Love, Sorrow & Joy

October was an exciting month, to say the least! I have continued dating Dustin Chipman, which has gone very well. We had a blast with halloween costumes! He was a "minion" from the movie Despicable Me. It was way fun to be able to paint him all yellow:) I dressed up as a "Mardi Gras Debutant", which proved to be a lot of feathers and beads! The middle of the month was pretty hard. My dear friend Madison Mecum passed through the veil on Thursday, October 7th, 2010 into the loving arms of her father. She was tragically killed by a car driven by one of her classmates. My heart broke as my dad sat at her bedside and told me over the phone the injuries that she had sustained. I knew it was impossible that she would survive. The outpouring of love from our neighbors and community was truly a miracle to watch. I thank heavens that Dustin was around, he truly became my source of strength during that time. The month got better though as time flew by! Dustin surprised me with Tickets to the performance of "Thriller" by Odyssey Dance Theater at Kingsbury Hall, on Saturday October 30th. It was absolutely amazing! Freaky of course, but totally exciting! Best Anniversary Present:) The next day was my "little" brothers farewell. Josh spoke like he was already returned from a mission, he truly has set his bar very high! His talk was about the atonement and how every soul is a precious soul. He spoke about Madison and the Mecum girls. The next day was difficult, Dustin came in on his regular route time, but I could tell there was something going on. He proceeded to tell me that his mother had passed away in the middle of the night. It wasn't unexpected, she had been suffering for many years. I was given the opportunity to see her the saturday night before she passed, she was ready to leave her poor crippled body. She has truly touched my heart with what a "christlike" person she was. I am so thankful that I was able to meet her. Her funeral was arranged for that coming Saturday. She was the oldest of 9 children, of which the middle 7 are boys. For the first time in 10 years all of the siblings were together! I am very grateful I was able to meet them all. The next week flew by! Before I knew it, it was the dreaded wednesday, the day Josh was entering the MTC (Nov 10, 2010). That boy makes me so proud! We received his first letter that Saturday, you could honestly FEEL his excitement coming from the letter. Within the first couple of sentences he stated "my testimony has grown more in the last 3 days, than it has in 3 years". I truly am jealous (I know BAD). Nothing makes me more happy than to hear those words coming from him, I know he will be an amazing missionary! The people of Lansing Michigan better watch out, cause Elder "Beef" is going to track them down!

A new start...

Okay so I know it's been awhile since I've been on here. I guess that's because 2009 was not the greatest year of my life. I was in a very bad car accident at the beginning of the year and it has taken over a year and a half to really recover. Both emotionally and physically challenging the recovery has taken a long time. The good news is that it has finally made me realize what my true calling in life is. Taking care of people is what I do best, maybe not myself, but others have always been my top priority in life. This is the reason I have chosen to seek a career as a Registered Nurse. I am currently taking my generals at Broadview University, getting ready to submit my application for their RN program. Hopefully in April is when I will actually start.

I have also found a relationship that I am genuinly excited about. He is amazing. I can definitely see a future there. I am very grateful to my good friend Becca whom set us up. I will update all of you as time goes on.

Influences

I never thought I would say this, but I am actually enjoying my classes. At least my medical terminology class. I really feel like the information I'm learning I can use in my day to day activities at work. I never thought I would actually enjoy going back to school after so long.. But the more I'm learning, the more I can see why people enjoy it so much.
These past few weeks I have become more aware of the choices I am making and the way they are shaping me into the adult I want to be. I know these crucial years in my life are really what makes me want to be a better person. Thank You to all of those that influence the person I am today. You truly are some of the best people I know. I hope you all have a wonderful 2009!

Church and Friends

I want to let everybody know how grateful I am for my calling as a Relief Society teacher. It seems like everytime I teach, I am preaching to myself and the things I need to accomplish. This week was no exception with the lesson being on Elijah and the restoration of the sealing keys to this earth. I have been telling myself for several weeks now that I need to get back to the temple. Thankfully I have great friends in my ward and we are planning to go this coming Saturday. It seems like everytime I am down, all I need to do is call one of my friends up, and they can always bring me out of my funk. I am truly grateful to have such close friends who know me so well. Of course I have to mention that this last weekend I truly made a fool of myself at a hypnotist show. According to my brother and friends there were many things I did to make them laugh for the next century... So to my family and friends may I always be able to entertain you at the cost of my dignity. Thanks:)

2009 here we come!

At the beginning of every year we set resolutions that we attempt to accomplish in the next 12 months. As I start the 09' year I am reminded of the goals that I set last year. I must say that I am pretty proud of myself. I finally got myself to go back to school. No I didn't lose the weight I wanted, but I do feel healthier in a general sense. I believe I have come to a general consensus with myself and where I am today. Now for my 2009 resolutions. I want to take a trip somewhere I've never been. Whether it be backeast to the church history sights or overseas to Greece. I would like to get myself completely out of credit card debt by this fall. Lastly, I would like to be able to move out of my grandparents. I have a lot to accomplish. But I know that through persistence and dedication these things can be accomplished.

Remembering the Traditions

What an exciting week this has been for our family. With this being the week we celebrate our saviors birth, I reflected back on the memories of Christmas' past. Being that my family is in our "older" stages and not having any little children around, we tried to remember what the true meaning of Christmas is. I can tell that I miss having the excited butterflies on Christmas morning, as we sit at the top of the stairs and wait for Dad to get his butt out of bed and set up the camera. What I realized is that I get the butterflies now when I watch the ones I love opening up their gifts and seeing the joy on their faces. Of course there will always be our classic movie on Christmas Eve, Christmas Vacation, and the bacon wrapped chestnuts that are always gone in the blink of an eye. I look forward to our next Christmas to see the traditions and family members change. May we always remember the real reason we are together on this holiday.

Principles & Standards

Tonight is our annual Mortenson Christmas Party. I am very excited to be able to see my extended family. The more I reflect on this time of season, the more grateful I am for the love of my family and more importantly, the Savior. As I was preparing my lesson for Relief Society this morning, I reflected on the principles the savior has set forth for us. It is apparent to me that as long as we set our priorities inline with the Savior's plan for us we will never stray from our destined path. I am thankful for this time of season and for the standards that Heavenly Father has set for me.