound of cars and other noisy machinery replaced by calming chirping birds, rainstorms, and a very peaceful lake.

We always have a lot of fun playing random games together as a family. Among my favorites were placing an oreo cookie on my forehead and attempting to use my face muscles to get the cookie to my mouth and tying a rope with a tennis ball attached to the end around my waist and spinning around like crazy to knock three cups off a picnic table. Most Excellent!

One thing I wasn't really expecting was to feel the spirit as much as I did. That's one of the many great things about my family. The gospel is tied into everything we do together. We had opportunities to share our favorite scripture about the savior with each other and listen to aunts and uncles talk about family.

Our family has a moto: No Empty Chairs. This moto reminds me that we are helping each other be better as a family all the time. We stick together. No man gets left behind! I love my family so much. I am so lucky and grateful to have a family who sticks together and who I can always count on to be there for me.

In other news....

I cooked a real meal today! Yes people. A legit meal that didn't taste like tar or get burned! I now know how to make a California Pizza Kitchen style Barbeque Chicken Salad. This may sound very simple to you proffessional cooks out there, but this is a very big deal for me. I don't cook well. At all.

Some may recall that I thought butter evaporated like water when it gets hot enough. It turns out, it browns.


But this time, things turned out right. I made a decent meal and I am very happy with myself right now.

So no worries Karl. We will not completely starve. My cooking skills are underway!

So....I'm Engaged!

Hello Blogging World! Yes, I am without a doubt the worst blogger ever. I think I just use my blog so I can see what everyone else is up to:) But today, I have something to blog about. Actually, I have had something to blog about for quite some time, and I am just now getting around to it. I guess I should start at the beginning.

This, is Karl Beckert
(and I didn't have a picture of just him so it's both of us)

I first noticed Mister Karl Beckert sitting a few rows ahead of me in math class. I remember thinking he was very cute so I smiled at him, which he responded to by smiling back making me very self conscious and nervous so I looked away quickly. It wasn't too much longer before he got up the courage to talk to me while we were walking to class. Soon after that we were sitting together and helping each other with our assignments. After a few weeks, he asked me out on a date! (I was very excited). We went to an interpretive dance performance at which we decided it would be intellectually stimulating to interpret what the dances meant. With a debate on whether a particular dance more closely resembled Pirates of the Caribbean or Titanic and having the people behind us continuously kick Karl's chair because we were laughing so hard, we really hit it off. We went on several dates after that and one week we spent almost every day together! The day I moved home I realized how much I missed being with him and how much I had grown to respect, care about, and dare I say, Love, this boy. Lucky for me, he had the same feelings:) We started talking about marriage, and yes, I freaked out several times, but when I talked to him about marriage, I felt good and even had fun talking about it with him. That was a big deal! Yes, I freaked out numerous times throughout this process. Lucky for me I had a very loving family, great friends and a very patient Karl to help me through the process.

So, about four weeks ago, with the help of my siblings, Karl took my to the Bountiful temple, where a white blanket decorated with rose petals, daisies, strawberries, and books from our math class was spread under the trees. We ate strawberries as he told me how much he had come to love me and why he loved me so much. Then, he told me to stand up as he got on one knee and asked me if I would marry him. I said yes:)

I am so thankful for Karl. I feel like he is helping me be a better person just by loving me and helping me see my potential. He has the most beautiful blue eyes that with just one look tell you everything he stands for. I love how he can read me like a book and know exactly what I need. I love his silly sense of humor and how much he loves to make me laugh (which he is very good at). I just love him! He is wonderful and I'm very thankful:)

I love you Mom!

Today is Mother's Day and I for sure have a fantastic Mother who I am so thankful for!
I was reading talk given this past general conference by Elder Ballard about mother's and daughters and I couldn't help but think of how much my mom has blessed my life.

She has been an incredible example to me. My parents have dealt with a lot of challenges this year, but they have faced each challenge with countless leaps of faith and prayer. They have been an incredible example to me of trusting in the Lord and living gospel principles.

I think my mom became my best friend my senior year of high school when I started talking to my mom about everything. My mom seems to understand how I work better than anybody else, so talking to her helped me understand myself better. She helped me realize that I am a Daughter of God and my worth is set in stone. Nothing that I or anybody else says or does has any affect on my worth because my Heavenly Father loves me perfectly despite that.

