Relief Society Broadcast

Well, I went! Which is basically an achievement of itself, considering I can't remember the last time I went to the broadcast. Seeing as Todd wasn't here to distract me, and knowing it was probably the right thing to go, I went. I actually really enjoyed it. This is more for my memory than for you, so bear with me while I recap!

I really enjoyed Sis. Beck's opening talk. Her main points were to stay strong in faith, family, and relief. Emphasized in all of the talks were how the world's definition of a family is changing and how important it is to keep your families close and strong. Sis. Beck talked about this, and it was just a good reiteration of the things we need to be doing to have the strength that we need.

I liked Sis. Matsumora's (sp?) talk. For me, the main message was about visiting teaching. Again, another thing I am terrible at. I haven't been assigned to be a visiting teacher in any of the wards I've been in the past year (that's three wards), but I guess it's mainly my fault for not asking to be assigned to anyone. So it was good for me to hear that lesson again. I know it is important, I've got a testimony of it, but it's definitely a weakness of mine. I think this ward will be on top of things, and hopefully I can be more valiant in my visiting teaching!

I really loved Sis. Thompson's talk. She speaks with a smile on her face the whole time, and I really enjoyed hearing about her experiences. There is a lot more diversity in the Relief Society Presidency than I had thought! Sis Matsumora is from Central America, and Sis. Thompson has never married, and had never had children. I liked her funny remark about being ahead of all the women because she has never made a mistake with her children (since she doesn't have any). I really loved her message about being a part of a family, and working to support and love your family regardless of your family makeup. She is a social worker, and so she has seen a lot of abuse and neglect, but she told us that the families of Relief Society women have the potential to be the most stable and loving. While there are exceptions to this, I believe that I see this in most LDS families. The home is a temple and there are so many good mothers out there (including my mother, grandmothers, and mother-in-law!). I have a lot of great examples to look to.

President Monson's talk made me cry :) His message for women was to study diligently, pray earnestly, and serve willingly. He emphasized getting an education, especially in the case that something happens, and the woman becomes the main financial provider. This was part of the reason that I decided to go back to school. I loved theater, but we weren't sure it could provide for me and my children in case something happened to Todd. Hearing President Monson affirming our decision, made me feel confident in the decision to go back and be a teacher.

He also talked about praying earnestly...this part made me cry. I know there have been times when I have felt the effect of other's prayers for me, and I know that my prayers have helped others. Regular prayer is still something I am working on, but I want to be better so that my children have an example to look to.

The last part of his talk was about serving willingly. This part made me cry. It was mostly because of the story he told about the two men who died in Utah during a snowmobiling accident, both leaving behind pregnant wives. These stories ALWAYS make me cry because I think about what I would do if this happened to Todd. The point of the story, though, was that immediately when the news of the accident was received, the women of the Church rushed to mourn with those women. I am grateful to be part of a Church that emphasizes comforting and serving others.

Anyway, I'm super glad I went. A girl from the ward saw me come in, and immediately came and grabbed me to sit with the rest of the group, and so I have already been served today :)

Megan

Five Things

I got tagged by Christine, so here it is!

Five things I was doing 10 years ag0:

1) Ugh, seventh grade. I was trying to hide for real. I was enjoying being one of three Megan's in my class :)
2) I was learning to play the oboe in band (yes, I was a band nerd. I still love music though).
3) I think that was a year I played soccer on a boys team. I got slammed one day during practice and my glasses broke. I got contacts, and it was the BEST THING EVER!
4) I was mad at my mom for having another baby (hey, I didn't like sharing!). Don't tell Jacob that. I think I got over that fairly quickly though.
5) Me and my friend Meghan would pass notes using our graphing calculators. We thought we were SO COOL!

