Logan David Clarke

My younger brother Logan turned 13 on December 1^st.  We’re both teenagers now and he has not let me forget that :) Logan is one of the most disciplined people I know. If he is given an assignment he follows through 100%. He sets so many goals for himself and is always working to achieve them. He is BRILLIANT! He is like a walking encyclopedia. He plays just about every sport you can think of and is good at all of them. His football team won the championship and went undefeated this season...i wasn't lying when I said he was good! He makes me laugh so hard with his jokes, pranks, and super cool dance moves. He is the best little brother I could have ever asked for. LOVE YOU LOG!!!

HAPPY (late) BIRTHDAY LOGAN!!

Tiffany Knab

I am WAY behind on my birthday posts :( Tiffany's birthday was on November 8th and she turned 20. The first time we met, officially, was actually at her 10th birthday party. My family had just moved onto her street a few days before her birthday and she was nice enough to invite me to her party. I will always be grateful to her for including me that day, especially since I was very nervous about moving and having to make new friends. We quickly became good friends and had so much fun together! Tiff makes me laugh harder than just about anyone else on earth. She is always up for any sort of spontaneous adventure and drives a really cool car. I learned and still learn so much from her wonderful example. She is one SHARP girl!!  I hope she knows how many lives she has changed for good. Tiffany will always be my hero. 

HAPPY (late) BIRTHDAY TIFFY!!!!

Just a thought...

by 31experiment

Oh, to be a kid again!

Sometimes I wish I could be a kid again. I would love to go back to the days of pigtails and coloring books. Children are so carefree and confident. I went with my ward down to Temple Square and we got to hear a children's choir perform in the Assembly Hall. I LOVED watching the kids in between songs. They would touch each others' hair, stare up at the ceiling, jump up and down, etc. Each one of them was doing their own thing and loving every minute of it. It also made me remember how much I LOVE little kid clothes. I can't wait to have children one day so I can shop in the kid's section without getting strange glances. I love all the bright colors and crazy patterns! These outfits make me smile :) 

Thanks Lar

Sisters always have the best advice.

Especially my sister Laura.

She is such a perfect example of the kind of person 

I want to be someday.

Thanks for always being there for me Lar!

Carl Bloch

Today I had the opportunity to see the Carl Bloch exhibit at the BYU Museum of Art. It was phenomenal!! I am in an Art History class this semester where we have been learning about altarpieces and depictions of Christ's life and so it was cool to actually get to see them in person. The Museum of Art really is amazing. For $3 you could rent an iPad and earphones, which would allow you to access videos of art curators, general authorities and religion professors who gave commentary on some of the artwork. It also allowed you view panoramic pictures of where each altarpiece originally stood. Really, the whole experience was so great! They have chairs set up in front of the three largest altarpieces so you can sit and think. It was such a neat experience to sit in front of Christ in Gethsemane (above) and listen to Elder Maxwell talk about the Atonement. The other piece I loved was Christus Consolator (below). It shows that Christ's Atonement has the power to heal any kind of sorrow, infirmity, or sin. I would HIGHLY recommend going to this exhibit if you can!

{good music}

LUCY ROSE: night bus

LISSIE:  everywhere i go

OVERTONE: colorblind

EMILIE WELMAN: 9,000 days

ELLIE GOULDING: the writer

SARA BAREILLES: breathe again

There can never be too many gentlemen in the world

Earlier today, my roommate Heather and I needed to make a quick run to Macey's. We got outside and realized that not only was the car covered with five inches of snow, but because it had been sitting outside all during Thanksgiving break, there was also a thick layer of ice covering all the windows. While Heather was looking for the scraper, I started to try to get some of the snow off with my hands. This turned out to be almost completely ineffective as most of the snow ended up in my shoes or up my sleeves. Needless to say, we looked pretty desperate. After a few minutes, I heard someone ask if we needed some help. I turned around and saw a guy standing there with a smile on his face. He asked again if he could do something to help us. By that time Heather had found the brush so we thanked him for his kindness and let him continue on his way. I was so impressed! Now I have to admit, the fact that he just HAPPENED to be good looking might have helped :) It really made me happy though, to realize that I am surrounded by so many genuinely kind people. It's people like the guy mentioned above that make me motivated to try harder to find opportunities to serve. It's something I pray for everyday. I know that that there have been many times in my life where people have been there to serve me when I needed them, whether it be friends, family or complete strangers. I hope that I can always keep myself worthy of the spirit so that I can be an instrument in God's hands when one of His children needs help.

"You sing a sad song, just to turn it around..."

