Choosing J O Y

I love that my roommates have been reading Brene Brown. She is very important in my life, and it is so nice to have people to talk to that get it. Usually. Except when they use Brene against me. They like to remind me that I tend to numb through busyness. Which is true, I guess. I  do that sometimes. But there are also times when I am busy because I am choosing JOY. This weekend has been packed full with things that have made my heart happy.

I spent Friday morning with a group of the coolest 6th graders around. 1,100 5th & 6th graders from underprivileged schools came to visit BYU and get pumped about going to college one day. It was so much fun. I felt so alive. I was totally inspired by those kids. I needed them a million times more than they needed me.

Friday afternoon I helped out with a focus group of graduate students. We ended up going an hour over our allotted time because a couple students really opened up about some of their faith struggles and things professors had done/said that had really brought them out of some dark places. As they shared their struggles and triumphs, I felt the Spirit rush into the room and testify of God's love for them and for me. It was beautiful.

Saturday morning, Greta and I volunteered at the Rex Lee cancer run. There is nothing better than seeing a group of people come together to support others.

This weekend was also Stake Conference. Satan tries so hard to get me to not pay attention. Sometimes he succeeds and I give in to boredom. But when I can push him away and really pay attention, I learn soooo much! It's amazing what the Spirit can teach you.

After church, Greta and I headed up to the temple to read. This nice weather rolling in is doing wonders for my attitude. When the sun is shining, it seems a little easier to believe it will all work out.

Life is good. I choose joy.

Betsy Phillips.

You know what's great? A song that just gets you. You know what's better? An artist that just gets you.

Betsy Phillips. I just cannot get enough. I love every single song. Unfortunately, she has only released five songs. FIVE. I know me. I will listen to those five songs on repeat until I can't stand them. So I really need her to release new music ASAP. Probs she's broke and needs to be more famous so she can afford to record more. Everyone go listen to her music right now. Let's make her super duper Taylor Swift famous overnight so that I'll never have a Betsy Phillips song shortage.

If you use Spotify, you can access all 5 songs. SoundCloud has 3. YouTube has a couple if you dig. Or you can buy all 5 songs for only $4.95 on iTunes (which you should seriously do).This is a serious situation, people. She only has 78 followers on SoundCloud (including me). 744 instagram followers (again including me). PEOPLE - she is fantastic! And she needs more support so that I can continue to listen to my life in song form.

UPDATE: I am becoming a bigger fan every minute. Greta encouraged me to send her a message on instagram. I did. Betsy responded and she is seriously the sweetest person. You are all going to love her.

I'm alive.

HELLO WORLD! I am alive. After three days of not leaving my bed, I ventured back into the world today. Boy oh boy, there is nothing so wonderful as health. Sickness is such a good reminder to be grateful for health. I'm kind of a baby about being sick. It's really hard for me to remember that I was healthy before and I will be healthy again. But once I'm healthy it's really hard for me to remember how awful being sick is. Knowing this, my roommates gauge how well I am feeling by our topics of conversation:

Valid.

And now, a list of Lisa Lately stories:

• On Thursday (when I was sick, but not bedridden sick) Greta had a hot date. I had Facebook stalked the guy, naturally, but I hadn't seen him in person yet and I wanted a glimpse. So when I heard the knock at the door and Greta got up to answer it, I said "NOOO! Let me get it!" And jumped out of bed and ran to the door. Unfortunately, Carine beat me to it. When I saw Carine was at the door, I got distracted and ran straight into a wall--just in time for Greta's date to see, of course. 
• I also walked into a door this weekend. I don't have a good excuse for that one. But I was carrying a glass of water, and it made for a really great Seaworld reenactment. 
• While we're on this spilling water thing, I also learned that, no matter how good of an idea it seems at 4am, drinking water while laying down is impossible without a straw. Let's just say I dumped a class of water all over myself. Too tired to do anything about it, I flipped my pillow over and went right back to sleep.
• I think my sensitive gag reflex might have made its grand return. Lovely. I coughed so much a threw up. Kind of understandable. But then I threw up because I brushed my teeth. Gagging while brushing teeth? Normal. Actually vomiting? Not okay. It went something like this:
• Brush. Vomit. Re-brush, because umm...gross vomit taste in my mouth. Vomit, because evidently I can't have a toothbrush in my mouth without dying. Brush, again. Vomit. Give up. 

Shout out to all the lovely friends who brought me food while I was sick! You da best.

6'2

I often live my life through lyrics. I hear songs and think "YESSSSSS! That's the thing!" And then I feel so validated because somewhere out there is a songwriter who gets me.

