Days 11-13

Sorry, I'm really behind. In case you weren't already aware of that fact ;) Oh, and just a fyi, I'm not going to post anything tomorrow through Friday. I'm going on a high adventure trip with our stake's young women ages 14 or 15 to 17/18. So I will not have internet access. But, I will record them in my journal and input them when I get back. So look forward to a long post on Saturday or Sunday. (it may take me a couple of days to recuperate lol)

Day 11: Sleep. Oh how I love sleep. I really need to get back on a normal schedule though...especially before school starts up again. Staying up until 2 of 3 am isn't really conducive with attending classes... But it is so nice to be able to sleep in my own bed and get some really good quality sleep.

Day 12: REI. So there's a story with this. A few years ago, my mom bought me a pair of Chaco sandals before a trip. She had a pair with back straps and didn't like them so she suggested I get some without back straps. Well...after a while having them, I decided I would have rather gotten some with back straps so I could wear them in the water and hiking etc. But I didn't have the money to buy a second pair. Fast forward to a few weeks ago. I'd been having trouble getting the straps to move (with Chacos, there is one long strap that is looped around through the sandal above and below the footbed so it's fully adjustable) so my mom suggested I bring them down to REI because they could help me figure out how to move them. Well, I brought them in, and the lady couldn't get them to move either. Somehow they'd gotten stuck. So, since we'd bought them from that store within the past 5 years, they could look up the original purchase and swap me for a new pair. Woohoo! They didn't have the exact same one, so I got to pick a new one. And it had a back strap! I was so excited. The reason I'm bringing it up now after a couple of weeks is that I've been wearing them like crazy. They are SO comfortable and I'm wearing them more than I had ever worn my other ones. A much better use of the money, I'm thinking. And I have them in time to use them this coming week at the high adventure trip. We're going to the beach, so it'll be really nice to have a pair of sandals that won't come off my feet in the waves. And they're so much more comfortable than aquasocks. =) This is the new pair. (image credit)



Day 13: Good teachers. Especially those who teach me the gospel. Today in Relief Society we had a really fun lesson. We (or at least, I) grumbled about having to move the chairs in a different configuration, but it was a really good lesson. We played a version of Family Feud to learn about the Priesthood organization. There were treats as an incentive for the ladies to actually get up and participate (and they were FABULOUS!) and it was okay if you didn't know the answer; you could ring the bell and then have your team help you. (And your team members could be looking for the answers in the manual, lol) But I really learned a lot. And it could have been a boring lesson saying "Deacons do blah blah blah. Teachers do blah blah blah." But it wasn't. It was fun, but we also learned a lot. And I think I retained more information than if we'd just read out of the manual.

I've been blessed with some really good teachers throughout my life. Some were in church and some in school. And to me, being nice doesn't necessarily make you a good teacher. Perhaps nice isn't the word...it's more...some of my favorite teachers were pretty strict. But we knew their expectations and they made learning fun, so they were fun to have. But then again, I've always enjoyed learning. I was looking through a time capsule from elementary school a little bit ago and I was totally chuckling about how much of a nerd I was. A scientist? Me? Really? hahaha! But I digress. (lol!)

So thank you to all of you who helped this impatient, sometimes inattentive gal learn. Both secular knowledge and the truths of the gospel. I wouldn't be who or where I am without you.