Yesterday was just a bad day. I say that, even though I know that I am blessed in so many ways and really have no reason to be sad. As much as I wish everyday was a day of sunshine, peach-filled crepes and happy endings, part of our progression here on earth depends on the experience we gain from not-so-great days. Bad days always have a way of reminding me of the things I know to be true and teaching me new things I've never thought about. I was thankful yesterday to have the knowledge that I have a Heavenly Father who loves me even when I don't get A's on tests or am just feeling lonely. I am thankful that Jesus Christ understands us more fully and intimately than anyone here on earth. I am thankful for parents that taught me how to become a prayerful person and have enough faith to put all my earthly cares at His feet and accept the answers I receive. I am thankful that the Holy Ghost is always there to give me small reminders of how blessed I really am. I know that days of sadness and frustration are part of the plan and make us stronger and more fit for the kingdom. Thank goodness for phone calls to family members, this talk, EFY music, good friends, the scriptures, and victorious BYU basketball games :)

Becoming Literate

Yesterday, I had a breakthrough. I had been in the library computer lab for hours and realized that I needed to leave the presence of loud obnoxious keyboards and Facebook addicts immediately. I didn't have a class for about 45 minutes, so I decided to take a look in the bookstore. I walked in the door and right away noticed a display featuring one of my favorite books, Tuesdays with Morrie. I turned the corner and saw another display of the most beautiful books I've ever seen. All of the classics that I've ever wanted to read were right in front of my eyes with hardcovers in gorgeous greens and blues. Each book had a different design in a complementary color embossed over the cover and spine. I'm pretty sure I stood there staring for a good 5 minutes before I realized they were in fact real, tangible objects that I could pick up and look at. I picked up a copy of Sense and Sensibility and flipped through the pages. I sat and opened to a random page and started reading. I was soon immersed in the lives of Marianne, Mr. Willoughby and Elinor and was almost late to my class. I hope that I can make this a regular occurrence because it made me so happy. Just holding the book made me happy. Having taken a Bookbinding class my first semester here at BYU, I know how much time and concentration would have gone into creating such a perfect book. Realistically, it was probably made in under a minute by big machines, but I like to picture an old gray-haired man sitting at a work bench under dim lights carefully holding each part of the book like it is a great treasure. I like to imagine that people who truly know the great value of books really do exist. I'm sure they're people like that out there. I hope to be one of them someday. Over the summer, I was able to visit an old book store in Yellowstone Park. They had a variety of new and antique books. I could have been there for hours. There is something almost reverent about holding a book with yellow faded pages and a slightly battered cover and thinking about the people who read this book. That's when I realized that I have a very strong fascination with books. I hope someday to have a large library filled with books. For now, I'll have to just enjoy my time reading in the bookstore.

Elizabeth Worthington Peterson

One of my amazing roommates Elizabeth, had her birthday last week. If you go to BYU, you may recognize her as the girl who wears cool shirts (like the one in the picture) and is sometimes seen with a ukulele sticking out of her backpack. She's that cool! Elizabeth has so many talents and yet she still has a list of things she wants to learn how to do (like yodeling). One of my favorite things to do is lay on the couch and listen to her play the piano and sing. Elizabeth is one of the funniest people you'll ever meet. She is also one of the best story tellers because she acts it out with hand gestures and facial expressions. Elizabeth is rock solid as far as the gospel goes. She is determined to serve a mission and is preparing faithfully to do so. She is always there to listen and comfort me when I've had a bad day or just need to vent. I can't even tell you how many times I've been sad and she's done something goofy to make me laugh. Thanks Elizabeth for being such a great friend and roommate!!

Inspiration

Things that have inspired me today:

     1. Reading my brother's blog post about a real world example of how we can apply our knowledge and understanding of forgiveness.

     2. This talk by President Benson

     3. Smoky breath weather. FINALLY!

     4. Dulche de Leche

     5. People who smile on campus.

The Reflection in the Water: Pres. Uchtdorf

This talk by President Uchtdorf is one of those talks that really makes you want to change the way you think about yourself. He is so powerful when he talks about who we really are. Imagine what would happen if everyone on earth heard this talk? We are SO blessed to have a knowledge of who we really are; children of our Heavenly Father. "This knowledge changes everything. It changes your present. It can change your future. And it can change the world." I really believe this is true! So often we get caught in traps of insecurity and doubt about our looks or our social status or whatever. If only we could always remember that none of those things really matter. As we remember who we are and who we can become, all our doubts will go away. One of my favorite parts of the talk is when he says, "You are no ordinary beings. You are GLORIOUS and ETERNAL." Isn't that the most empowering statement? I love this talk! 

Delightful

Yesterday I hiked the Y with some of my friends and then we came back and made strawberry crepes at my apartment. Crepes are SUPER easy to make, by the way, and you can make all sorts of variations to satisfy everyone. Since we quadrupled the recipe, we had extra batter that I was able to cook tonight for dinner. This time, I added fresh peaches and my mom's homemade strawberry jam and they were simply delightful!! Crepes are the most heavenly food in my opinion. My all-time favorite topping combination is lemon juice and powdered sugar, SO GOOD! Oh, the joys of finally having a kitchen!

Sabine Finkenauer

I have a new favorite artist. Actually I take that back. My sister Laura is my favorite artist, but I have a new SECOND favorite artist and her name is Sabine Finkenauer. I love her geometric shapes, beautiful rich color combinations and overall simplicity. I would LOVE to have one of her paintings in my house someday. Check out more of her art at sabinefinkenauer.com