H to the P

I admit that I was a little late in jumping on the Hogwarts Express. My elementary education friends kept talking about the books and did their best to convince me to give the books a try even though I am book snob. I started reading the books after watching the first movie and have been hooked ever since. I have attended the midnight showing for the past several movies and my friends and I decided to dress up in honor of the final movie. There were many people dressed up for the movie and I wish I had taken more pictures of the owls, Sirius Black, Mad Eye Moody, and Storm Troopers. Yes, Storm Troopers and Darth Vader made an appearance at the theater.

Approximately 1 hour into the movie, I started to hear uncontrolled sobbing and sniffling behind me and then it seemed to multiply. I looked at my friends and we all smiled and handed the girls behind us a few kleenex's. The girls proceeded to cry during the rest of the movie. I did not shed one tear.

HP, Ginny, Prof McGonagal, Luna, and Dobby

Eyes Wide Open

I often drive in silence as I go from meeting to meeting and while visiting clients throughout the valley. As I see people, I wonder what their story is. What lead them to where they are today and where are they heading? The following are just a sampling of people whose story I'd like to know.

A man changing his clothes at a bus stop.

A cello player at a local eatery. I've also seen him play downtown and I know he was recently given a new cello.

Men hoping to be picked for a work crew.

Do You Miss Me?

I received the following texts from my sister this morning.

Do you miss me now?

How about now?

Simple Fix

I was at a friend's house for dinner and her disposal was clogged. We called several guys and they either didn't answer or they didn't know how to fix the problem. I decided to call my dad and he walked us through the steps to unclog the disposal. Solving drain and disposal issues is definitely going to be added to the long list of things I can do.

I'm Still the Favorite

My sister-in-law called me a few weeks ago to tell me a story about Noella-belle. NB is obsessed with frogs and has a frog shirt that no longer fits. She turned to her mom and said, "It's okay that the shirt doesn't fit anymore, Shelley will buy me a frog shirt for my birthday." Talk about pressure. I started searching and wasn't finding anything I loved. And then genius hit. I remembered that my friend Sara makes a birthday shirt each year for her kids so I contacted her with my request. I let Sara have creative reign over the shirt and I think it's safe to say that everyone loves the finished product.

Summertime and the livin' is easy

This is me...

I'm sort of soft spoken and kind of sporadic but that really doesn't say a whole lot because sometimes I'm kind of loud and a little predictable.

You'll just have to see for yourself, I guess.

Air Dry

I may be known to leave the house with wet hair and then roll down the windows in the car in order to dry my hair. Results in The.Best.Curls.Ever.

Yee Haw

I went to the Oakley rodeo, or radio as young Matthew kept reminding us, with Meags and her family. I look forward to attending as many rodeos as possible each summer and my favorite events are bareback and bull riding. I remember going to the rodeo and horse races with my Grandpa B and I think of him each time I attend one of those events. The fireworks after the rodeo lasted for a whopping 4 minutes-incredible.

I Went Camping

A few weeks ago, my friend Sylinda and I decided to attend the ward camp out and I am glad we did. My friend Suz came along and I still haven't stopped laughing about the craziness that ensued. The drive to the camp was entertaining as the driver had to find the spot listed on the map as the destination even though an email had been sent with a revision. We set up our tent with ease and then watched as some guys struggled to put up a tent. I should mention it was an Springbar tent which may be more difficult than the one we were using. We stayed up late talking and making new friends. I awoke in the morning wondering if the night before had truly happened as I showed more personality in that one night than I have in the past year in which I have been in this ward. Awesome.

We All Have A Story To Tell

We all have a story to tell.
Whether we whisper or yell.
We all have a story, of adolescence and all it's glory.
We all have a story to tell.
Oh, happily ever after, wouldn't you know, wouldn't you know.
Oh, skip to the ending, who'd like to know, I'd like to know.
Author of the moment, can you tell me, do I end up, do I end up happy?
We all have a story to tell.

The above words are from a song entitled "Happily Ever After." Sometimes I think I want to know the ending before the beginning and yet, there are a few things I know without having a perfect understanding.

Each person does have a story to tell and each life matters. Whether our story is told to the masses or to a select few, there is value and worth in who we are and what we do.

Do I end up happy? Yes. I choose to be, therefore I can.

Heart Muscles

I was driving to the store, when I felt that I should make a phone call. I'm glad I made that call because the person on the other end was in distress and told me that they had fallen, may have broken something and the ambulance was at the home. I felt helpless.

Meanwhile, a neighbor was teaching her grandson about fire trucks when he went to the window and exclaimed, "Grandma, there is a fire truck across the street." She went to the window, grabbed her phone, and started making phone calls.

One of the friends who received a call from the neighbor rushed to the hospital and stayed until the husband of the injured arrived. A blessing was given and the waiting continued and still continues.