Through her example, her counsel, and her patience, my mom has taught me how to be comfortable being myself, how to make goals and accomplish them, and sooo many other countless things that have meant the world to me.

I love you mom! Thank you for putting up with my bad attitudes, laziness, whining, emotional ridiculousness, etc. Thank you for laughing with me during ridiculous movies, going on walks with me, supporting my piano and singing aspirations, dealing with my cat because you love me, sharing funny jokes with me (at least by my standards) etc. And most of all.......

Thank you for being my mom!

Finals Bleh!

Finals Bleh
a poem composed during a five minute break by me

Oh Finals,
I do dislike thee
Thou art an icky flea
Taking my precious time from me

I want thee to be done
So I can go play in the sun,
Which seems to have run
away.
These finals are making me feel so gray!

I will be done a week from Friday
And then I have four months to play(ish)
YAY!

I am now going to focus on my studdies
So I can pass my finals and hang out with my buddies

“Instead of studying for finals, what about just going to the Bahamas and catching some rays? Maybe you'll flunk, but you might have flunked anyway; that's my point.”

Here Comes The Sun

Here comes the sun, here comes the sun,
and I say it's all right

Little darling, it's been a long cold lonely winter
Little darling, it feels like years since it's been here
Here comes the sun, here comes the sun
and I say it's all right

Spring is finally here! And yes, it is full of joy and joyness.
It's amazing how a little sunshine can bring a world of happiness.

I am very excited for shorts, capris, bare feet, and... getting a TAN!!!
YAY for spring.
Oh how I love thee!
(and yes, my feet are this happy when they are not wearing shoes(:..)
It's crazy to think that I am almost done with my first year of college.
I feel like I have learned so much about myself and the things I am capable of.

Sometimes I still feel like that little girl in high school and then I think of how much I have learned since then and realize, I have grown up a wee bit.
Life is constantly changing, but rather than fight the change, I am learning to try and embrace it. Change brings with it new exciting experiences and lessons. Just like the scriptures say, there must be opposition in all things. That's the only way we can learn.

All of the beautiful flowers and trees, that are finally starting to bloom, are a wonderful reminder of Heavenly Father's love for me. Steph and I had a fantastic pseudo FHE together last night and it was just what I needed. We first listened to Consider the Lily's by the Mormon Tabernacle Choir and then had a lesson that fit in perfectly with the song. Steph used a great talk about becoming spiritually self reliant. I learned that yes, the Lord will guide us through our journey on Earth, but we are given agency to make decisions and a lot of the time, the Lord wants us to make decisions for ourselves. He is not going to let us do something he knows will be bad for us if we are following his teachings and trying to do what's right. I always just want an immediate, lightening bolt answer telling me exactly what to do, but then I would be blindly following instead of actively learning. I know I am a daughter of God and as such, I am able to make wise decisions by using the spiritual resources I have and my own thoughts and feelings. I just have to trust myself and trust in the Lord. Everything will work out in the end if I can do that.


Thank you steph for the great lesson!

Confused?

Have you ever had an internal battle with yourself?

I do all of the time!

I go back and forth and back and forth and can never seem to make a decision.

And yet...

Do I really need to make one now?
Am I just making a big deal out of nothing?

I don't know!
It's so frustrating not knowing what you really think about something or what you really want.

Sometimes I wish that I could have a big map of my life telling me exactly where I need to go.

Wouldn't that be lovely!

But I guess that takes all of the fun out of the journey.

I mean, life is like a box of chocolates right? if they told you what kinds of chocolates were in a box of chocolates, wouldn't that take all of the fun out of guessing which chocolate is which and either being pleasantly surprised with a caramel filled chocolate, or disgusted by one that tastes like toothpaste?

I guess you learn from those toothpaste filled decisions and hopefully learn enough to notice a caramel filled decision when it comes your way.

No this post makes no sense, but I just had to vent a wee bit.

Thank you for your patience during this very difficult time.

Conference

Can I just say how much I love conference weekend? Conference is always incredible, but this conference seemed even more special to me than previous conferences. Maybe it was because I got to come home and see me family, or maybe I really needed to hear the inspired words shared during each conference session. It's probably a little of both. All I know is now I have a much better understanding of the things I need to be focusing on in my life right now.

It's very easy to get caught up in me, myself, and I. What's going on in my life with my school work, my dating (well ish dating) scene, my financial situation. As Brian Regan would say, I have a serious case of the Me Monster. This conference I was reminded of two goals I should continually be seeking for. Number 1) Seek the Savior and Number 2) Seek family.