Five things on my to-do list:
1) Make it through my first math test. Which I did already thankfully.
2) Go workout tonight at the Rec Center. BSU has a super nice rec area, and I go with some girls from the ward. We usually can't walk the next day :)
3) Constantly apply Orajel. I have this tendency to get canker sores A TON, and a nasty one has hit me. I can't eat. My lips are chapped. The Orajel numbs it for, like, 30 minutes. I need a better fix!
4) Take my vitamins. I'm bad at this. But I also get really bad leg cramps if I don't.
5) Talk to Todd. This is self-explanatory :)

5 snacks I enjoy:
1) Wow. I could go a lot longer than five. Peanut butter m&m's.
2) Butter popcorn with extra butter.
3) These All-Bran crackers. Like Wheat Thins, but without the bleached flour and more fiber. And they actually taste yummy!
4)Now that it's Halloween time, I have a bad of those candy corn pumpkins. SO bad for you, SO good!
5) Kool-Aid. Is that a snack? With the amount of sugar I put in there, I think it qualifies.

5 songs I know the lyrics to:
1) Where do I start? I'll shuffle my nano and see what comes up. Right know is "Big Girls Don't Cry" which is also on Christine's list :)
2) Next song. "Soul Meets Body" by Death Cab for Cutie. I REALLY like this music video. It's kind of weird, but I really like weird sometimes.
3)"Wonderwall" by Oasis. One of my all-time favorite songs. I also like the cover by Ryan Adams. Awesome song. My friend Meghan (mentioned above) got me into Oasis in middle school.
4)"Time After Time" by Quietdrive. A cover of the original 80's song. This one is more rock, and it is ridiculously good (Yes, RIDICULOUSLY!).
5) "When the Stars Go Blue" by Tyler Hilton (I think, some girl sings in it too). Again, another cover. Amazing song to begin with. So good!

Five Things I would Do If I was a Millionaire
1) Todd doesn't like horses, but I would love horseback riding lessons.
2) My dream trip, a Mediterranean cruise!
3) Probably turn it over to Todd, he's a better money manager. But I don't think this should count as one, even though i SHOULd do this! I would buy us both new cars. They are old and could die any day (especially mine, it sounds like a train pulling in).
4) Buy a vacation home. We're not settled enough to have a house, but we can alwasy visit a vacation home! Preferably on the beach anywhere but California.
5) Save it. Todd has taught me the power of interest. I am a believer now :)

5 Bad Habits
1) I bite my nails. I am getting better though!
2) I eat too much junk food. I inherited the Ross sugar tooth, which probably means I will get diabetes when I'm old because of it.
3) I'm messy. Cleaning is boring. I don't let it get too out of hand, but there are a million other things I'd rather doo (especially vacuum and dusting, ugh).
4) I talk too loud. I think I'm deaf and I don't realize I'm talking so loud until Todd is like, "Whoa, Megan, I'm right here." I think it's for competing for my parent's attention along with my like of loud music.
5) I pay too much attention to detail. Sometimes this is a good thing, sometimes it's not because I ask people too many questions. I kind of like to know everything and I'll ask until my curiousity is satisfied. It tires Todd, but I think he's gotten more used to it.

5 things I'd never wear again
1) Those pants with the straps that go around your feet. you know what I'm talking about? I can't remember what they're called.
2) Scrunch socks and scrunchies in my hair. Anything scrunchy, I guess.
3) Leggings. Although they're supposedly cool now. I would just look fat in them.
4) Spandex. Again, not flattering.
5) I second the jelly shoes. They made my feet sweaty!

5 favorite toys
1) I went with my current favorite toys. One is my nano. I love this thing.
2) Picasa. It's easier for me, because Adobe Photoshop freaks me out.
3) My blog!
4) My phone. Especially this month that Todd's been gone.
5) Our TV. We haven't had a TV all summer, and it's been nice to zone out in front of it after class.

Ummm, I will tag Emily and Lindzie and Sachi (haha, yea right!).

More Venting, sorry!

I'm not a political expert or anything, but I can tell you that it would be nice to see liberals actually support their arguments with clear, concise evidence. Until they can do that, I am proud to call myself a conservative. And I still won't vote for Hillary Clinton, so don't try to convince me. My open mind is closed to her!

