Tag Archives: gift

You Set The Tone

I was talking with someone the other day who was sharing how much fun they had at a Halloween party our family threw in our driveway. I was thanking them for coming to the party and I agreed with them that it was a really fun time. They then made a comment that really stuck with me […]

Some of God’s Greatest Gifts are Unanswered Prayers

Last week my husband and I were invited to the Garth Brooks concert in Utah and we were given the special opportunity to meet Garth Brooks and his wife Trisha Yearwood. I have to say that they were both so kind and so down to earth that it was really a pleasure meeting them. I […]

51 Days Til Christmas!

Holiday season has officially begun!!! Which also means tis the season for awesome online sales!!! That’s what I’m talkin’ about baby 🙂 I love, love, love the holiday season and I love the month of November because it’s the official kickoff to the season – it is time to bust out the apple cider, the […]

We Are Not Human Doings, We Are Human Beings

Today I was involved in the President’s Leadership Council board meeting down at Brigham Young University. As part of the program a great speaker named Brad Wilcox gave an inspiring talk. There were a few comments he shared that really stood out to me and I couldn’t wait to share them with you. First he […]

You Reap What You Sow

I am a big believer in the fact that we reap what we sow.  Not always do we get to sow our rewards as quickly as we would like, and by the same token other people who do bad things often don’t sow the punishments as quickly as we wish they would. But regardless of […]

“Every day may not be good, but there is something good in every day.”

Within any given week we are going to have good days, and bad ones. Rarely is an entire week perfect…at least I’ve never had a week like that myself. There are up days, and down days…there are stressful days and fun days…there are monotonous tasks that have to get done and there are new and […]

Ordinary Miracles

Life is full of ordinary miracles. Sometimes we recognize them and sometimes we don’t even realize they have happened until much later. Back in July of 2011 my family was headed down to Lake Powell when we experienced some pretty cool ordinary miracles happened to us. I shared the experience in a blog I wrote […]

Put a little love in your heart!

So last week I had a crazy week full of meetings where I had to get up super early each day and then I was up late each night. Thursday afternoon as I was battling to get through the traffic on the ridiculously crowded freeway with all the construction going on, I was definitely feeling the […]

The Future Can Be Better Than You’ve Ever Imagined

“Just because the past didn’t turn out like you wanted it to, doesn’t mean your future can’t be better than you’ve ever imagined.” -unknown Everyone has a story of disappointments they have faced. Times when things didn’t go their way. Times when the thing they were praying for didn’t happen. Times when they tried their […]

I was really here and I really lived

“I don’t want to drive up to the pearly gates in a shiny sports car, wearing beautifully tailored clothes, my hair expertly coiffed, and with long, perfectly manicured fingernails. I want to drive up in a station wagon that has mud on the wheels from taking kids to scout camp. I want to be there […]

Never Assume..Let Them Know

Over this last few days my husband and I were able to go and visit his family up in Idaho where he is from for his family reunion. His family, like mine, is large and spread out to several states across the country so it becomes increasingly more difficult to get everyone together in one […]

Don’t Be So Focused On The Steps That You Forget To Dance!

I LOVE LOVE LOVE to dance. Anyone who spends five minutes with my family pretty much knows that my husband and I and our two kids are constantly dancing around to music as we drive, as we clean the house, as we throw impromptu dance parties pretty much any place, anytime. I still remember coming […]

We are all that person that can change the world

I don’t often share videos in my blog because I know everyone’s time is short and just the fact you take time out of your day to read my blog is such an honor that I try to keep them quick to read. However, I had to share this video with you today because it’s […]

There is Something Inside You that is Greater than Any Obstacle

“Believe in yourself and all that you are. Know that there is something inside you that is greater than any obstacle.”  – Christian Larson I cannot tell you how much I love that quote. It is especially helpful at times when you are facing a current obstacle in your life because those are the times […]

The Trick Is To Enjoy Life

“The trick is to enjoy life. Don’t wish away your days, waiting for better ones ahead.”  – Marjorie Hinckley Enjoy life – what great instruction! And one that most of need to be reminded to do. Worrying about things we cannot change and waiting for things that may never happen….stupid right!?! I have decided that […]