Last night, I shared my current songs-that-really-get-me with the roommates. They laughed at the perfectness of the songs and then said "Lisa, where in the world do you always find songs that describe your life so perfectly?!" It's fate. And Pandora. And Spotify. But mostly fate.

So here's to patience (until July 1st) and trying to give up my ideas for His.

Who You Are

I have been doing a lot S T R E T C H I N G and growing recently.

It's been really hard, but really beautiful. Mom has been on the other end of the phone while I've cried a lot recently. I called her today, and she listened as the tears fell from my eyes yet again. But the tears today were different. Today's tears are tears of gratitude. God let me be part of something very beautiful. And it was worth every tear I shed during that hard, but beautiful experience. He has been teaching me so much. He is so good to me. Today, I am overwhelmed at the goodness of God, and how He knows exactly what I need. His timing is perfect.

I don't have all the answers my heart wants. He gives me glimpses of the plan, but for the most part I don't know what He's doing. But I know who He is. And that is more than enough.

A love poem

A love poem. 

Brought to you by some genius on Greta's Twitter feed.

Roses are red.

True love is rare. 

Booty booty booty booty rockin' everywhere.

Being single on Valentine's Day really isn't the worst

There are two kinds of people who might find themselves reading this blog post:

1. The people who already know my life. These are the people who read my blog mostly to see if I posted any pictures of them or if I said anything hilarious (or really nice) about them.
2. The people who stay updated about my life mostly by reading the blog. These are people I love, but I'm not the best at staying in contact with (apologies).

Now, there are two types of people who might find themselves in the above category #2:

       A. The people who knew I had a boyfriend.
       B. The people who were blissfully unaware because I never could quite figure out how to blog                 about him. There's a post saved in draft, but I never did finish it. And now it will ever remain               in its uncompleted draft form.

So, for those of you that find yourself classified as blog reader type 2A - here's the summary:

I had a boyfriend. We broke up last weekend.

I started writing a longer summary and then realized that that's really all you need to know.

Now that that's out of the way, let's talk about all the reasons why being single on Valentine's Day really isn't the worst.

1. Nobody knows how to spoil me better than me. Seriously, I know exactly what to get me for Valentine's Day: all of the fixings for homemade boba smoothies! Mmmmm.... BONUS: Greta wanted in on this deal so we scored two flavors.
   
2. Fondue for two is not limited to lovers. I have had this absolutely adorable fondue for two set for years, and I never get to use it because I had it in my mind that it was meant to only be used for dates. GREAT NEWS: it works splendidly for an evening in with the roomie. 
   
3. Galentine's Day is every day. But you still get to treat yo'self to breakfast with your ladies on February 13th in true Leslie Knope fashion.
4. Flowers are still adorning the table. Thank you, Bekah.
   
5. Treats galore. This week has been especially sugar packed due to the generosity of almost every one I know dropping off treats to cheer up by broken heart. I seriously know the best people.
   
6. It's totally acceptable to spend Valentine's weekend writing an 8-10 page paper. And it's also totally acceptable to procrastinate writing an 8-10 page paper, because it's not like you have to make time for a boyfriend or anything.
7. Barbie boyfriends. When I was 15, my friends got me the hunk on the left so I wouldn't be lonely (since I was not going to date until I was 16). The beach babe on the right came from some high school friends after Michael and I broke up. The roommates continued the tradition and gifted me the stud in the middle this week. Lest you think I am absolutely insane, I know a plastic doll cannot actually take away the pain of loneliness. But when I look at these guys I am reminded of how blessed I am to have the very best friends in the entire world - and that does heal the heart.
   
8. Impossible (maybe possible?) puzzles. Because who doesn't like to drive themselves bonkers with a gradient puzzle? *insert me banging my head against the wall here* 
   
   
   
   
9. The temple. I love the temple. I love the peace it brings now and the hope it brings for the future. A visit to the temple was exactly what I needed this weekend.
10. Greta. I wish I could adequately describe in words how grateful I am for Greta. This girl has taken care of me all week without complaint. She lets me dump all of my emotions on the floor and helps me sort them out. She lets me cry. She makes me laugh. She encourages all of my ridiculous ideas. And she hasn't hesitated once when I've looked at her with desperate eyes and said "I need out of the house PRONTO!" She just grabs the keys and we go on an adventure. My goal in life is to be someone's Greta. Maybe I can even be Greta's Greta. (Hey Gretz, did you notice that I gave you the coveted #10 spot on the list? That's because I think you are my greatest blessing this week. Thankyouthankyouthankyouthankyou!)