And that story from Ocean City, MD about Christy Freeman. Disgusting. Arrest her.

Can you tell I've been watching the news too much?

Monogamy

I just have to say quickly that I am very grateful that I grew up in the Church and that I have been taught what a marriage truly is. It is a blessing in my life, and when I look around and see other people that are living their definition of marriage, and not God's meaning, I feel sad for them, and for their children as well. I know our marriage won't be perfect, but I can't help but think that we have a huge advantage as members of the Church.

Last night I was watching TLC, and this show came on called "My Husband's Three Wives." I was curious, especially to see if they were FLDS or RLDS. Nope, this is a guy living in Waller, Texas who "doesn't believe in monogamy." Are you kidding me? My first thought was "What a slimy chauvinistic pig." And the sad thing is, he is a psychologist, and it is his personal belief that monogamy is the greatest cause of divorce. What?? He is legally married to one wife, spiritually married to his first and second wife (whatever that means), and is considering adding a third wife to his family. Not that this whole thing wasn't bizarre, but the thing that really struck my heart were the interviews with his children. One child didn't know which woman was actually his birth mother, and she was living in the house, and he'd grown up with her! Two of the children admitted that they would never have more than one wife/husband, because they saw all of the contention it caused in their own family. I just don't understand it. I don't understand how people's views can become so skewed. There was this shot of him visiting the dad's mother in a nursing home, and she said that she had done a lot of things wrong, but she could never condone her son's decisions. I don't know, I just don't know what planet this guy is coming from. And you could see the tension building in the house (living with three grown women would do that). I'm still in shock. I guess it's just so far from what I've been taught, it just doesn't make sense to me.

In addition, one of the first lines in the show was the first wife saying, "A lot of people ask if we're Mormon, but we're not, we just practice plural marriage." Which leads me to still be incredulous that so many people are still so uninformed that they think LDS members practice polygamy. I guess I just wish that people would do their research instead of jumping to conclusions. Polygamy hasn't been practiced in our church for over 100 years! Ugh, I get so sick of people's misconceptions due to the fact that they don't take the time to find out the facts. Take for example that September Dawn movie, which is such a piece of propaganda it also makes me sick...the "first act of religious terrorism in the United States" is what the trailer said. Really?? What about what the Missourians did to the LDS members in New York, Missouri, Illinois in the 1830's, 1840's, 1850's? Not to mention religious persecution to other sects beside the Mormons. Whatever. Can you tell this kind of stuff makes me angry?

Anyway, I'll stop my venting. Has anyone else seen this show and had opinions about it?

Random

I am addicted to this website. This probably means I will change my template a million times, but I like to change it up every once in a while anyway!

Odds and Ends

Well, I am finally starting to get the ball rolling on some of my school obligations, as well as looking for work. I will be spending three hours a week in a kindergarten class for my literacy class, which will be so much fun! It will be more fun considering I don't have to be the teacher, and I know that it will be a fun learning experience. My first day is tomorrow at Valley View Elementary, which is just about 10 or 15 minutes from where we live, so I'm excited to get to work on that!



I've also decided to substitute again here in the Boise District. I wasn't so sure about doing it again, but I think it was just the stress of getting moved in here. Now that most of that stress is gone, and I'm more comfortable getting around BSU and Boise, I am excited to be a bit busier, especially since Todd isn't around right now to fill up my free time. There are a ton of schools to work at, so hopefully I can avoid middle school like the plague, because I think that's where a lot of my apprehensions about subbing come in. At the most, I would only be working two days a week, so this girl can definitely handle that!








