Tag Archives: gratitude

Nothing Is Troublesome That We Do Willingly

Yesterday I posted a blog that shared 10 Rules For The Good. After posting it I couldn’t seem to get one of the ten rules out of my head. It was rule number seven on the list which states that “Nothing is troublesome that we do willingly.” It struck me because too often I find […]

The Growing Definition of Love

Today’s blog is brought to you by Ashley Anderson Hill, recent newlywed, and Amy Rees Anderson’s amazing daughter 🙂 After recently getting married back in May, I’ve learned that my definition of love changes and develops every single day.  When we were dating, love was when Alex would surprise me with flowers, or take me […]

“No one can whistle a symphony. It takes an orchestra to play it“

“No one can whistle a symphony. It takes an orchestra to play it.”  – H.E. Lucckock The last few days my husband and I have been meeting with people who have all dedicated their time, talents and resources to helping to lift the lives of others.  Seeing the power that comes from having a group […]

Keep On Keepin’ On

The weekend is just around the corner, which in and of itself is something to get excited about.  Some days things go fantastic and other days can be a struggle just to make it through. When times are tough the best thing to do is remind yourself to just keep on keepin’ on: Keep on Keepin’ […]

If I Had My Life To Live Over Again

Yesterday I blogged about a talk Steve Jobs gave in which he discussed keeping perspective on life and death in the context of making decisions and not letting fear hold you back. After I’d finished that blog I couldn’t help but think a bit more about that subject of life and death, but my thoughts […]

What True Love Looks Like

Here is a beautiful story about what true love looks like: “It was a busy morning, about 8:30, when an elderly gentleman in his 80’s arrived at the hospital to have stitches removed from his thumb. He said he was in a hurry as he had an appointment at 9:00 am. The nurse took his […]

Staying Positive In The Most Difficult Of Circumstances

I am SUPER excited for this Fourth of July week as, next to Christmas, it is my favorite holiday of the entire year!  I love celebrating patriotism as I feel so grateful to be in America and it’s an honor to pay tribute to this land that I love and those brave souls who serve […]

“Be A Humble Influencer,” and other advice from actor Chris Pratt

A few weeks ago, actor Chris Pratt gave an acceptance speech at the MTV Movie & TV Awards in which he shared “9 rules from Chris Pratt, Generation Award Winner. When I heard his speech I was so impressed with how he stood up and openly shared his beliefs.  This video contains a few snippets […]

If You Want To Be Happy, You Have To Be Happy On Purpose

“If you want to be happy, you have to be happy on purpose. When you wake up, you can’t just wait to see what kind of day you’ll have. You have to decide what kind of day you will have.” –Joel Osteen I’ve learned a lot about this concept of being happy on purpose over […]

Can Our Words Make A Difference?

Can our words make a difference? Consider this little story: The Group of Frogs As a group of frogs were traveling through the woods, two of them fell into a deep pit. When the other frogs crowded around the pit and when they saw how deep it was, they told the two frogs that fell in […]

We All Have A Talent We Bring To The Table

I can still remember walking into a Deseret Industries thrift store as a newly married girl of 20 years old and spotting an old broken down piece of furniture. As I looked at it, in my mind I could literally picture the gorgeous rocking chair that it could be if I were to put a […]

Of Regrets And Resolutions

Six years ago I heard a talk by Dieter F. Uchtdorf called “Of Regrets And Resolutions” that impacted my life tremendously. I had pulled portions and excerpts from this talk (as the full talk was a little long to post in my blog) and shared them back in 2012.  Today I happened to be looking […]

Do It For The Others Whose Feet May Someday Pass This Way

I’m sure I’ve shared this poem at some point before but it was on my mind today so I had to share it again. When I’ve had a long day and I’m tired and find myself still awake and still needing to write a daily blog and it’s already 3am in the morning and I […]

Choices And Consequences

Life is full of choices. Some are easy choices and some are hard, but the upside of choices is they are always ours to make and no one can ever take that away from us. However, the downside to choices is that while we get to make them, we don’t get to choose what consequences […]

Rethinking Your Stress

It was sometime in the 1990’s when I first came across a PBS special where a woman was speaking in in a stand-up comedy routine sort of way on The Joy of Stress. Almost immediately I began laughing out loud listening to her as she described in the most entertaining way the self-defeating thoughts and […]