It's very easy to get so caught up in and stressed out about life that we forget to ask for help from the person who is able to help and better yet, wants us to help us. Life would be so much easier if instead of feeling like I have to take on the world alone and try to find my own way, I decided to turn to him and let him lead me. I am very thankful for a Savior who loves me enough that he is willing to wait patiently for me to turn to him and let him take me by the hand and lead me. I am so thankful for the knowledge I have of him and how much I was able to learn about him during conference.

There were a lot of great talks on family, particularly the influence parents have on their children. The responsibility parents have to help their children seek righteousness in their lives is incredible. I still feel like starting my own family won't be for awhile, but having my own family is a goal that I want to continually work for. After conference, I feel a push to prepare myself even more for the responsibility of being a mom someday. I am very excited to be a mom someday, and I am very lucky to have a great mom that I can look to as an example for that day. I just want to let both of my parents how much I love them! Through all of my tantrums, tears, and complaints, my parents have always supported me, loved me, and helped me figure life out. Because of them, I have knowledge of the gospel and two great examples of how to live it. Like Nephi of old, I know I have been born of goodly parents. Thanks mom and dad!

Spring Break

Spring Break was so great! Going home for a few days to relax with the family followed by a trip to Moab with my roommie Steph was just the break I needed. I love getting to go home and be with my family. No matter how much I do enjoy the college scene, going home to my best friends is something I always look forward to. I love my family!

Moab was a great time. I had never been before so this was a new adventure for me. I should have brought Willie, the Subaru I drive, with me because everyone seems to have them down there, which is so great! We spent a lot of time at Arches National Park hiking and exploring the awesome rock formations there. We also spent ample time laying out by the pool and enjoying the sunshine.

Arches national park was beautiful! Steph and I first hiked to tower arch where we enjoyed a beautiful hour of laying in the sun by the arch with almost nobody there! I love how quiet and peaceful nature is. I truly believe the world is full of so many beautiful things to remind us of how much Heavenly Father loves his children. I know I could feel his love sitting out there in complete peace. Hiking to Delicate Arch was another incredible experience. I was so scared Steph and I were going to slip walking out to the arch, but it was totally worth it! The view is incredible! It's amazing how nature can form such beautiful landscapes that I consider pieces of art. Also, just across from the arch was a couple taking wedding pictures. I have no idea how that bride got up there with her dress, but props to you! I bet those pictures are incredible! Sadly I am more technology challenged than I thought because I can't seem to figure out how to post pictures like I want, so until I figure this out, just believe me that it was awesome! Oh, and I can't forget about Hole in the Rock.

Maybe this isn't as funny as I think it is. Having a cave house/diner is a very novel, creative idea. It's just the fact that they turned this 'home' into a museum complete with gift shop and petting zoo. And of course, Albert's (the creator of hole in the rock) lovely taxidermy attempts. Steph's mom, Steph and decided to visit this lovely place and take a tour while we were at it. The tour guide was very animated and made the tour very entertaining and educational. Hole in the Rock was founded by dear Albert and Glady's Christensen decided to blow a cave into one of Moab's incredible rock formations and make it their home for the next several years. Albert passed away before it's completion, but Glady's saw to the home's completion even building her own private bathroom, which she lovingly called her 'private swimming pool', at the age of 60! The home was painted in a lovely turquoise color complete with furniture, art done by Albert himself, and several taxidermy specimens that Albert himself stuffed. Among these being his first attempt at taxidermy, their beloved pet donkey who still posses as an inquisitive expression and a wild mustang that sticks his tongue out at you when you walk by. Yes, Hole in the Rock is a marvelous attraction that I suggest everyone experience at least once in your lifetime!

Spring break has been over for a long time now (a whole week) and it's time to finish out the last few weeks of school. It feels like it's never going end! But it's close so I am just going to create things to look forward to to make it bearable. Number one being a visit home this weekend for General Conference! I can't wait!

Blogging is my new game and Tara's my name. Thanks to Nicole for the help.I decided I needed a way to remember all of the exciting adventures I get to experience during my college years and since writing in a journal has never been one of my strong points, a blog would be a good way to do it. So here begins the story of me enjoying my journey of discovering life, love and the pursuit of happiness. Look out world! Here I come!