I went to the BSU game last week (yes, by myself!) I was actually quite proud of myself for going on my own. I'm one of those people who likes to be one of the crowd, and this tends to be true even if it's not something I'm interested in! For example, the PGA was in town this summer, and I got jealous because it seemed like EVERYONE else was going, even though it was so stinkin' hot outside and golf is SO boring to watch! So, I didn't want to miss out on the Boise game, and it ended up being fun despite my alone-ness. Plus, they won, so that's always a bonus! It was a fun game to watch, and there's really not that many bad seats in the stadium. I do have to say, though, that Cosmo the Cougar is so much cooler than Boise State's mascot, which is a horse that just walks up and down the stairs. Cosmo could crowd-surf! Plus, BYU's wave goes on way longer than BSU's did, but I think the Edwards Stadium is twice the size of Boise's, so that might have something to do with it. And for anyone familiar with Boise State players (which I doubt any of you are, but still), I DID ride the bus with Ian Johnson the other day, who is somewhat of a celebrity here. And a few other large football players, who looked scary!




It was very exciting to see Emily the other day. It's so nice to see a familiar face around here, especially when it seems like it's been SO long since I've seen any of my "Provo" friends. The ward here does seem super nice, and so I have that I can acclimate to it quickly. I'm not the best at being super outgoing and friendly around people I don't know, and it's harder without Todd here, so we'll see how that goes! Hopefully, when Todd gets back and settled, we can take a trip down to Provo to see everyone. We've promised ourselves we MUST go skiing this winter (since we totally missed out last winter), and so Utah seems to be in the future anyway.

I guess that's the update!

Angry milk

CAUTION: Megan whines a bit in this post, please indulge.

Milk does NOT do my body good. Among other not so fortunate things passed down through the family genes (like my terrible eyesight, I still love ya Mom and Dad), I was blessed with a terrible digestive system. Luckily, I'm not allergic to dairy products, but I am lactose-intolerant. Unfortunately, I didn't become this way until my sophomore year at BYU, and so I really know what I'm missing out on (it was probably the gluttony at the ice cream station at the Cannon Center freshman year that did it). Luckily, I can handle some dairy as long as I have small amounts, but there are a few things I can't really ever have: milk and ice cream. This makes me really sad sometimes, as ice cream sundaes used to be a favorite of mine, as well as ice cream cakes and milkshakes. However, now they just make me ill, and since I married a man who LOVES ice cream and was blessed with an amazing digestive system (hence the nickname "garbage disposal"), I am learning the strength of my willpower (read: not very strong). These words of comfort from my mom: "Well, at least you'll never be fat."

I can generally handle small amounts of cheese and sour cream, but pizza tends to be too much. I also have a stomach doesn't really handle high amounts of grease and sugar, including anything with lots of high fructose corn syrup, bleached flour, etc etc. So, I have to be careful about my chocolate intake, eat only whole wheat bread, and try to stay away from the fast food. This is all well and good, and healthier for me, but I REALLY like my Arby's roast beef and Chik-Fil-A chicken sandwich and McD's fries dipped in sweet and sour sauce every once in a while. I REALLY like breadsticks and rolls and peanut butter cups. Who doesn't? Who could resist a Subway sandwich with the oil AND the vinegar AND the mayonaise? My stomach, apparently. It let me know this past week that it will not tolerate milk chocolate, extra butter and sour cream, and pizza. It WILL be angry with me if I don't eat enough broccoli, corn, and fresh fruit.

And the thing is, I haven't had chocolate in three days now, which is saying a WHOLE lot for me. The chocolate has been relegated to the forbidden shelf for Todd to eat. I have been eating lots of fresh corn, salad, fresh strawberries and cantaloupe, and to help my sweet tooth, I have stuck to lactose-free sorbet. And you know what? I do miss it, and it hasn't been that long, and I'm sure there are times when I will cave and get that roast beef or try that chocolate. But, I'm feeling better. My teeth are thanking me, my bones are thanking me (for the calcium I have to take because I don't drink milk), and my stomach especially is thanking me. I'm hoping that I can stay on track, stay healthy, and create a love of all things green, cuz I'm not quite to that "feelin the love" for veggies stage.