How grateful I am that there isn't a limiting quota on God's love and this week I was reminded that we are surrounded by those who help us feel God's love in a variety of ways.

In Memory

For as long as I can remember, Memorial Day has included BBQ's with family and visiting cemeteries to place flowers on the headstones of loved ones. This year, my parents and I cleaned headstones and talked about memories of those who have passed. What a reunion we will have one day.

Choo Choo

My dad called me earlier in the week and asked if I wanted to go on a train ride with the family and of course I did. Lucy(mom), Sy, Avy Shae, and myself met Rufus(dad) in Poky and boarded a train with local dignitaries. I was hoping the local newspaper would be covering the story so I could be on the front page but no such luck. I guess I'll wait until I'm one of the local dignitaries and then my picture and life story will be on the front page of several papers. Sy took dozens of random pictures and Avy Shae kept asking if they would be serving peanuts during our short ride to AF. Riding the train made me want to go on a vacation via train. I'll add that to the never ending list of 'must do' vacations.

Let's Get Ready for Rumble*

I have just returned from a week in the Dominican Republic and I am ready to board another plane as the trip was not long enough. Or maybe I want to escape the reality of email, phone calls, and everyday life for another week. When we arrived in the DR, we were met by beautiful people and humidity and I felt my curly hair expand with each passing minute. The drive to the resort provided great scenery and a small taste of life in the DR. Overall, it was a great vacation. No set schedule. Fresh fruit several times each day. Bahama Mama Slushies. Sun. Ocean. Good books. Sun. Great friends. Amazing views. Sun.

People will try to sell anything to people driving by.

Do not ask the ocean waves if that's all they've got because they will cause an injury. I always wanted a scar from the DR.

A marriage proposal from Tyson #1 is something I will always remember. He and Juan Eddie gave us their contact information so we can skype, call, email. We gave them email addresses that we rarely check and I may have received an email which is a story for another day.

Our Italian friends, whom we sat with during the nightly entertainment, had us dancing and singing each night.

Water Aerobics in the ocean is fun, but avoid rocks.

We met Tarzan and fed him some fruit.

*Quote by Fabio Star. I didn't have the heart to tell him that the phrase is Let's get ready TO rumble. Bless his Dominican heart.

Easter Bommets

I spent Easter in B-Town with the family. We had an Easter Egg hunt at Grandma B's house and Avy Shae asked me to wear her Easter Bommet. What?! We all had a good laugh while explaining that it's called an Easter Bonnet, not Bommet.













Pip dared me to climb the treehouse and I wasn't scared...until I started up the ladder. Now, I should mention that I once fell from the ladder but that was years ago. And, the treehouse isn't that high up but I guess I was mostly worried that myself and the tree would come tumbling down. Luckily, I survived. My sister laughed at me until it was her turn to climb.

Keep Portland Weird

I spent some time in Oregon visiting family and friends and I almost didn't come back. I really do love the Land of Port and continue to tell my brother that he should find me a job and/or potential husband and I will live in their basement until I buy a place of my own. Highlights from the trip:

1- Jimmer surprised me at the airport. My niece Brinners was embarrassed by the sign and spent the week saying she didn't like Jimmer. She'll learn and then she will go to BYU.

2- We spent a night at a cabin and we stayed up late watching movies on my brother's laptop. Actually, Brinners and Noelle-belle stayed up while the adults fell asleep. Awesome.

3- We ventured downtown for Voodoo Doughnuts and sampled the offerings. We also saw the "Keep Portland Weird" sign which was very appropriate with all we saw while waiting in line for a bacon maple bar and pink bubble gum doughnut.

4- I was able to go to lunch with Kaydi Rae and Cohen and I also had lunch with Dan and Andrea, who recently moved to Portland. I'm beginning to think I must move.

The low point: The disappointing BYU loss to Florida but buying new shoes helped with the pain.

Jazz

I went to a Jazz game with a couple of friends. I'm pretty sure that my presence is the reason we won...in overtime. Seeing Jeff Hornacek on the bench made me so happy.

Care of Self

Many years ago, I met with a supervisor who asked what I was doing for myself when not at work. I was not prepared for this question and didn't know how to answer. As we talked, I began to see the importance of having a life outside of work. I work from home which means I could be logging information, making phone calls, or checking email twenty-four hours a day, but there comes a point when I need, no, crave and depend on, Shelley time.
Fast forward to last week and the lesson was relearned. I had an appointment for a facial and I contemplated canceling so I could deal with critical issues at work. I took a deep breath and made a choice. I chose me. I knew that I would be better prepared to handle anything that came my way, if I only took an hour to relax and take care of myself.
As I left the salon, I felt renewed and confident that I had made the right decision and was better prepared to conquer work and life concerns. I know that when I take care of myself, I am better able to care for others.

"Things do not change; we change." ~Henry David Thoreau

No explanation needed