Nice to Meet You, 2016.

2015 was a pretty big year. I came home from my mission and *drumroll please* I finished an entire tube of chapstick without losing it for the first time in my life. 

I'm not sure that 2015's theme words were ever officially announced to the blogosphere - oh dear, have I even talked about theme words on the blog? I can't remember New Year's resolutions for an entire year, so I do yearly theme words instead. 2015 was the year of LIGHT and LOVE. As I embraced this year's theme, I fell in love with the idea of being a Mary (as in Martha & Lazarus's sister). I'm actually a little sad to lay these theme words to rest. Obviously, the goal is to keep increasing light & sharing light and loving others selflessly. But it's time for new theme words.

Introducing 2016's words:

Brave & Balanced

So here's to a brave and balanced year. Cheers.

Christmas 2015.

God is really good to me. It's kind of overwhelming--in the best way.

My first flight from California to Louisiana was delayed, and I ended up missing my connecting flight. There were no other flights leaving to any airport in Louisiana that night. I was stuck in L.A. Alone. Being the chicken that I am (and also having just taken a women's studies class that focused heavily on rape and sex trafficking) I was soooooo not okay with staying in the scary city all by myself. I had a little freak out/breakdown. Looking back, it's pretty laughable. I was totally fine. But in the moment, I was just not having it. It all worked out in the end. I found a flight to Indianapolis and Grandma and Ron rescued me by picking me up in the wee hours of the morning with very little warning. But here's the thing: it was exactly what I needed.

Everyone warned me that the first Christmas post-mission can be hard. Let's face it, there is nothing better than celebrating Christmas by serving Christ. Nothing. It was a tender mercy to be reminded that I don't need a missionary tag in order to be His hands. He knows where He needs me and when He needs me there. I just have to trust that and be willing. I needed to be on the specific flights I ended up on. I needed the lessons I learned from my seatmates, and hopefully they were blessed by our association as well. God is so good.

The extra day in Indiana meant I got extra Grandma time, which obviously rocked. It also meant I got to Skype into the Christmas festivities back home for the 3rd year in a row--just like on the mission :) The fam-bam traveled up to Indiana for Christmas Eve and Christmas day. There is just something special about Christmas at Grandma's. My heart is so happy.

Great-grandma Marge

Awkward family photo.
Strangely reminiscent of the time we all tried to pile on to one pool floatie.

These little lovebirds <3

...oh well.

California.

There are a lot of things to like about California:

1. Josh & Jordana. I FINALLY got to meet my cute new sister-in-law. Just in case you aren't aware, she is wonderful. She is so easy to love. And boy oh boy does Josh love her. It's the most beautiful thing. My heart is FULL of GRATITUDE for being able to spend time with them. I am very blessed in the family department.

2. Kugel and Lilly - Josh & Jordana's furry babies. They liked me, so I liked them.

3. Kayaking with otters. Seriously, why do I not go kayaking more often? 

4. The aquarium. Because aquariums are  fantastic places. Also because I got very excited about touching a sting ray and launched my arm into the tank without thinking. My sweater was SOAKED to my elbow. Worth it.

5. Purple sand beaches. NOT A JOKE. Absolutely magical.

6. Pizza My Heart. That place was seriously delicious.

7. The guest bed. Every night it felt like I had died, gone to heaven, and was sleeping on the best cloud. 

8. The weather. Leaving snow for sun? Yes, please.

9. Nice plane people. I had two flights leaving from California airports and my seat mates on both flights were absolutely delightful. Plane people are my favorite. Strangers should chat like plane-mates more often. I think it would do some good in the world.

10. Also, there's this boy from California. He was in Provo while I was there, but I think he still gets to make the "things I like about California" list.

A special story for those who read my blog even when I don't post it on Facebook...

I went on a date this week. I still don't know the guy's name.

A mutual "friend" (I've only talked to the guy that set it up a couple of times, so I'm not sure that classifies as friendship) set us up. He introduced me and ???. I didn't catch ???'s name, but for some reason I decided I wouldn't ask. I decided I would wait to hear someone call him by his name, and then I would know. Smoooooooth. Except no one used his name. So, I went the entire date not knowing his name. At the end of the date, he asked for my number so we could go out again. In my brain, this translated into "Great! Now I won't have to admit I don't know his name!I'll give him my number and then he'll text me his name so I have his number. Problem solved." 

...no such luck. The text was nameless. 

UPDATE: I found out his name. Just in case you wondered.