And secretly, I'm hoping that maybe, just maybe, what happened to Christine will happen to me. When she got pregnant, the lactose-intolerant thing went away--nice, huh? I would be LOVING that! That might still be awhile though...

When the cat is away, the mice will play...

...Is that how it goes?

Well, anyway, its what Todd always tells me when I shop while he's gone. Now that he's due to be gone about a month (please, please, PLEASE let it be LESS than that!), here is a list of things I do (or don't do) when he's away. Remember, though, that I would gladly trade all of this for him being back home.

1. I watch a lot of TV. Maybe it sounds pathetic, but I have no shame. I can now watch as much TLC and Top Chef and Designstar as I would like, and when Todd comes back, we'll go back to Fox News and watching movies. I have also discovered a lot of crap TV, which I mentioned in my last post (Rock of Love? FOUR Spanish channels? That channel that only plays Comcast commercials all day?). It will make your brain rot, I promise.

2. I get scared of the dark. I'm serious, man. I hate being in here alone at night. Now, I'm not looking for any sympathy, but it is a little unnerving, especially when the water pipes are ridiculously loud, and we're on the first floor, an easy break-in target. Which also leads me to say that I don't watch any CSI or Law and Order type shows when Todd is gone because I go into "psycho killers are always out there" mode. Last night, as I walked home from the BSU game, I actually thought to myself, "It's dark out here. Someone could grab me and throw me in the river and no one would know." Paranoid, no?

3. I still make the bed every day. Maybe this is a given for most people. However, Todd thinks that throwing the sheets and comforter back on in a fairly organized way is making the bed, especially since we just mess it up anyway when we go to bed. I am a bit more OCD about the bed making, everything has to be straight, the pillows in the right way, the comforter and sheets even. So I can now be OCD as much as I like.

4. I got to decorate and organize our apartment the way I want. Todd's idea of organizing, and I love him regardless, is to throw his stuff in a shoebox, close it with duct tape, and stuff it under the bed. He has a hard time with the fact that I like things organized into baskets and onto shelves. I'm not saying I'm the most organized person, but I still want it to look nice, and he's gone so I get to do it without any lip!

5. Todd never uses the dishwasher, and I always use the dishwasher. We are getting our money's worth out of the dishwasher this month!

6. I don't have to shave my legs, haha.

7. I can read the 100 hour board as much as I want without getting made fun of (theboard.byu.edu if you are curious).

Anyway, that's most of the list, I started getting depressed while writing this so I figured I better stop. Pictures of our apartment will be coming soon, I've gotta figure out where I put the camera! And now I'm going to get some hot chocolate, I'm FREEZING FROM CHURCH!!!

High School Musical, anyone?

Is it pathetic that I actually like High School Musical? And am now watching High School Musical 2 on TV, all 23 years of me? And that I almost, ALMOST, considered doing the Dance-A-Long, alone, in my apartment? Am I going crazy?

Mind you, High School Musical is pretty wholesome (except for the newly released Vanessa Hudgens immodesty issue, UGH!). And, on another TV note, Todd and I are NEVER getting dish while we have kids. There is SO much bad TV on. It's ridiculous and unnecessary. And MTV (and VH1 and E! and that show about Paris Hilton) is so stupid. There, I said it. Who cares about rich kids living in Orange County? I hope my kids grow up with a head on their shoulders so that they can see past all that superficial, waste-of-time drivel.

So I guess I'll stick with my HSM2, thank you very much.

One more thing. For those of you reading Stephanie Meyer's Twilight series, I just finished Eclipse. I hate Jacob Black too. Jerk. And Bella for liking, no LOVING, him. Whatever. I'm over it (can you tell I've invested myself a little TOO much in these books?) Anyone else read this book and have thoughts on it?

I love football!