Every Song Begins With A Blank Page

“Every song begins with a blank page.” – Pasek & Paul This evening I had the incredible opportunity to go and hear Pasek & Paul, songwriters of The Greatest Showman movie, speak and perform at Utah Valley University ( UVU ).  Now I was a HUGE fan of The Greatest Showman movie and soundtrack already, […]

What Will Matter

Sometimes you read something that says what you are thinking more perfectly than you could say it yourself  – that’s how I felt when I read this poem by Michael Josephson, whom I had never heard of until someone showed me this poem , but I  like the message of his poem so much I’m […]

Go Back In Time And Be There For One Of The Greatest Moments In History

Can you imagine what it would be like to go back in time and be there when the Founding Fathers were developing the U.S. Constitution?  How amazing would that be!  Unfortunately, Elon Musk hasn’t yet tackled time travel (although if anyone had the brain power to figure that out it would probably be him!).  But […]

Feed A Cold, Starve A Fever, but what the heck are you supposed to do when you have both?!

Forever people have said, “Feed a cold, starve a fever.”  So all I want to know is what the heck you are supposed to do when you have both?! Being sick is the pits! And according to the news there are a whole bunch of people painfully aware of how miserable it is to be […]

It’s the things that take the most effort in life that end up meaning the very most

22 years ago today, February 5th , my baby girl Ashley was born. Ashley was as beautiful as any baby could be. You see, most babies come out with their heads looking a bit odd shaped and their faces a little swollen, but not Ashley. That’s because while I was in labor giving birth to her, […]

Bitter or Better – It’s A Choice

Liz Murray grew up with parents who were both cocaine addicts. Her family ran out of food a few days into each month because her parents spent their welfare checks on feeding their drug addiction instead of feeding her and her sister.  So as young girls she and her sister would go from door to […]

Just Think Of The Things You Are Glad That You’re Not

When my luck seems all gone, and I’m down in the mouth, When I’m stuck in the north and I want to go south; When the world seems a blank and there’s no one to love, And it seems even God’s not in heaven above. I’ve a cure for my grouch and it works like […]

Maybe We Should Just BE GLAD?!

I sat down at my computer at 9:30am this morning and here it is, now 12:50am at night (technically the next morning) and I am still sitting at my computer in the exact same spot…not a joke, although I wish it was. Today has been one of those crazy hyper-focused days of trying to complete […]

An Exemplary Life. Proof That One Man Can Change The World.

Tomorrow morning is the funeral of one of my heroes. My first interactions with Thomas S. Monson (whom I will refer to from now on as President Monson out of respect as at the time of his passing he was serving in the positon of the President and Prophet of The Church of Jesus Christ […]

Celebrate the Milestones, Have Balance, and Take Care Of Yourself

Today I met with an entrepreneur who is going through the pains of growing their young business. We talked about all the pains that come with learning to communicate your vision with your team, hiring, training, delegating, prioritizing your time, and all the other struggles that are typical growing pains for entrepreneurs. As I shared […]

Assume The Good And Doubt The Bad

Too often in life we allow ourselves to believe what I refer to as “the monsters in our head” -those negative thoughts that too quickly jump to judgement of ourselves or other people. It’s those thoughts about ourselves where we think we aren’t liked, or we don’t fit in, or that we aren’t good enough, […]

Don’t let the backlog of work ruin this week!

Can I just put it out there that facing the real world after a long holiday is seriously terr-i-fying! Really though…there is far little more daunting then having to actually face up to the fact that for the last month you have completely ignored all your incoming emails, phone calls, most of your paper mail, […]

Be That Star On The Hill #lighttheworld

Every night as I drive home the weeks before Christmas I look up on the hill above my house to see a big star that is lit up on the mountainside. It’s a star a neighbor has lit up for years during the holiday and I look forward to seeing it every night. There is […]

Some Unique Gift Ideas To Help You Give That Perfect Gift

Let’s face it – shopping for the perfect Christmas gift can be STRESSFUL! It’s so hard to find something unique or special to give. My personal feeling is that gifts from the heart are the best kind of gifts, but for those who are looking to buy something fun for their loved one I thought […]

All I Need To Know I Learned From Santa

All I Need To Know I Learned From Santa    (written by unknown) *Encourage people to believe in you. *Always remember who’s naughty and who’s nice. *Don’t pout. *It’s as much fun to give as it is to receive. *Some days it’s ok to feel a little chubby. *Make your presents known. *Always ask for […]