Life is short, Live it well

Today we got word that a friend of ours, who we love and admire greatly, has been diagnosed with stage four lung cancer which has spread throughout her body. It came as such a shock to hear the news about her because we ran into her and her husband just a few weeks ago and […]

The Four C’s:  Curiosity, Confidence, Courage, and Constancy

“Somehow I can’t believe that there are any heights that can’t be scaled by a man who knows the secrets of making dreams come true. This special secret, it seems to me, can be summarized in four C s. They are curiosity, confidence, courage, and constancy, and the greatest of all is confidence. When you […]

The Ultimate Goal Is To Be Better Today Than Yesterday With A Plan To Become Even Better Tomorrow (Forbes Article)

How do we stack up? It’s a question we seem to constantly ask ourselves. Our brains want to know how we are measuring up compared to everyone else. Do we matter more than other people matter? Is our position more valuable than another person’s position? People can spend their entire lives trying to determine where […]

Love Isn’t Love Til You Give It Away

Do you remember how fun Valentine’s Day was when you were a kid? You would spend hours making your cute little cardboard mailbox out of the empty Quaker Oats container or an old shoe box. You would cover it with colored construction paper and then put cute heart stickers on it, and don’t forget the […]

Some People, Good People, And Extraordinary People

“Some people see the glass half empty. Good people see the glass half full. But extraordinary people are just grateful for the glass!”  That quote came today in the weekly email letter I get from my daughter Ashley on her mission and I loved it so much I had to share it with everyone. What […]

Success Comes From Focusing On Things You Can Control

There are a million aspects to life that are out of our control. And focusing on things you can’t control is absolutely pointless…no matter how much you focus on them you can’t control them so why waste the energy? Success comes when we stop worrying about those factors and things that are out of our […]

Time is Precious. Waste it Wisely.

“The greatest gift you can give someone is your time. Because when you give your time you are giving a portion of your life that you will never get back.” Reading that quote made me feel a little better today because I have been racking my brain all day to try and figure out the […]

It may not change the past but it sure does change the future

“No matter how good a friend someone is, they’re going to hurt you every once in awhile and you must forgive them for that.” When someone hurts your feelings you have two choices: You can hold on to the anger and bitterness and let it continuously bother you, or you can decide to forgive them […]

It’s Never Too Late To Start A New Tradition

Happy Christmas Eve to all of you! I want to wish each and every one of you a very Merry Christmas and Happy Holiday! Each of you touch my life and I am so grateful for all of you reading this. Thank you for being a part of my life and my life story as […]

The Masterpiece Intended For You

I think this story is the perfect story to share this week. It’s a great story, but the message it teaches is one near and dear to my heart. It is called the story of Three Trees: Once upon a mountain top, three little trees stood and dreamed of what they wanted to become when […]

December is the “Friday” of the Months

Seriously, don’t you just LOVE December! It really is like the Friday of the months…the month you look forward to all year and you relish it, wishing it wouldn’t have to end. It just seems like we spend more time with family and friends just being HAPPY during December, and it is so nice!  December […]

The First Gift

I couldn’t think of a better message to share going into this weekend than this one I am going to share below. With all of the hustle and bustle of getting ready for the holidays and the holiday parties and concerts and family celebrations and shopping for presents, it is really easy to get totally […]

Giving Is More Exciting And Better For Us Than Getting!

I love giving presents. I love planning surprises and putting thought into the little details and making a gift really special. I have so much fun anticipating the other person’s excitement and reaction that giving is way more exciting for me than getting a present. Not that I don’t love, love, love getting a gift […]

“Online shopping gives me a reason to live for another 3 to 5 business days”

I thought it only fitting with Thanksgiving coming up next weekend to take a moment to talk about something near and dear to many of our hearts…shopping 🙂 !!! Today my sister-in-law texted me the title of today’s blog, “Online shopping gives me a reason to live for another 3 to 5 business days,” and […]

When Something Breaks Your Heart

“That moment when you can actually feel the pain in your chest from seeing or hearing something that breaks your heart.” Those moments are the worst…they just are.  Seeing or hearing something that breaks your heart is such a hard thing to go through. It’s a feeling you wouldn’t wish on anyone. Most of the […]