I think it all began with my granny. No, seriously. Being mostly from Pittsburgh, my family are big Steelers fans (even when they stink, which has been a lot), and even though we visited my granny a lot because she lived close, a lot of those times I remember there being a Steelers game on the TV, and it would stay on during dinner. Wow, that was a run-on sentence if I ever saw one. Sorry about that. Anyway, my 87 year old grandmother will still have a football game on occasionally when I come home, and if she can be into football, anyone can!

If you went to Delmar High School, chances are you are probably a football fan too. Maybe it was living in a small town, maybe because the team was pretty decent the last few years of high school, maybe it was because I had friends on the team, or traveled to all the games because I was in band. Whatever it was, I love fall because of football season. (I think that's your bro, Casie, with his back to us, haha).

To top it all off, it seems that most places I have lived since high school have a high sense of pride in their university football teams. Cougar football anyone? I will FOREVER be a BYU football fan (House of Payne? The Darth Vader song?) Sacramento wasn't so much a football town, but Tulsa was filled with SUV's bearing OU or OSU stickers. Now being in Boise, it feels like home again. The blue and orange flags fly from cars (interestingly enough, my high school colors were blue and orange), half the people in Wal-Mart today wore BSU shirts, and you should have seen the pilgramage to the stadium last week.

Yeah, I love football, even when my team is losing (is Washington really THAT good?)! Oh, and good luck, Cougars, tonight!

the woes of being a p.c. wife

Todd is leaving for Fresno tomorrow, and he'll be gone for a month, at the most. Sad day :( At least I'll have school to keep me busy, that and unpacking an apartment that I feel will NEVER get unpacked!

Mesa Falls and Big Jud's

Big Springs

Bears and moose and deer, oh my!

These pictures were taken at Bear World, right down the road from Todd's parents' house. I almost...almost...wanted to take a bear cub home with me...then I remembered they EAT PEOPLE (remember that Grizzle Man guy? Yeah!)

So long, farewell, Tulsa!

Catch up!

Whew! It's been a whirlwind couple of weeks, and it will be difficult to catch up. I'll post briefly here, and then post a few more times with pictures.

Todd and I survived the trip to Boise, jamming in a few last sight-seeing trips in Tulsa to Oral Roberts University, Blue Bell Creamery, and the Tulsa Driller statue. On the way out, we stopped by Bartlesville, OK to see the Price Tower designed by Frank Lloyd Wright. After that, it was a long, booooring drive. It was the first time I had driven that many hours without switching off with someone, as Todd and I were each driving separate cars, and hopefully it will be the last time (although somehow I doubt it).

We got to Boise on Monday the 27th after taking a short pit stop in Rexburg to grab more of our stuff. Tuesday-Thursday was spent moving in, buying furniture, going to school all day, having a job interview, unpacking, and doing homework. It was really, really crazy, but we still fit in Tepanyaki with Cherish and Jared. It is nice to finally have some furniture after being married over a year, but it filled up our small apartment pretty quickly!

We came back to Rexburg Thursday night, and I'm writing this blog from the Rex. We had more stuff to get (yes, I guess we DO have a lot of stuff), and Todd and I spent Friday afternoon and evening in West Yellowstone spending lots of money on huckleberry-related stuff (SO good!) and going to the Mack's Inn Dinner Theater. We stuffed ourselves, and it was great to see some fun theater again after a too-long hiatus.

Saturday we spent with my parents and we were able to go to Yellowstone's Bear World and see the deer, moose, and of course, bears! Which sort of reminded us of a certain Brian Regan routine..."Remember that show, Gentle Ben? There's a good thing, teach your kids bears are friendly!" Then, we traveled up to Island Park/Mack's Inn to see Big Springs and Mesa Falls. I will definitely post pictures because it was BEAUTIFUL. Afterwards, we came back and enjoyed some of Big Jud's famous 1 lb. burgers with Andrew and Jade, a few brave friends/transplants from back home attending BYU-I. It was a really, really fun day, and it was fun for Todd and I to take a mini-vacation after all this summer and all of our moving.

Okay, that's enough! I'll let the pictures do the rest of the talking :)